Ohio § 511.23

§ 511.23.

(A) When the vote under section 511.22 of the Revised Code is in favor of establishing one or more public parks, the board of park commissioners

shall constitute a board, to be called the board of park commissioners of that township

park district, and they shall be a body politic and corporate.  Their office is not a township office within the meaning of section 703.22 of the Revised Code but is an office of the township park district.  The members of the board shall serve without compensation but shall be allowed their

actual and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of their duties. (B) The board may locate, establish, improve, maintain, and operate a public park or

parks in accordance with division (B) of section 511.18 of the Revised Code , with or without recreational facilities.  Any township park district that contains only unincorporated territory and that

operated a public park or parks outside the township immediately prior to July 18,

1990, may continue to improve, maintain, and operate these parks outside the township,

but further acquisitions of land shall not affect the boundaries of the park district

itself or the appointing authority for the board of park commissioners. The board may lease, accept a conveyance of, or purchase suitable lands for cash,

by purchase by installment payments with or without a mortgage, by lease or lease-purchase

agreements, or by lease with option to purchase, may acquire suitable lands through

an exchange under section 511.241 of the Revised Code , or may appropriate suitable lands and materials for park district purposes.  The board also may lease facilities from other political subdivisions or private

sources.  The board shall have careful surveys and plats made of the lands acquired for park

district purposes and shall establish permanent monuments on the boundaries of the

lands.  Those plats, when executed according to sections 711.01 to 711.38 of the Revised Code , shall be recorded in the office of the county recorder, and those records shall

be admissible in evidence for the purpose of locating and ascertaining the true boundaries

of the park or parks. (C) In furtherance of the use and enjoyment of the lands controlled by it, the board

may accept donations of money or other property or act as trustees of land, money,

or other property, and may use and administer the land, money, or other property as

stipulated by the donor or as provided in the trust agreement. The board may receive and expend grants for park purposes from agencies and instrumentalities

of the United States and this state and may enter into contracts or agreements with

those agencies and instrumentalities to carry out the purposes for which the grants

were furnished. (D) In exercising any powers conferred upon the board under divisions (B) and (C) of

this section and for other types of assistance that the board finds necessary in carrying

out its duties, the board may hire and contract for professional, technical, consulting,

and other special services and may purchase goods and award contracts.  The procuring of goods and awarding of contracts with a cost in excess of fifty

thousand dollars shall be done in accordance with the procedures established for the

board of county commissioners by sections 307.86 to 307.91 of the Revised Code . (E) The board may appoint an executive for the park or parks and may designate the executive

or another person as the clerk of the board.  It may appoint all other necessary officers and employees, fix their compensation,

and prescribe their duties, or it may require the executive to appoint all other necessary

officers and employees, and to fix their compensation and prescribe their duties,

in accordance with guidelines and policies adopted by the board. (F) The board may adopt bylaws and rules that it considers advisable for the following

purposes: (1) To prohibit selling, giving away, or using any intoxicating liquors in the park or

parks; (2) For the government and control of the park or parks and the operation of motor vehicles

in the park or parks; (3) To provide for the protection and preservation of all property and natural life within

its jurisdiction. Before the bylaws and rules take effect, the board shall provide for a notice of their

adoption to be published once a week for two consecutive weeks or as provided in section 7.16 of the Revised Code , in a newspaper of general circulation in the county within which the park district

is located. No person shall violate any of the bylaws or rules.  Fines levied and collected for violations shall be paid into the treasury of the

township park district.  The board may use moneys collected from those fines for any purpose that is not

inconsistent with sections 511.18 to 511.37 of the Revised Code . (G) The board may do either of the following: (1) Establish and charge fees for the use of any facilities and services of the park

or parks regardless of whether the park or parks were acquired before, on, or after

September 21, 2000; (2) Enter into a lease agreement with an individual or organization that provides for

the exclusive use of a specified portion of the park or parks within the township

park district by that individual or organization for the duration of an event produced

by the individual or organization.  The board, for the specific portion of the park or parks covered by the lease agreement,

may charge a fee to, or permit the individual or organization to charge a fee to,

participants in and spectators at the event covered by the agreement. (H) The board may expend moneys from the treasury of the township park district, or revenue

derived from property taxes levied for parks and recreational purposes, for the public

purpose of presenting community events that are open to the public in the park or

parks within the township park district. (I) If the board finds that real or personal property owned by the township park district

is not currently needed for park purposes, the board may lease that property to other

persons or organizations during any period of time the board determines the property

will not be needed.  If the board finds that competitive bidding on a lease is not feasible, it may lease

the property without taking bids. (J) The board may exchange property owned by the township park district for property

owned by the state, another political subdivision, or the federal government on terms

that it considers desirable, without the necessity of competitive bidding. (K) Any rights or duties established under this section may be modified, shared, or assigned

by an agreement pursuant to section 755.16 of the Revised Code .