Chapter 12.32
OUTDOOR SPECIAL EVENTS

Sections:

12.32.010    Outdoor special events.

12.32.010 Outdoor special events.

A. As used in this section unless the context requires otherwise:

1. “Special event” means a planned temporary aggregation of attractions and/or persons for picnics, fundraisers, and/or public or private gatherings that shall include without limitation public entertainment, food and beverage service facilities, sales of souvenirs or other merchandise, or similar attractions, that are (a) conducted on the public way; or (b) conducted primarily outdoors on property open to the public other than the public way, or in a public place, and which:

a. Includes activities that require the issuance of a village temporary food establishment license or a special event liquor license; or

b. Requires special village services, including but not limited to any of the following: street closures; provision of barricades, garbage cans, stages, special no parking signs; traffic control; special electrical services; attendees parking on the public way; special police protection; police staffing requirements in excess of the general budgeted daily police staffing for the village; and additional nonbudgeted expenditures by the village for any village services required by the event.

“Special event” does not include a parade for which a permit is required under Chapter 10.110 RMC, or a village-wide festival conducted pursuant to an intergovernmental agreement authorized by ordinance.

2. “Department” means the village president or his designee.

3. “Sponsor of the event” means the entity who is conducting the special event or in whose name or for whose support the proposed special event will be presented.

4. “Public place” means the public way and any other location open to the public, whether publicly or privately owned.

B. No person shall conduct a special event unless the sponsor of the event obtains a special event permit from the village.

1. Where the sponsor of the event is not the owner of the property where the outdoor special event will be held, the property owner must provide to the sponsor proper written notice within twenty-four hours of receiving a request to hold an event, regarding this chapter and the village’s requirements for special event permits for outdoor special events.

2. If proper written notice is not provided by the property owner to the sponsor of the outdoor special event, the sponsor of the event and the property owner will be jointly and severely liable to the village of Riverdale to pay any and all expenses incurred by the village relating to the special event and any application fees, interest, penalties, or fines that would have been owed to the village if proper written notice was provided.

3. The failure of the property owner, if the property owner is not the sponsor of the event, to provide written notice of the requirements of this chapter to the sponsor of the event does not relieve the sponsor’s duty to comply with this chapter, nor of their joint and several liability to pay any damages incurred by the village relating to the special outdoor event or of any application fees, interest, penalties or fines.

4. A property owner, if the property owner is not the sponsor of the event, shall require in all of its agreements or permits with the sponsor of the event, a provision that will obligate the sponsor to comply with the regulations set forth in this chapter.

C. Unless the special event is to be conducted in January or February, applications must be filed in the calendar year in which the event is to take place. If the event is to take place in January or February, the application must be filed no earlier than one year prior to the event. Each application submitted by the sponsor of an outdoor special event shall be accompanied by a nonrefundable processing fee of:

1. Fifty dollars if the application is submitted more than sixty days prior to the event.

2. One hundred dollars if the application is submitted between fifty-nine and forty-five days prior to the event;

3. One hundred fifty dollars if the application is submitted between forty-four and thirty days prior to the event; and

4. Five hundred dollars if the application is submitted between twenty-nine and fifteen days prior to the event.

No application for a special event permit shall be accepted less than fourteen days prior to the special event.

The application shall include all information required on the application, including but not limited to the following information:

1. The name and address of the sponsor of the event, and the name, address and telephone number of an authorized and responsible agent of the organization;

2. The name of the owner of the property where the event will be held; the name, address and telephone number of an authorized and responsible agent of the property owner;

3. A description of the special event that will be conducted;

4. The dates and times of the special event, including any requests for street closures, parking on the public way, a site plan, and the estimated attendance for the special event;

5. Whether food, alcoholic beverages or merchandise will be sold at the event;

6. Whether music will be played at the event and if so, whether such music will be electronically amplified. If electronically amplified music will be played, the applicant shall also comply with Chapter 9.24 RMC;

7. Plans for event security, including the number, hours and location of deployment of personnel and equipment that will be provided by the applicant;

8. What special village services, if any, the special event may require;

9. The proof of insurance and agreement to indemnify, defend and hold harmless required by subsections L and M of this section, respectively;

10. The number of all food vendors; alcoholic beverage vendors; and/or itinerant merchants who will be participating in the special event;

11. Such other information that may be reasonably necessary to determine compliance with this code.

All information provided on the application shall be complete and truthful. If, prior to the event, the sponsor of the event changes any of the information required by this subsection C that would necessitate additional village services or would require approval from any village department, the sponsor of the event must submit an amended application to the department no later than seven days prior to the date the event is scheduled to begin.

