PONCHATOULA - The Ponchatoula Police chief says something has to change after a shooting near a park during the Strawberry Festival.

Two people were injured in a shooting on North First Street near Tasker Park on Sunday. It's a park, Chief Bry Layrisson says, that has always been a security concern.

Layrisson says during the Strawberry Festival weekend, the park draws between 300 and 400 people.

"It's just a large gathering. A lot of people come from out of town. They just set up in the park barbecue, boil crawfish, whatnot," he said.

Layrisson says that due to the constant issues at the park, five officers were stationed nearby when the shooting occurred on Sunday.

"There are a lot of children out playing in the yards. We are worried about them getting hit by gunfire. So we think that if the park was closed and those three or four hundred people weren't there, it will help save lives," he said.

Last year, Layrisson proposed a city ordinance to close all city parks to events and gatherings when a special event permit is issued for something like the strawberry festival.

According to the Ponchatoula Code of Ordinances, special events are any function that uses public property and is expected to have 50 or more people.

"We just don't have enough law enforcement resources that weekend to keep everyone safe at the Strawberry Festival and as well as all of our other residents and guests throughout the city," Layrisson said.

Layrisson says after receiving so much pushback, he withdrew the ordinance before it came to a vote, but he says Sunday's shooting may spark the conversation again.

"Something is going to have to change, or somebody is going to get killed at Tasker Park. It escalates every year to more and more," he said.

Tyroneka Livers says she was at the park on Sunday.

"They do have a lot of people out here because it's known to be First Street Park. This is a known park, but other than that, I don't agree with them closing the park down during the Strawberry Festival weekend because the shooting did not happen in the park. The shooting happened a couple of inches up from the park," Livers said.

People we spoke with say the park is a place for families to gather during the festival weekend and would not want to see it closed during the festival.

"It's not the park, it's those who don't care about others and their surroundings. We've got to watch out for those people. All people," Ponchatoula resident, Tee said.