HOWELL — The Township Council is considering changes to cooking regulations in Howell’s parks in an effort to keep the parks well-maintained, safe and clean for users.
On March 16, the council introduced an ordinance amending the playground and facility use policy to prohibit the use of charcoal and wood-burning grills in all public parks in Howell.
A public hearing on the ordinance is scheduled for 7 p.m. April 6 at Town Hall. The council may vote to adopt the ordinance after the public hearing.
According to the ordinance, the use of propane gas grills will still be permitted provided that a permit is issued by the Howell Fire Bureau. All users must also have the necessary approval for the use of the field (by lease or permit) prior to being issued a permit from the fire bureau.
At Echo Lake Park, cooking with propane will be allowed when the pavilion is leased by way of a separate permit issued through the fire bureau, according to municipal officials.
Issues regarding charcoal grills came to the attention of Mayor Bill Gotto and the members of the governing body after they received complaints from park users.
At a March 2 council meeting, during which the issue was discussed in depth, Councilwoman Pauline Smith said materials used for cooking are being left around parks. She said officials are responding to that problem.
“This is about individual families that come to the parks, and they are damaging the tables and benches and not disposing of the charcoal property, which becomes a danger,” Smith said.
“All the barbecues we have are rusted out, so what the general public is doing is barbecuing on top of wood benches and damaging them. And a lot of users do not know how to properly get rid of charcoal, which brings up the concern of increased fires,” Deputy Mayor Robert Nicastro said.
“I want to make sure everyone who uses our parks knows what this new regulation is before they are slapped with a very serious fine,” Councilman Edward Guz said.
Officials said signs that detail the cooking restrictions will be posted in all of Howell’s parks.
Township Attorney McKenna Torcivia said the first violation of the ordinance will result in a warning. A second violation will result in a $50 fine. Subsequent offenses will result in a $100 fine.