The calendar is jammed with late summer/early fall events, two in Library Park, a couple in downtown parking lots and others requiring streets to be blocked off. Each venue has its pros and cons and elected officials have vowed to look more closely at such events in 2014 before granting approval.
An increase in festivals this year means the use of Lots 8/8A and Lot 1 downtown pits revelers against shoppers and business owners. Organizers say they need the locations so nearby restaurants can offer fresh-cooked food, but many of the booths are self-contained. Business owners say customers can't park behind the stores, though there are other parking lots close by. Unfortunately, city parking lots are not marked, so if traffic is directed to Lot 4 or 5 for the day, few people know where to go. The city would also have to lift permit parking restrictions in other lots so event goers would not be ticketed.
How much trouble would it be to survey business owners next spring to get a consensus on use of the parking lots and work out alternatives for parking?
As for street closures, each situation is different. North Avenue by the train station, where another festival is planned, is not the same as North Avenue between Berckman and Richmond, where a motorcycle club wants to close the street for a celebration of their new clubhouse opening.
The council has already decided it makes more sense to have traffic and public safety reviews of proposed venues before the request comes to the governing body for approval. In addition, the council learned this year that giving breaks on fees or application requirements causes ill will, so the goal for next year is consistency on the $2,500 per day fee for festivals and submission of requests 45 days in advance.
As always, there is something new under the sun. While the city is still figuring out how to deal with a surge in Hispanic heritage festivals, a nightclub group now wants to hold a rodeo. Because the applicant wanted to rush approvals and got turned back, we didn't hear details such as where this rodeo might be held and what extra public safety concerns might have to be addressed.
Ethnic attractions can be a huge draw for a city, but for the sake of residents, their impact needs to be thought out and addressed ahead of time. The council has acknowledged both points, which bodes well for 2014.
--Bernice
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Great - a rodeo. There have already been complaints about human waste in the streets after the festivals. Now we can add horses.
ReplyDeleteI think the county parks are a great place to hold these events, and let the downtown recover from the disrespectful way some people treat this city during the festivals.
I think a Rodeo will be huge for th City of planfield. What's the problem people give Plainfielders some credit we to like nice things.
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