Wichita, KS Outdoor Cooking: Smoker Rules (2026)

260 governs any fire or cooking equipment set up on city park property, picnic grounds or other park facilities. Subsection (a) states plainly that open fires on park property are prohibited: there is no exception for a portable fire pit or campfire-style setup on the grass. Subsection (b) narrows lawful cooking to fires built in ovens, stoves, portable grills or other facilities that are specifically designed and posted for that purpose, meaning a park user has to use the fixed or portable grill equipment the city has designated, not an open flame anywhere on the property.

Every such fire must be fully extinguished before the user leaves the area. The section also gives the City of Wichita Fire Department, the Sedgwick County Fire Marshal, or the State Fire Marshal authority to prohibit fires entirely as a protective measure, for example during a burn ban tied to drought or high wind, which overrides the normal grill allowance. Subsection (c) covers cleanup: charcoal briquettes, wood or other cooking materials must be extinguished before being deposited in a designated, posted disposal area or a trash container, and it is unlawful to dump or deposit hot or burning coals or materials of any kind directly on the grass.

020, and a park fire violation can be charged in addition to any other applicable city, state or federal offense arising from the same conduct. This rule applies specifically to park property; a smoker or grill used in a residential backyard is governed by Wichita's separate open-burning and fire-prevention provisions, not this park-use section.