Hacky sack could be banned from the Promenade
Some business owners say a friendly outdoor sport is the root of many evils on the Third Street Promenade.
So they have suggested that the city ban “hacky sack,” a popular game played with a round bean bag from the outdoor mall.
As part of its on-going efforts to address public safety issues on the Promenade, a small committee of Bayside District Corporation board members is looking at ways the city, police department and maintenance workers can address many business owners’ worries.
One of their concerns is that people kicking around hacky sacks are causing a public nuisance. Sometimes, the hacky sack hits pedestrians strolling by. Occasionally, it thumps against storefront windows, business owners say.
Business owners claim the group’s play deters residents and shoppers from sitting on benches in the center court — which is in the middle of the Promenade, directly across from the food court.
“What we’re doing is looking at more ways to open up the space to the public,” said Kathleen Rawson, Bayside’s executive director. “If people are playing hacky sack there, you probably would feel less inclined to walk through the center court.”
The committee also is considering removing the benches in the center court and erecting a tent where various city restaurants could set up food stands.
At a meeting last week, the committee played a video tape to City Attorney Marsha Moutrie, Police Chief James T. Butts, Jr. and Mayor Pro Tem Kevin McKeown that showed a group of youths in the center court of the Promenade kicking around a hacky sack.
The group had left their backpacks strewn about the ground, along with other larger bags and belongings, officials said.
However, a law could be passed banning all ball play on the Promenade. Already roller-skating, roller-blading, skateboarding and bicycle riding are prohibited.
“The only thing I saw was that they were playing a game,” said Moutrie, “though it appears it’s not dangerous, it could be problematic when the Promenade is crowded.”
Mayor Mike Feinstein and McKeown understand the safety concerns, but they don’t support an ordinance banning the game.
“I appreciate the concerns that people have about unsocial and potentially intimidating behavior by small minorities of people on the Promenade,” Feinstein said. “I don’t however feel that banning hacky sack, a non-violent playful activity, is the appropriate way to address people’s concerns.”
Feinstein said people playing hacky sack on the Promenade need to be considerate. However, he described people who play hacky sack as “mellow.” He added that the game is about sharing the ball and keeping the group together instead of beating an opponent.
“It’s not my primary sport,” he said, “but I’ve been known to kick around the sack.”
Yesterday afternoon a group of six young men took turns with the hacky sack, passing the small ball to each other only by using their feet or other body parts.
Sometimes the ball was kicked beyond the center court, and one member of the group would run through a small crowd of pedestrians to chase it down.
Only once did the ball come close to hitting somebody, and there was a conscience effort to keep the ball in the center court.
“I’ve never heard anybody complain, and I’ve never seen a pedestrian get hit,” said “Dave,” a hacky sack player who wouldn’t give his last name. “This little bean bag is harmless, even little kids do this.”
A few employees of businesses said the sport is not the real issue.
“The hacky sack has never bothered me,” said Marie Scott, manager of Art One. “It’s the aggressive panhandling and all the screaming of profanities at each other that gets to me.”
One employee said what some business owners see as bad characteristics of the Promenade may actually be drawing people to the street.
“It’s all part of the Santa Monica culture,” said Daisy Chen, a Hype store employee. “People come here to see everything from the homeless to people playing hacky sack.”
Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce President Ann Greenspun and a public safety committee member, said the group isn’t trying to crack down on hacky sack specifically, but behavioral issues that may discourage people from shopping on the Promenade.
“There seem to be so many efforts to protect the rights of kids on the Promenade, but there doesn’t seem to be the same level for business owners, who give back to the community,” she said. “Overall, (the committee) is trying to address issues of behavior or crime because we want to make people believe this is a safe place to come, and that perception is very important.”
The committee will meet Thursday to discuss its safety recommendations, including hacky sack. Those recommendations will then go before the full Bayside board for a vote.
If the full board approves the committee’s recommendations they would be passed on to the city council, which is the only body that can prohibit activities on the Promenade — or anywhere else in the city.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on April 17, 2002. Read the original PDF.