Park Use Info

General Booking Rules

• Age Limit: You must be at least 18 years old to reserve a park space. You can sign up online.
• Adult Supervision: An adult (18 or older) must stay at the facility the entire time it is being used.
• When to Book: You must reserve a shelter at least 5 business days before your event. If a shelter is not reserved, anyone can use it on a first-come, first-served basis.
• Hours:
  • Parks are open from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.
  • Shelter reservations run from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Using Your Shelter and Handling Disputes

• Your Reserved Space: You have first dibs on your specific shelter during your rental time. You may politely ask uninvited people to leave the shelter area.
• Public Spaces Stay Public: Reserving a shelter does not mean you own the rest of the park. All courts, fields, restrooms, and trails must stay open to everyone.
• What to Do If Someone Won't Leave: If someone refuses to leave your reserved shelter, do not get into an argument. Call the Police non-emergency line at 605-367-7000, and an officer will come help you.

Tip: Print your reservation receipt and bring it with you to the park.

Clean-Up and Damage Rules

• Your Responsibility: The person who signs the receipt is responsible for the shelter. If there is damage, you will have to pay for repairs or extra cleanup fees.
• Trash: Put all litter into the correct garbage and recycling bins. If you leave a mess behind, you could face criminal charges.
• Rules Enforced: Park staff and police officers can end your event immediately if you break the law or park rules.

Food, Grills, and Alcohol Rules

• Alcohol Limits: Only beer and malt beverages in plastic containers or cans are allowed. No wine, liquor, or glass bottles are permitted.
• Parks where alcohol is not allowed: You cannot drink alcohol of any kind at these 16 parks: Arrowhead, Falls, Fawick, Heritage, Kenny Anderson, Lyon, McKennan, Nelson, Pasley, Phillips Avenue Plaza, Tomar, Tower, Tuthill, Van Eps, Veterans' Memorial, and Whittier.
• No Glass: Glass bottles and containers are banned in all city parks.
• Grills and Roasters:
  • The city does not provide grills. You must bring your own.
  • Do not use grills under the shelters. Set them up out in the open.
  • Coal must be completely cold before you put it in a fireproof container inside the trash cans. Never dump hot grease or coals on the grass, dirt, or flower beds.
  • Portable fire pits are not allowed.
  • Large hog roasters cannot go on the grass or sidewalks. You must set them up in the parking lot.

Picnic Tables and Electricity

• Moving Tables: Most shelters have 4 to 6 picnic tables. You can move open tables from nearby areas by hand, but you cannot drive cars or trucks onto the grass to move them.
• Special Shelters:
  • Sertoma Park Shelter: This space holds about 440 people. You can rent the whole thing or just half (North or South side). Bounce houses are banned at Sertoma Park. You can only get a loudspeaker permit if you rent both sides.
  • Falls Park Open-Air Shelter: This has 14 tables. You can pay an extra fee to add 16 more tables.
• Power Limits: Outlets only support up to 110 volts / 20 amps. This runs about two small appliances at once, like a coffee pot and a crockpot. If you need more electricity, you must bring your own generator.

Permits, Signs, and Vendor Rules

You must get all necessary permits from the Parks and Recreation office at least 2 working days before your event.

• Tents and Canopies: You need a permit to set up any tent or canopy. Tape the permit to the outside so park staff can see it.
• Inflatables and Bounce Houses: Bounce houses require a permit and proof of liability insurance. Call the Parks office to get a list of approved rental companies.
• Loud Music and Sound: If your event will have very loud music or speakers, you must call the Health Department at 605-367-8760 at least 2 weeks early to get a sound permit.
• Signs and Banners:
  • Do not use nails or stakes to put signs into trees, posts, walls, or the ground.
  • You can tie banners to structures, but they cannot block park signs or hang from chain-link fences.
  • Take down all signs and banners as soon as your event is over.

Banned Activities and Items

For everyone's safety and to protect the grass, these items and activities are completely banned in all city parks:

• Dunk tanks, petting zoos, and kids' trains.
• Pony rides or horse-drawn carriage rides.
• Kiddy pools, water slides, or bounce houses that use water.
• Hooking up hoses to city water lines.
• Driving personal vehicles on park grass or sidewalks. Catering trucks must stay on the paved parking lots or paved driveways.

Extra Amenities and Inclusivity

• Outdoor Volleyball/Backstops/Basketball: Sand volleyball courts are first-come, first-served. You cannot reserve them, even if you rent a shelter.
• Porta-Potties: You can only bring in extra portable toilets if you get written approval from the District Park Supervisor.