D. The department shall promptly send copies of all applications for a special event permit to the following entities and individuals, for the purpose of obtaining input on the factors set forth in subsection E of this section:

1. The police department;

2. The fire department;

3. The public works department; and

4. The chief of staff.

If any of the above-listed entities or individuals have any information that the proposed special event does not meet the standards set forth in subsection E of this section, written objections must be sent to the department within twenty days or the department will presume there are no objections.

Within twenty days of receipt of the application, the police department shall review the applicant’s security plan, including provisions made for private security personnel and for handling emergencies, and shall determine whether the applicant has planned for and provided sufficient personnel and equipment to protect public safety at the event or whether the village will need to provide additional village police and traffic control personnel and equipment. The determination of the need for additional village police services shall be based on the expected pedestrian and vehicular traffic and congestion, considering the following factors: estimated attendance, density of area, size of area, number of street closures and affected intersections. If the police department determines that the village will be required to provide additional village police, the department may, in addition to the other requirements of this chapter, require the applicant holder to post a bond in an amount sufficient to cover the cost of protecting public safety at the event. Such bond shall be approved by and filed with the village clerk.

E. The department will issue a permit for the special event, or a conditional permit pursuant to subsection F of this section, if, after considering any relevant written recommendations or objections per subsection D of this section, it determines that:

1. The applicant has complied with all of the requirements of this code and any rules or regulations promulgated thereunder;

2. The sponsor of the event, the property owner, and/or the attendees of the event were not found guilty of four or more code violations or criminal acts at the same event during that year or the previous year and have not been found guilty of six or more code violations or criminal acts within a one-hundred-eighty-day period;

3. The proposed special event will not substantially or unnecessarily interfere with traffic in the area;

4. The proposed special event will not substantially or unnecessarily interfere with any publicly managed infrastructure project;

5. There is available at the time of the special event a sufficient number of peace officers to police and protect lawful participants in the event;

6. The concentration of persons or things at the event will not prevent proper fire and police protection or ambulance service;

7. The event is not being conducted for an unlawful purpose;

8. The event will not subject the surrounding neighborhood to an unreasonable degree of noise, littering or parking difficulties in light of the character of the neighborhood;

9. The event will not conflict with a parade, carnival, or other event which has been previously scheduled; and

10. The special event will not require village services that cannot be reasonably made available.

F. The department shall inform an applicant for a special event permit whether the application is approved or disapproved within five business days after the application and any amendments are received by the department. If the department approves the application, it shall either (1) issue a conditional special event permit pursuant to subsection H of this section until all necessary licenses are issued, required plans approved, fees paid, and costs prepaid or bonds posted; or (2) if all necessary licenses have been issued, required plans approved, fees paid, and costs prepaid or bonds posted, issue a special events permit. If the department disapproves the application, it shall provide written notice of its action within such time, stating the specific facts and conclusions that are the basis for its denial of the permit. If the department fails to act within thirty-five business days after the date upon which the application and any amendments were received by the department, the application shall be approved and the permit deemed granted in conformance with the application.

If the permit is for a special event that will require the closing of a street, the applicant shall pay an additional fee of fifty dollars per block per day for each day the street will be closed.

G. Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, preference among conflicting applications for special event permits shall be given to the application filed earliest. However, during the first ten business days of each calendar year, the department shall accept applications without giving preference to applications filed earliest. Any conflict among applications filed during that period shall be resolved by a lottery to be conducted by the department.

The department shall notify each such applicant in writing of the existence of the conflict and of the date, place and time of the lottery. Within seven days after the lottery, the applicants not chosen may submit alternative preferences to the department. Any conflicts arising among the alternative preferences shall be resolved in accordance with the lottery procedures set forth in this section.

H. No later than twenty days prior to the date the event is scheduled to begin, the sponsor of the event shall submit all applications for any necessary licenses, including alcoholic beverage, food and/or itinerant merchant licenses. If the department previously has issued a conditional permit, then within five days after the appropriate licenses have been issued and are received by the department, and all required plans approved, fees paid, and costs prepaid or bonds posted, or sooner if the event will occur sooner and doing so is reasonably practicable, the department shall issue the special event permit. If no conditional permit has been issued, then the procedure set forth in subsection F of this section shall apply.

