RESPONSIBLE CITY AGENCY: Public Services Department
KEYWORDS: Parks, monument, plaque, marker, memorial
1. General:
1.1 Salt Lake City Corporation (the “City”) recognizes that its public parks are public forums for free expression activities. The City also recognizes that it may exercise its own government speech in certain situations.
1.2 On occasion the City receives requests by private persons or entities to allow the placement in a City park of a monument, marker, plaque or memorial.
1.3 The City has an important interest in avoiding overcrowding, clutter, or saturation of City parks with donated monuments, markers, plaques or memorials.
1.4 The City desires to set forth a policy that will guide the City’s decisions regarding whether to allow the placement in City parks of such monuments, markers, plaques or memorials.
1.5 The City may exercise selectivity and place some, but not all, offered privately donated monuments, markers, plaques and memorials in City parks. The final decision regarding whether to accept a particular monument, marker, plaque or memorial will be made by the City’s Public Services Director.
1.6 The City may select or place monuments, markers, plaques or memorials that portray what the City believes is appropriate for the park in question, taking into account such factors as aesthetics, history, and local culture. Therefore, the monuments, markers, plaques and memorials accepted are meant to convey (and have the effect of conveying) the City’s message, which constitutes government speech of the City.
1.7 The City may prohibit privately donated monuments, markers, plaques and memorials in City parks where conservation easements or identified conservation values require protecting the land in a predominantly undeveloped state.
2. Purpose:
The Purpose of this policy is to:
2.1 Establish the objectives for the acceptance and placement of donated monuments, markers, plaques and memorials in the City’s park system.
2.2 Define the criteria the City will use in accepting and placing monuments, markers, plaques and memorials that individuals, groups and businesses would like to donate to the City.
2.3 Establish the application requirements for an individual group, or business requesting the placement of a monument, marker, plaque or memorial in a City park.
2.4 Guide the City in determining the appropriate location for the proposed monument, marker, plaque or memorial.
2.5 Ensure that the design, placement and appearance of the monument, marker, plaque or memorial is consistent with the community interest, park function and the natural environment.
3. Objective:
Monuments, markers, plaques or memorials proposed for City parks shall:
3.1 Be consistent, in the City’s judgment, with the intended purpose of the City’s parks and their surrounding environment.
3.2 Enhance the landscape, recreational and cultural value of the City’s parks.
3.3 Encourage community engagement in the enhancement of the City’s park system.
The City desires to encourage donations of monuments, markers, plaques or memorials while at the same time managing aesthetic impacts and mitigating on-going maintenance cost.
4. Acceptance Criteria:
The City will use the following criteria in the evaluation of proposed monuments, markers, plaques and memorials:
4.1 No monument, marker, plaque or memorial will be placed in a City park unless it is consistent with this policy or any park-related administrative rules of the City.
4.2 Monuments, markers, plaques or memorials will only be considered for placement by the City if they do one of the following:
a. Commemorate places or historical events of national or local significance.
b. Commemorate a community association and/or group that has contributed significantly to Salt Lake City.
c. Commemorate a deceased individual who contributed significantly to Salt Lake City.
4.3 A monument, marker, plaque or memorial will not be considered for placement if the City believes it would be considered offensive to the inhabitants of the City.
4.4 A monument, marker, plaque or memorial will not be considered for placement if the purpose is to promote a political cause, issue or event.
4.5 The City shall not place a monument, marker, plaque, or memorial in a City park that conveys a message that religion or a particular religious belief is favored or preferred or results in an excessive entanglement of the City with religion.
4.6 The City may allow donors to place a small donor recognition plaque on the monument, marker, plaque or memorial. The City will determine the size of the donor recognition plaque.
4.7 The monument, marker, plaque or memorial must have a logical connection to the specific site where it is to be placed.
5. Assessment and Approval Process:
The City and its citizens value parks and public lands. Therefore any request to add a monument, marker, plaque or memorial will be carefully assessed to ensure that what is being proposed protects the integrity of the City’s parks.
