Don't do it! Don't drive that ATV on Greenway Trails or in Brookfield Parks

In December, I wrote about our neighborhood's newest segment of the Greenway Corridor Recreational Trail at Mary Knoll Park.

Poochie and I took a walk on the main trail to check out the new pathway.

While there I heard what I thought was a chainsaw and it made me wonder if some other work was going on in the park. Was there a fallen tree that needed clearing?

No. It was an ATV!

I had turned off on one of the connection spurs to see exactly where it annexed the street in the neighborhood to the south of the park.

As I returned to the park, I was met by this youngster, fully outfitted, on an ATV. He/she drove by me and headed down the street, bold as brass.

When I got back to the main trail again, I saw that the ATV driver had been on the paved trail and also drove on the open field. The tire tracks seemed to have headed toward the tennis courts to the north.

I met another woman on the trail; she said she lived next to the park. We started to talk about the ATV, and she said she has heard them in the park several times.

After I returned home, I emailed Bill Kolstad, Brookfield's Director of Parks, Recreation and Forestry, to make sure that ATVs were not allowed. He promptly replied: (My emphasis)

ATV Use - Chapter 12.24.040 of the Municipal Code stipulates that "No person in a park shall.......drive any vehicle on any area except the paved park roads or parking areas or such other areas as may, on occasion, be specifically designated as temporary parking areas by the commission." An ATV is defined as a "vehicle".

I also asked Bill if residents should call the police if they see or hear ATVs in the parks. He replied:

Absolutely. Our best shot at control is detection and enforcement. My guess is that it is probably someone from the neighborhood.

His guess was right. I saw the ATV drive down the road and disappear into one of the driveways.

Not quite sure if I should call the send officer police phone number at central dispatch or some other number, I called the send officer line. They assured me that was the correct phone number.

I remember from attending the public hearings for the Greenway Trail system at Kinsey Park and Cardinal Park that some neighbors were concerned about motorized vehicles using the trail system.

So if you see a snowmobile or ATV in the parks or on the street, help those concerned neighbors out and call the send officer line to report the incident: 262-787-3700.

Links:

Practically Speaking, Fairly Conservative, Betterbrookfield, The Right View Wisconsin, CNS News, Jay Weber, Mark Levin, Vicki Mckenna