City Council Votes to Charge Trainers for Park Use

If you've been to a public park lately, it's quite possible you've seen a private fitness class of one type or another gathered to workout. Recently, outdoor bootcamp-type exercise classes, personal trainer workouts and other fitness classes have grown in popularity to the point that city residents have been feeling crowded out of park land.

To address the concern, the Santa Monica's city council last week, in a 5-1 vote, decided to charge trainers fees for classes and regulate park use.

An annual fee of thousands of dollars, with a 50 percent additional cost for using the especially popular Palisades Park, will be charged to trainers, according to a report in the Los Angeles Times. Fees will be determined by the number of enrollees in a given class.

The Council also is establishing restrictions on which parks can be used for training, when they can be used and the kind of equipment that can be used, as residents have claimed heavy barbells and other equipment have caused damage.

The Council will review the ordinance, which has to be given a second reading before become law, in a year.

Do you think trainers should have to pay a fee to conduct classes at the parks? Have you been impacted by the classes? Let us know in the comment section.