Model rocket enthusiasts have a short reprieve on the North Little Rock Parks and Recreation Department's proposal to charge for an annual permit and a separate launch-day permit to shoot off rockets in Burns Park.
The proposal would require model rocket users to obtain a $25 annual permit and a second, free permit on the days they want to launch a model rocket in Burns Park in order to avoid conflicting with other scheduled activities.
The North Little Rock Parks and Recreation Commission tabled the proposal Tuesday evening until its Feb. 17 meeting. Part of the proposed requirements to limit the size of any rockets launched at the public park will also be reviewed.
Two model rocket hobbyists commented on the proposal. They asked for a larger area for launches than the two 500-foot diameter areas in Quad 4 at the Burns Park Soccer Complex listed in the proposal. Other areas of Burns Park and other city parks would be off-limits.
Model rockets are built from kits, launched straight up and are equipped with parachutes to control their return to the ground.
"Mainly, it was more about the size of the rocket," Parks Director Bob Rhoads said Wednesday of opposition. "They want to be able to do bigger rockets."
Because the soccer fields are on the western edge of the park, an adjacent property owner would need to agree to a larger launch area, Rhoads said. There is also an equestrian trail behind that area of the park.
"The only size we can regulate is for the size of our area," inside the park, Rhoads said.
The permit requirement came about over safety concerns because model rockets were being launched inside park areas without notification to Parks' staff, Jeff Caplinger, project coordinator for the Parks Department, said last week. Caplinger said later that he didn't have "any firsthand knowledge" of any mishaps or injuries from rockets being launched inside the park.
Requiring a launch-day permit, Rhoads said, is to avoid conflicts at the soccer complex and for the safety of other park users, especially soccer players and parents during practices or games. Such scheduled activities would take precedent.
"Up front, for $25, you get a permit for the whole year," Rhoads said. "Then all you have to do is send an email that says, 'Can I go to the soccer complex today and shoot a rocket?' The reason is so there are not any soccer games or some event scheduled."
Metro on 01/24/2015