Council Bluffs, IA Public Conduct: Skateboarding Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Zone name
- Downtown Skateboard Free Zone, CBMC 9.10.040
- Banned there
- Skateboards, roller blades/skates, off-road scooters/bikes
- Bicycle exception
- Allowed on roadway obeying traffic laws
- Event exception
- Written, site-specific, granted by controlling official
- Adopted
- Ordinance 5696, 2002
- Penalty
- Simple misdemeanor, CBMC 9.10.050
Summary
Council Bluffs bans skateboarding, along with roller blading, roller skating, and riding a scooter or bicycle off the roadway, on public property inside a downtown 'Skateboard Free Zone' set out in CBMC 9.10.040. Riding a bicycle on the traffic portion of the street is still allowed inside the zone if all traffic laws are followed.
No person, while on publicly owned property within the skateboard free zone, shall ride upon or move about upon skateboards, roller blades, roller skates, scooters, or bicycles. ... The operation of a bicycle upon the portion of the city street designed for vehicular traffic shall be permitted within the skateboard free zone, so long as all traffic laws are obeyed. ... The area designated as the skateboard free zone shall be the area with a perimeter commencing at the intersection of the southern right-of-way line of 16th Avenue and the western right-of-way line of 7th Street; then running northerly to the northern right-of-way line of Kanesville Blvd.; then running northeasterly to the eastern right-of-way line of First Street; then running southeasterly to the southern right-of-way line of Pierce Street and then the eastern right-of-way Bluff Street to the southern right-of-way line of Fifth Avenue; then running westerly to the eastern right-of-way line of Main Street; then running southerly to the southern right-of-way line of 16th Avenue; then running westerly to the point of beginning.
Full Breakdown
CBMC Chapter 9.10 creates a downtown Skateboard Free Zone rather than banning skateboarding citywide. CBMC 9.10.020 makes it unlawful for any person on publicly owned property inside the zone to ride upon or move about on skateboards, roller blades, roller skates, scooters, or bicycles. CBMC 9.10.040 draws the zone's perimeter starting at 16th Avenue and 7th Street, running north to Kanesville Boulevard, northeast to First Street, southeast past Pierce Street and Bluff Street to Fifth Avenue, west to Main Street, and south back to 16th Avenue, the same downtown core covered by the electric-scooter no-ride rule in Chapter 9.09.
CBMC 9.10.030 carves out one standing exception: a bicycle may still be ridden on the portion of a city street designed for vehicular traffic within the zone as long as the rider obeys all traffic laws, and the official or body controlling any particular piece of public property inside the zone may grant a written, dated exception limited to a specific location, date, and time, with the written approval kept on site while the exempted activity occurs. Chapter 9.10 was adopted by Ordinance 5696 in 2002 and has not been amended since.
Violations & Fines
Riding a skateboard, roller blades, roller skates, a scooter, or a bicycle off the roadway on public property inside the Skateboard Free Zone is a simple misdemeanor under CBMC 9.10.050, subject to the penalty in CBMC 8.02.020, though the city attorney may instead charge the violation as a civil municipal infraction under CBMC 1.95.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is skateboarding banned everywhere in Council Bluffs?
Where is the Skateboard Free Zone?
Can you still ride a bicycle through downtown?
Can an exception be granted for an event?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Council Bluffs
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