FAIRHOPE, Alabama—The City Council unanimously passed an ordinance Tuesday night outlining 14 rules and regulations for all parks and recreation areas with athletic fields in the city.

The ordinance will prohibit animals on the playing surface of any athletic field and mandates that all animals be leashed and solid waste picked up. The city already has a leash and waste pick-up ordinance, but people have been using the fenced athletic areas to let their pets off their leash, said Bob Keyser, a recreation board member and Fairhope High School Booster Club representative.

"There's nothing more discouraging than having to go out and pick up a young kid that slipped through a pile of dog waste because folks turned their dogs loose on the field," Keyser said. "That's a safety concern and it certainly is a health concern."

Coolers will also not be allowed at scheduled athletic events, according to the new ordinance. Keyser said the idea is that not allowing coolers at scheduled sporting events will promote the concession stand where revenue can be generated to support the youth leagues.

The ordinance also lists glass containers and alcoholic beverages as prohibited. Restricting coolers will make it easier to enforce those rules as well, he said.

The council passed an amendment to the new ordinance by Councilman Rick Kingrea, which says that coolers would not be allowed "at" scheduled athletic events rather than "during," for citizens who may be using the park but are not attending a sporting event.

The ordinance is meant to bring clarity to the rules for people using parks and attending sporting events, as well as to make it easier for the rules to be enforced, Keyser said.

The athletic fields included in the ordinance are at Fairhope Municipal Park, Volanta Park, Stimpson Field, Founder's Park, Barnwell and Manley Road.