Another thought: if the council passes rules banning kite fighting, how will enforcement work? With our current enforcement levels, I don't see how a ban will change anything.

It seems reasonable to disallow kite fighting, but I don't feel like we should have rules specifically about kite fighting.

How about enforcing existing rules about littering and other activities that are already disallowed in park spaces? If fighting kites were classified similarly to something else (maybe throwing knives, maybe there's a better analogous weapon), they'd already be banned from public spaces. In private spaces where all resulting debris remains in that same private space, it seems like less of a problem assuming everyone has permission to be there. Otherwise that's trespassing plus more for any damage they cause.

How often are kite fighting incidents? How long do they run for? Is this a more frequent problem than other things that are already widely overlooked, such as people with off-leash dogs in the parks? What about snowmobiles driving around in the middle of the night (which at minimum seems like a noise bylaw violation), often along walking paths which disallow motorized vehicles?

I honestly expect there is a much higher risk of me being injured by a car not stopping at a stop sign. Let's keep our priorities straight.

I agree Adrian. I tried to post my thoughts, however kept getting a message I had a banned word in my comment. I can assure you, there was no such thing in it. Your comments sum up my thoughts well.

we have already had multiple issues in the township with these kite strings in farm fields. There’s no place for this here. Sorry.

in Kite Fighting, if a kite is cut and flies away, who cleans it up? I assume it ends up as litter somewhere including the possibility of getting stuck in a tree or power line.

If the string of a cut kite is abrasive, does it not then pose danger to pets and wildlife wherever it lands back on the ground?

These questions are why I feel Wellesley township should ban kite fighting. Also, with other municipalities banning kite fighting, if we don’t, we could become overrun with people coming from other areas to do this in our parks.

If a kite is cut and flies away but not cleaned up, is that not already banned? I'm not sure how banning it more is going to mean the activity stops. It seems silly to make specific rules when broad ones already apply.

I agree with all of the problems you raise, I just don't expect a ban in isolation to be effective. Otherwise, a whole bunch of other things would not be happening in the township that are.

it is dangerously for cattle, and farmers crops if it gets in the fields when it is harvest time. The string is razor sharp. We don't need it around here.

Kite fighting is a danger to the environment, particularly in rural areas where livestock graze. The abrasive string with glass coating can also get tangled in trees, and on private properties or public areas, this presents a harmful situation and a mess to clean up. I don't disapprove of cultural games, but they should take place in wide-open and controlled spaces, not in rural areas where the dangers noted above are real for livestock.