I. For any violation of the special event permit or the rules and regulations promulgated under this section, including the failure to amend the permit pursuant to subsection C of this section, the sponsor of the event shall be fined not less than five hundred dollars nor more than seven hundred fifty dollars for each violation. The village may, if timing permits, order the sponsor of the event or property owner where the event is held to cease and desist from holding the event for any violation of the special event permit of this chapter. The village may seek an injunction or temporary restraining order, an abatement, or other appropriate action to enjoin, abate or stop any outdoor special event violation of this chapter. The village administrative staff as well as its police department are authorized to enforce this chapter. The sponsor of the event and the owner of the property where the outdoor special event is held will be jointly and severely liable to the village of Riverdale for any violation of this chapter and for any costs or expenses incurred by the village for violations of this chapter. If the sponsor of the event, the property owner, and/or attendees of the event are found guilty of four or more code violations or criminal acts at the same event or six or more code violations or criminal acts within a one-hundred-eighty-day period, no new special event permits shall be issued to the sponsor of the event for the remainder of the year of that event and for the following calendar year.

J. The sponsor of the event shall have a representative present at all times during the event who shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with all applicable ordinances and regulations and for accepting all notices of violations and closure orders.

K. The department may at any time revoke a special event permit if the operation of the event is in violation of this code or any other applicable law, or if such revocation is necessary to preserve the health or safety of the public. Written notice of the revocation with the reasons therefor shall be mailed to or served upon the sponsor of the event at the time of revocation. Unless the permit will expire by its own terms before a hearing can be reasonably scheduled, no such revocation will take effect until the sponsor of the event has been given notice and an opportunity to be heard in accordance with rules and regulations issued by the department. When necessary to prevent an immediate threat to the health or safety of the public, the department shall order the sponsor of the event to cease operation of the special event pending the outcome of the hearing. For any violation of the special event permit or the rules and regulations promulgated under this section which endangers the health or safety of the public, no new special event permits shall be issued to the sponsor of the event for the remainder of the year of that event and for the following calendar year.

L. No permit shall be issued until the applicant has supplied to the department proof of insurance evidencing commercial general liability insurance, with limits of not less than one million dollars per occurrence for bodily injury, personal injury and property damage, naming the village as additional insured on a primary, noncontributory basis for any liability arising directly or indirectly from the permittee’s operations.

Each insurance policy required by this subsection shall include a provision to the effect that it shall not be subject to cancellation, reduction in the amounts of its liabilities, or other material changes until notice thereof has been received in writing by the office of risk management and the department not less than sixty days prior to such action.

Each applicant shall maintain the insurance required by this subsection in full force and effect for the duration of the permit period. Failure of the sponsor of the event to maintain such insurance during the periods indicated above shall result in automatic expiration of the permit. For the purposes of this subsection, the permit shall include the time required for construction and removal of all materials and equipment provided for the conduct of the special event until the public way has been cleared and restored as provided in subsection N of this section.

M. In addition to the requirements stated above, and apart from and separate from any insurance requirement under this section, the applicant shall agree in writing to indemnify, defend and hold the village and its assignees and employees harmless from all losses, damages, injuries, claims, demands and expenses arising out of the operation of the special event or the condition, maintenance and use of public property.

N. During the conduct of the special event, the sponsor of the event shall keep the public way clean and free from paper, debris, or refuse, and upon termination of the permit by lapse of time or otherwise, the sponsor of the event shall remove all materials and equipment and clean the street. If the public way has been damaged, the sponsor of the event shall repair and restore it to the condition it was in prior to the special event.

O. Whenever a special permit requires the closure of a street, a clear path of not less than ten feet must be maintained at all times to provide for the passage of emergency vehicles.

P. The sponsor of the event shall be responsible for ensuring that each vendor participating in the event obtains the proper licenses. In the event that an unlicensed or improperly licensed vendor is found at the event, the sponsor of the event shall be fined pursuant to subsection I of this section for each unlicensed or improperly licensed vendor. This shall be in addition to any fines and/or penalties which may be issued to the individual vendor.

Q. In addition to any other appropriate department, the department is authorized to inspect the special event and may issue citations for any violation of this code or any regulations pertaining to the operation of the special event, except for provisions currently enforced by the department of public health.

R. The department shall have the authority to promulgate such rules and regulations that he determines are necessary or desirable for the implementation of this section. The rules and regulations need not be published in a newspaper, but shall be made available for inspection by the public at no charge. (Ord. 2018-26 § 3, 2018; Ord. 2018-04 §§ 3 – 5, 2018; Ord. 2017-12 § 3, 2017)