Siskiyou County Municipal Code Art. 1 Activities at Lake Siskiyou

The Board of Supervisors desires to impose safety restrictions on activities at the Box Canyon (Lake Siskiyou) Project area. This is an urgency ordinance within the meaning of Section 25131 of the Government Code as it is for the immediate preservation of public peace, health and safety within the meaning of Section 25123(d) of the Government Code. This ordinance shall be passed immediately upon introduction, and shall take effect immediately.

(Ord. No. 13-05, § I, 6-4-2013)

(a) Certain activities engaged in by local residents and visitors to the Box Canyon (Lake Siskiyou) Project area, including, but not limited to, jumping off of Wagon Creek Bridge, present serious safety concerns to the County.

(b) Currently, the County has no ordinance that sufficiently regulates the adverse activities that are hereunder prohibited.

(c) With the immediate onset of the summer season, it is anticipated that local residents and visitors to the Box Canyon (Lake Siskiyou) Project area will be engaging in behaviors that historically have presented health and safety concerns, including allowing equestrian animals to enter the waters of Lake Siskiyou, and swinging or jumping from Wagon Creek Bridge.

(d) For these reasons, the Board of Supervisors of Siskiyou County finds that a public emergency exists that affects the life, health and public welfare of local residents and visitors to the Box Canyon (Lake Siskiyou) Project area and that for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, and safety an urgency exists to require the immediate adoption of the ordinance codified in this Chapter and that the ordinance codified in this Chapter should take effect immediately.

(Ord. No. 13-05, § I, 6-4-2013)

Persons shall abide by the following restrictions at the Box Canyon (Lake Siskiyou) Project Area, which shall include all of the lands owned by the Siskiyou County Flood and Water Conservation District surrounding Lake Siskiyou.

(a) Unlawful Swimming: It is unlawful for any person to wade, swim, or bathe adjacent to Box Canyon Dam within that area cordoned off by a floating boom.

(b) Domesticated Animals:

1. Except as provided in subdivision (b)(2), no person shall bring any dog or other domestic animal into the Box Canyon (Lake Siskiyou) Project area, except on a leash, bridle, or by other means of restraint.

2. No person shall allow an equestrian animal to enter the waters of Lake Siskiyou. Equestrian animals and dogs off leash shall be restricted to those areas designated by mark or sign by the Siskiyou County Flood Control and Water Conservation District.

(c) Vehicle Restrictions:

1. No person shall operate an unregistered motor powered vehicle within the boundaries of the Box Canyon (Lake Siskiyou) Project area. All motorized vehicles used within the project area, excepting watercraft, shall be highway licensed vehicles.

2. No person shall operate or park any vehicle in the Box Canyon (Lake Siskiyou) Project Area outside of the roads, thoroughfares, and parking areas designated for said purpose by the Siskiyou County Flood Control and Water Conservation District.

(d) Pollution Prohibited: No person shall leave or abandon in the Box Canyon (Lake Siskiyou) Project area any rubbish or garbage, including human waste, bottles cans, waste paper, or glass, except in designated receptacles.

(e) Prohibited Activities: Within the Box Canyon (Lake Siskiyou) Project area, it shall be unlawful to:

1. Notwithstanding Section 4-4.202, hunt or discharge any firearm without a permit in writing issued by the Siskiyou County Flood Control and Water Conservation District, except law enforcement personnel acting in the line of duty;

2. Possess, discharge, or use any kind of fireworks or other pyrotechnic devices, except by permit issued by the Siskiyou County Flood Control and Water Conservation District;

3. Light, build, maintain, attend, or use any open fire, except in a designated fireplace, or by permit issued by the Siskiyou County Flood Control and Water Conservation District;

4. Cut wood;

5. Camp in areas not designated for that specific use by mark or sign by the Siskiyou County Flood Control and Water Conservation District;

6. Climb or swing on, or dive or jump from Wagon Creek Bridge or from the dam or any part thereof;

7. Cross Wagon Creek Bridge in any manner except by foot, excepting by use of wheelchairs or other similar conveyances used by disabled persons;

8. Fish from Wagon Creek Bridge;

9. Occupy Wagon Creek Bridge in any manner that obstructs the free passage of pedestrians across the bridge;

10. Use any barbecue grill, hibachi, portable stove, or smoker on Wagon Creek Bridge.

(Ord. No. 13-05, § I, 6-4-2013; Ord. No. 14-07, § I, 5-20-2014)

Violations of this Chapter are declared to be an infraction, excepting violations of Section 3-20.03, subsection (e), which are declared to be a misdemeanor.

(Ord. No. 13-05, § I, 6-4-2013)