440 



PARKS 



filed with the city council, and the other copy with 

 the park board. 



Section 12. Purchases of supplies to be made on com- 

 petitive bidding by the commissioner of purchases and 

 supplies. All supplies exceeding fifty dollars in value 

 shall be purchased for this department by the commis- 

 sioner of purchases and supplies under the rules and 

 regulations prescribed by the city council with respect 

 to competitive purchases of supplies by said official: 

 but purchases of fifty dollars or less may be made by 

 the park board without competitive bidding. 



Section 1 3 . Department to operate within budget allow- 

 ance. The park board shall not make any expenditure 

 of money or incur any liability for its maintenance and 

 upkeep for the current year beyond the amount of 

 money set apart in the annual budget for such purposes, 

 except as provided for in Section n, of Chapter X, of 

 this charter. 



Section 14. Approval of city council necessary to be 

 obtained to authorize certain expenditures by department. 



No expenditure shall be made or liability incurred 

 by the park board exceeding five hundred dollars in 

 amount, without first being authorized and approved 

 by the city council; but this section shall not apply to 

 employees that the said board may deem necessary to 

 employ for the operation of the said department for 

 the current year, where the salary of such employee 

 does not amount to as much as two thousand dollars 

 per annum; but all salaries of that amount or a larger 

 amount shall be first submitted to the council and 

 approved by it before such employment shall become 

 effective. 



Section 15. Board to file annual report with council. 

 It shall be the duty of the park board, at the end of each 

 fiscal year, to file with the council a full and detailed 

 report of the business and operation of the said depart- 

 ment for the year then ending and to make such recom- 

 mendations to the council as they may deem advisable, 

 looking to the improvement and betterment of the 

 service of said department. 



LEGISLATION CONTROLLING METROPOLITAN PARK DISTRICTS 



The Tacoma, Washington, and Cleveland, Ohio, laws are illustrative 

 of legislation for cities having metropolitan park districts. The state law 

 creating the metropolitan park district of Cleveland, Ohio, follows: 



Section 2976-5. Upon the creation of such district 

 the probate judge shall appoint three commissioners, 

 who shall take office immediately and whose respective 

 terms shall expire one, two and three years, respec- 

 tively, from the first day of January next after the date 

 of their appointment, and thereafter their successors 

 shall be appointed by such probate judge for terms of 

 three years. Before entering upon the performance of 

 his duties, each commissioner shall take an oath to 

 faithfully perform the duties of his office, and shall 

 give bond for the faithful performance of the duties 

 of his office in the sum of five thousand dollars. Such 

 bond shall be approved by and filed in the office of 

 the county auditor. Such commissioners shall serve 

 without compensation, but shall be allowed their actual 

 and necessary expenses incurred in the performance of 

 their duties. 



.Section 2976-6. Such commissioners shall constitute 

 the board of park commissioners of such district, and 

 such board shall be a body politic and corporate, and 

 shall be capable of suing and being sued as in this Act 

 provided. Such board may employ a secretary and such 

 other employees as may be necessary in the perform- 

 ance of the powers herein conferred, and shall keep an 

 accurate and permanent record of all its proceedings. 



Section 2976-7. Such board shall have power to 

 acquire lands either within or without such district for 

 conversion into forest reserves and for the conserva- 

 tion of the natural resources of the state, including 



streams, lakes, submerged and swamp lands, and to 

 those ends may create parks, parkways, forest reserva- 

 tions and other reservations and reforest, develop, im- 

 prove and protect the same in such manner as they 

 may deem conducive to the general welfare. Such lands 

 may be acquired by such board, on behalf of said dis- 

 trict, by gift or devise, by purchase or by appropriation. 



In case of appropriation, the proceedings shall be 

 instituted in the name of the board, and shall be con- 

 ducted in the manner provided for the appropriation 

 of private property by municipal corporations in so far 

 as such proceedings are applicable. Either the fee or 

 any lesser interest may be acquired as the board may 

 deem advisable and the provisions of this section shall 

 apply to districts heretofore created. 



Section 2976-8. Said board may also, by agreement 

 with the council or other public authority in control of 

 parks or park lands within any municipality in the dis- 

 trict, assume control of all or a portion of any existing 

 parks or park lands within such municipality; and in 

 such event, such parks or park lands may be developed, 

 improved and protected as in case of lands otherwise 

 acquired by said board; provided, however, that noth- 

 ing herein shall authorize said board to acquire or con- 

 trol any park, park lands, parkways, playgrounds, other 

 lands or boulevards owned or controlled by any other 

 public authority except byagreementas above provided. 



Section 2976-9. In the development and improve- 

 ment of the lands acquired by the board, such board 



