Skateboarders in Poway will have to register and be fingerprinted before using the Skate Park.
The city council voted in favor of the new high tech entry system Tuesday night. Skaters will have to press a thumb pad on a turnstile. If a scanner matches a skateboarder's print to the one given in a new, free registration process, they'll be allowed in. A security camera will record the entry.
Park users who break the house rules or indulge in roughhousing, bullying or vandalism will have their thumbprint voided.
"So the next time they put their thumb in (the thumb pad), it will not work," says Poway City Councilman Jim Cunningham. "Then they will contact someone and find out why."
To critics who may see all this as somewhat Orwellian, Cunningham has this comeback "We're not Big Brother. The thumbprints are not going to Homeland Security. They're being used specifically for this particular facility, and we want people to enjoy it."
City officials say there'll be a fair appeal process for violators who lose their permits.
The projected cost of the thumb pad-turnstile system, complete with upgraded a security cameras, is $50,000.
