HomeMy WebLinkAboutPC Minutes13_0122_workshopCity of Falcon Heights - Planning Commission Workshop of January, 22, 2013 - Page 1 of 1
City of Falcon Heights Planning Commission
Minutes of the Planning Commission Workshop: Special Event Ordinance
January 22, 2013, 7:00 p.m.
Commissioners met for the workshop at 7:00 p.m. Present were Commissioners Gustafson,
Black, Brown and Wartick, Council Member Harris, Staff Liaison Jones.
Commissioners were provided with the draft special event ordinance written by the City
Attorney based on the result of the November workshop. During the discussion, staff noted
requests for changes and questions for the attorney.
Council Member Harris asked why the State Fair was blocked out but not the “Back to the
50s” fairground event, as the latter has a worse impact in her opinion. Commissioners
explained that they had decided at the November workshop to “try it.” If an initial event did
not go well, that could be a basis for denying future permits or placing additional conditions
on a permit, which the ordinance allows.
Again, Commissioners expressed concerns about the mechanics of denying a permit. Do we
need specific grounds for denial? Or is failure to meet the conditions of the ordinance
enough? Can a permit be denied at the discretion of the City Administrator or designated
staff? Can the ordinance say this? More attorney advice is needed on the denial issue.
Commissioners also questioned the revocation provision’s ten day appeal provision. How
would this serve in the case of a permit that needs to be revoked during the event itself due to
failure to meet permit conditions? Does the abatement clause in the enforcement section
cover this?
The exempting of events of less than 200 people from the permit requirement (unless alcohol
is served, in which case any event needs a permit) also came in for some questions from
Commissioners. The consensus was that 200 is a very large number relative to the city’s
small venues and their close proximity to residential zones. A 100 person cut-off was
proposed, but this might draw in some of the specific neighborhood events Commissioners
wanted to exclude from the permit requirement. The compromise number was 150.
The 7 a.m. start time for set up was also questioned. Commissioners may look at restricting
the hours further but did not do so at this workshop.
Staff was directed to change the wording of the paragraph that gives the City Administrator
authority to waive provisions under some circumstances so that it applies to individual
provisions, not the whole ordinance.
The draft has no provision for charging additional fees for the use of “Special Services” as
defined in Section 1, except for clean-up charges in paragraph (8) of the standards section.
The City of Medina has a section for special services fees and a deposit. Does Falcon Heights
need to add this? It was noted that indemnification is covered in paragraph (15) Insurance.
Commissioners requested the presence of an attorney at the hearing for the ordinance. The
workshop was ended by consensus at about 9:00 p.m.