treatment of what is or should be a public user facility (like a local road) as simple private property.
Irrespective of whatever you think it should or should not be, it is owned by the council, like the roads (which is why you or I don't fix them or build them, they do). As such they can dictate how it is used, like they do the roads. Yes they provide them as a public facility, as they do many things, but all come with caveats.