6.2. PRSR 07-09-2014 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Banning this Hobby ? A sign was recently put up in Elk River that stated that"Treasure Hunting with the use of Metal Detectors was banned in all Parks". When I saw this sign,my first thought was: Why? An individual with a metal detector,finding and recovering lost coins,is harming absolutely no one or nothing. We are simply enjoying the use of the park in an activity that we enjoy,as much as anyone else does in the activities that they enjoy doing. It gets us outdoors,provides us with a good form of physical activity. When curious people approach us,we are always happy to take the time to explain our hobby to them and show them items that we have found that day. Pet's can quickly make a mess of a Park,but they have not been banned.Instead,there have been reasonable rules applied to control their activity,which allows the pet owners to continue to enjoy the parks. I do agree that the same should be done with the Metal Detecting hobby. My proposed Solution: I believe that outright banning any activity from Public Property should require a sound legitimate reason to do so,and should only be done as a last resort. Rather than banning this activity,the Parks and Recreation Office could easily control it,as many other Government agencies have done.This could be done by issuing,a Permit to metal detect in the City Parks. A Permit(I have included an example that I modified from the Ramsey County Parks)would outline the proper procedures to follow to ensure that the Permit holder does not create a problem.If a Permit holder is observed not following these procedures,their Permit could be revoked. This way you can allow this hobby to continue for those of us that do follow the rules. For all of the above reasons,I am requesting that this ban be removed,and replaced with a Permit system. Thank You ! Steven Shoemaker PS: I welcome any of the Park Commissioners to come along with me to see how the metal detectors work,and how we conduct our hobby. *Something about me: I have lived in Elk River for 25 years. I have just retired after 40 years of Military Service(both Active and Guard).I spent 10 years as a Military Police officer,and 30 years as a Helicopter Pilot. I did a combat tour in Iraq,I have flown in several rescue missions in the Red River Valley floods. I have flown fire fighting missions throughout the state,and was one of the Blackhawk Pilots that responded to the 35W Bridge collapse. My two favorite pastimes are Metal Detecting and Gold Prospecting.