The assessment and approval process is as follows:
5.1 An individual, group or business proposing to place a monument, marker, plaque or memorial in a City park must submit a detailed application to the City’s Public Services Department. The applicant must provide the following information:
a. The design/structure, etc. of the monument, marker, plaque or memorial.
i. A view in its finished condition or as a model.
ii. A view of any inscriptions or pictures that may appear on the monument, marker, plaque or memorial.
iii. Materials used to construct the monument, marker, plaque or memorial, which must be of high quality to ensure a long life, and be resistant to the elements, wear and tear, and to acts of vandalism.
b. The suggested location of the monument, marker, plaque or memorial.
i. Public input regarding the placement of a monument, marker, plaque or memorial at a particular location may be required by the City.
c. If construction is required, a proposed time frame for the construction to begin and end.
d. A detailed explanation of how the proposed monument, marker, plaque or memorial meets the objectives and criteria of this policy.
5.2 The Public Services Department will review the application to determine if the proposed monument, marker, plaque or memorial meets the criteria and objectives of this policy. Public Services will not consider the proposed monument, marker, plaque or memorial if it does not meet the stated objectives and criteria of this policy.
5.3 The Public Services Department will determine the appropriate location for the proposed monument, marker, plaque or memorial in consultation with the applicant. The location may be different than what the applicant proposed.
5.4 The Public Services Department will ensure that the design of the monument, marker, plaque or memorial respects the natural environment of the park in which it will be located. It will also ensure that maintenance and operating implications of the design will be considered before approval.
a. The City also has an interest in ensuring that on-going maintenance costs do not negatively impact the resources available for maintenance of other City parks.
5.5 If the Public Services Department approves the proposed monument, marker, plaque or memorial, the applicant shall construct/install the monument, marker, plaque or memorial and must agree to pay the full cost of designing, building and installing the monument, marker, plaque or memorial. The applicant will also be responsible for future repair and maintenance of the monument, marker, plaque or memorial and shall pay the cost of such repair and maintenance.
5.6 The applicant must furnish acceptable insurance coverage or appropriate bonding during the construction period and may be required to procure insurance for as long as the monument, marker, plaque or memorial resides on City property.
5.7 Once the monument, marker, plaque or memorial has been constructed/installed on City property it will be deemed as donated to the City and the City will own the monument, marker, plaque or memorial until such time that it is removed from City property.
5.8 If the monument, marker, plaque or memorial becomes damaged or destroyed, the donor shall repair or replace it within six months. If the donor lacks the necessary funds or resources to repair or replace the monument, marker, plaque or memorial within such six-month period, the applicant, subject to applicable legal restrictions, shall, unless otherwise directed by the City, remove the monument, marker, plaque or memorial within 30 days after the City gives, at the last known address of the donor, notice of damage or destruction, and the donor shall pay the cost of removal. If the monument, marker, plaque or memorial is not removed by the donor within 60 days of such notice, the City may dispose of the monument, marker, plaque or memorial based on then current City policies and procedures.
6. Removal and/or Relocation Process:
This section applies to both existing and new donations. The City reserves the right to remove and/or relocate donated monuments, markers, plaques or memorials when (a) they interfere with the site safety, maintenance or construction activities, (b) become unsightly due to vandalism or lack of maintenance and repair, or (c) if the law changes such that the monument, marker, plaque or memorial or its message would be treated solely as the speech of a private person rather than the governmental speech of the City The City will send a registered letter to each identifiable donor notifying the donor of any action related to the disposition of the donation. In certain situations, such as safety or emergency situations, the notification may be made after the action taken. In the event a monument, marker, plaque or memorial must be permanently removed, the City will seek an alternative location consistent with this policy. If no such location can be found, the information contained on the monument, marker, plaque or memorial may be, at the donor’s request, located on a memorial plaque set aside for this purpose at a designated location.
EFFECTIVE DATE (Date signed by Mayor): June 21, 2011