CAMARILLO : Council Considers Skateboarding Ban

Skateboarding may become crimes at some Camarillo shopping centers after the City Council today considers giving property owners the right to ban skaters from their premises.

The proposed law follows an attempt by authorities earlier this year to contact the parents of minors who had drawn complaints from merchants at Village Square Shopping Center.

“We seem to be the most popular spot for kids to hang out, skateboard and get rowdy,” said Steve Reizer of La Cagnina & Associates, which manages the shopping center. “We have slopes and nice curbs, which they prefer, I’m informed.”

The problem peaked during the summer months, when groups of as many as 20 young people would loiter in the center and flout the center’s restrictions on skating, Reizer said. Skateboarders would disrupt pedestrian traffic and cause some property damage, he said.

Troublemakers among the group would also harass some of the center’s customers, which include many senior residents of nearby Leisure Village, Reizer added.

While the problem has eased since school has resumed, Reizer said the center has had to hire a security guard to handle the skaters.

The ordinance would give the owners of any private or public property the option of prohibiting skaters by posting a written notice of the ban, which police would enforce.