Unnecessary ordinance needs to go

We had no idea that playing four square or catch in Elyria's streets would violate an obscure city ordinance from 1945. That shouldn't be the case, but we looked up Elyria Codified Ordinance 311.06, which City Council seems poised to repeal, and it sure seems designed to suck the fun out of being a kid. "No person shall fly a kite or play any game of ball, or quoits, or other game on any street unless the same shall have been set aside for playground purposes," it says. Granted, the ordinance doesn't appear to get much use these days. At a meeting of Council's Utilities, Safety and Environment Committee last week, Law Director Amanda Deery said the ordinance was outdated and lacked an effective punishment structure. Because penalties for violations are tied to traffic violations, there's no mechanism to enforce it against those under the age of 16. We imagine that most of those who might run afoul of the ordinance are younger than that. We suppose a parent could be cited for tossing a football to a kid, but that hardly seems like a good use of police resources. Deery said neither the Law Department nor the Police Department had any objections to repealing the law or modifying it in some way. "I would recommend to the Utilities Committee that something needs to be done about the language of this ordinance because, quite frankly, it is not productive or usable as is," she said. We agree. The ordinance is up for debate 80 years after it went on the books because of what appears to be a neighborhood dispute on Briar Lake Drive in the city's 4th Ward. Councilman Kenny Oswald, D-4th Ward, said he had talked to people on both sides of the issue. "The people that I've talked to — young, old — that have kids, yes, they love having the kids there," he said. "But the ones that don't have kids don't think that cul-de-sac should be a playground for their area. So they feel their rights are being taken advantage of." One resident, former Wellington Schools Superintendent James McGlamery, argued that the kids on the street "are sometimes loud, and they are disruptive to me and others in the neighborhood." It also is a safety issue, he suggested. "With 12 or more children at times playing in the streets, even after dark, it is not safe," McGlamery said. "They are running in the street, they are riding bicycles around in the area, (and) they are playing ball." Sounds like normal childhood stuff to us. On the other hand, kids shouldn't be playing on busy streets. When they do play on quieter residential streets, they should be safe and respectful of neighbors. Jayson Bendik, the principal of Open Door Christian School and a resident of the street who supported repealing the ordinance, said his kids had been harassed, insulted and even videotaped. Those aren't acceptable ways to handle kids playing outside. Yes, as McGlamery suggested, Elyria does boast several fine parks, but some kids aren't old enough to make the trip by themselves and sometimes parents aren't available to accompany them. That doesn't mean that kids should be confined to their homes or even their yards. Indeed, as most parents would probably tell you, kids are spending too much time inside on screens these days. Being outside and flying a kite, tossing a ball or even playing quoits — that's ring toss, which was probably more popular in 1945 than it is today — are good for kids. If kids are really being disruptive, we suppose the police could step in. Deery pointed out that other city ordinances would cover noise complaints, property damage or blocking traffic. But it shouldn't come to that. Instead, as Councilwoman Donna Mitchell, D-6th Ward, suggested, such disputes would be better resolved by neighbors talking to each other. "The issues that you all have are, unfortunately, your issues. The city can't do anything about what you are going through," Mitchell said. "... What I would implore you all to do is sit down, work together and try to figure out a compromise because you know that this ain't that serious." That's a good idea. So is repealing the ordinance against playing in the street.