Hi, I couldn't remember if you were ticketed based upon the location of you and/or your car, or based upon where the drone was flying. So here's from your original blurb:
"Turns out the land on the other side of the freeway is a regional preserve and my drone flying over the space was prohibited. Therefore, I was issued a citation with a notice to appear in late November."
Here's a quote from the FAA response letter, from immediately below the part you quoted:
• Operational UAS restrictions on flight altitude, flight paths; operational bans; any regulation of the navigable airspace. For example – a city ordinance banning anyone from operating UAS within the city limits, within the airspace of the city, or within certain distances of landmarks. Federal courts strictly scrutinize state and local regulation of overflight. City of Burbank v. Lockheed Air Terminal, 411 U.S. 624 (1973); Skysign International, Inc. v. City and County of Honolulu, 276 F.3d 1109, 1117 (9th Cir. 2002); American Airlines v. Town of Hempstead, 398 F.2d 369 (2d Cir. 1968); American Airlines v. City of Audubon Park, 407 F.2d 1306 (6th Cir. 1969).
From their comments to you, and from reading the code they say they're enforcing, it sure sounds to me like they think they can regulate flight paths, in other words overflight over their regional park district. Assuming you weren't standing inside the grounds of the park then the only thing they could be prohibiting is overflight. I think somewhere Thunderdrone quoted the ordinance as prohibiting flying less than 500 feet over the park. While if appears that the FAA would tell them they can't because that's part of the navigable air space, you may not need to resort to that, because it sounded like they are trying to prohibit ANY overflight of the park by a drone. No can do, at least not without risking the strict scrutiny of a federal court. All of which makes me think that you're wise to go to trial in the courtroom, not by written declaration. Written declaration means you have to shoot your best shot without knowing exactly what the city/state's theory of prosecution is, i.e., exactly HOW they say you violated the ordinance. That way you only have to combat one theory by the prosecution.
You sure you don't want some donations to the legal defense fund? Sure would be handy to show up with a decent attorney. "FREE NORB!, FREE NORB!"