B | Consideration and Adoption of Ordinance No. 2018-42: Amending the Flagstaff City Code, Title 8, Public Ways and Property, Chapter 12, Special Events. | ||||||||||
Recreation Supervisor Claire Harper addressed Council with a PowerPoint presentation that covered the following: AMENDING SPECIAL EVENT ORDINANCE BACKGROUND REVISIONS The following individuals addressed Council in support of disallowing special event permits in the City Hall lawn and flagpole areas:
Councilmember Overton asked if there is a list of groups that utilize the plaza area. Ms. Harper stated that the events in the plaza over the past three years are as follows:
Ms. Putzova asked which events in the front lawn and plaza areas are multi-day events. Ms. Harper stated that the Bible Marathon, 9/11 flag display, and the Pride Flag on the temporary flagpole are all multi-day events. Moved by Councilmember Jim McCarthy to amend Ordinance 2018-42 to disallow special events on the paved area abutting City Hall near the flagpole, the nearby lawn area in front of City Hall. Vote: The motion failed for lack of a second. Councilmember Putzova stated that a display is not the same as when there is an activity tied to it. She asked if there are other considerations that could be built into the process to allow a multi-day permit if it is only to display flags or other articles. Vice Mayor Whelan suggested continuing the current practice but put restraints on signage, time allowed, and other things. Councilmember Putzova stated that the reason the Special Event process is used for the display of flags is because there is no other policy or process that addresses the flagpole specifically. She requested that a separate flagpole policy be created. Ms. Harper stated that a special event permit is a permit for exclusive use of an area. Councilmember Putzova asked if there could be different rules for passive use and non-passive use. Mr. Solomon stated that if it goes through the special event process then the same rules would apply regardless of passive or non-passive use. Councilmember Overton expressed concern regarding how the City would be differentiating between the groups that utilize the plaza area. He is hesitant to say no because he does not want to prevent the things that the community wants in that area at the risk that there may be something that is not wanted. Councilmember Putzova offerd that it is important to create an environment where people can express their views. Even when there is something that leads to negative emotions in people she would still err on the side of openness. If there is no way to regulate because everyone must be treated the same then she would rather leave things as they are. Councilmember Odegaard stated that he is not interested in changing anything right now. There are a lot of good things that are done in the plaza area and to deny those things in the future would be a disservice to the community. Vice Mayor Whelan stated that the issue is one of censorship and safety. It is unfortunate that there has to be discussion about the ability to have events on the lawn and plaza but there are safety concerns about what could happen. She leans more towards saying no to all because of the safety concerns. It is not no everywhere it is just no at City Hall. |
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Moved by Councilmember Jim McCarthy, seconded by Councilmember Scott Overton to read Ordinance No. 2018-42 by title only for the first time. | |||||||||||
Moved by Councilmember Jim McCarthy, seconded by Councilmember Eva Putzova to amend the motion to change Paragraph 8-12-001-0004 Noise Regulations, Section F, Sub-section 1, to have first sentence replaced and to read as follows: "For events at Wheeler Park, sound levels measured at 50 feet from the speaker locations must not exceed 85 decibels, A-weighted; for events at other locations where permits are allowed for amplified entertainment, the sound levels measured at 100 feet from the speaker locations must not exceed 90 decibels, A-weighted." Councilmember Overton stated that the Mayor had requested a sound study and demonstration and he will not support the amendment; he believes that the entire Council should be present discuss and make the decision. Councilmember Odegaard agreed and indicated that he will not be in support of the amendment because the study and demonstration should be done first. Vice Mayor Whelan stated that she will support the amendment; the community and the promoters have worked hard to resolve the issue and she would like to honor that. | |||||||||||
Vote: 3 - 2 | |||||||||||
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Vote: 3 - 2 | |||||||||||
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AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FLAGSTAFF, ARIZONA AMENDING THE FLAGSTAFF CITY CODE, TITLE 8, PUBLIC WAYS AND PROPERTY, CHAPTER 12, SPECIAL EVENTS, PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY AND AUTHORITY FOR CLERICAL CORRECTIONS, AND ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE DATE | |||||||||||