Chapter 9.40
FIGHTING EVENTS
Sections:
9.40.030 Application for permit and matters used to determine issuance.
9.40.070 Medical staffing requirements.
9.40.100 Denial of permit--Appeal.
9.40.110 Expiration and transfer of permit.
9.40.120 Deviation from permit.
9.40.130 Revocation of permit.
9.40.005 Purpose.
The purpose of this chapter is to prohibit fighting events within the city of Wapato unless a valid permit has been obtained prior to the fighting event. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.010 Definitions.
A. “Fighting event” means any activity, regardless of how named or described, which involves any scheduled, sponsored, or permitted physical exhibition or contest involving two or more persons engaged in fighting. This shall include any contest or event where kicking, punching, martial arts, or submission holds are permitted, and shall also include contests where there is only wrestling or boxing. This shall not include any school events or competitions. A fighting event may include one or more consecutive days of fighting matches or competitions.
B. “Officer” means any law enforcement officer, fire chief, or code enforcement officer.
C. “City” means the city of Wapato.
D. “Person” means any individual, sole proprietorship, partnership, association, cooperative, corporation, nonprofit organization, state or local government agency, and any other organization required to register with the city to do business in the city and to obtain one or more licenses from the city or any of its agencies.
E. “Participant” means a person who is participating as a fighter in a fighting event.
F. “Clerk” means the Wapato city clerk/treasurer. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.020 Permit required.
No person shall conduct, manage or participate in any fighting event for which a written permit has not been issued by the city in accordance with this chapter. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.030 Application for permit and matters used to determine issuance.
Any person desiring to conduct a fighting event shall make application no less than forty-five days prior to the proposed commencement date of the event to the clerk, on a form requiring the following information, where applicable:
A. The name, address and telephone number of the applicant or responsible agent of the applicant.
B. The time and date of commencement and termination of the fighting event.
C. The purpose and location of such act or activity. Fighting events shall not be permitted in areas zoned for residential use.
D. The person, group, association, or body to be authorized under the permit to do such act or activity and the number of participants.
E. The security to be provided by the person, group, association, or body authorized under the permit, as required and further outlined in this chapter.
F. Proof of a bond or liability insurance in amounts as outlined in this chapter, and indemnifying the city against damages sustained as a result of holding the fighting event. Such bond or certificate of insurance shall be subject to approval by the city attorney.
G. Proof that physician(s) and EMT(s) will be present ringside, and/or within the facility during the fighting event, as further outlined in this chapter.
H. Proof that the fighting event will be under the direction and control of an adult referee sanctioned and licensed by Washington state authorities.
I. Proof that the fighting event is sanctioned by the Washington state sanctioning authority.
J. Application for a Wapato city business license, and fee, if necessary.
K. A list of the prior three fighting event locations and contact information for the owner of the event venues.
L. The permit fee, which covers the costs of the pre-issuance inspections, the inspection three days prior to the event and review of the application, in the amount of three hundred dollars. In the event the permit is denied, one hundred dollars shall be refunded to the applicant. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.040 Contents of permit.
A permit for a fighting event shall contain the following:
A. All information contained in the application, as outlined in this chapter.
B. The signature of the police chief and the fire chief approving the safety plan.
C. Any conditions attached by the police chief and/or fire chief to ensure the protection of the health, safety, and well-being of the general public. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.050 Insurance required.
The applicant shall furnish insurance coverage in the minimum amounts of five hundred thousand dollars for personal injury, one million dollars per occurrence, and one hundred thousand dollars for property damage, or an equivalent bond for said amounts. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.060 Safety plan.
The applicant shall furnish a safety plan consisting of, but not limited to, the following:
A. A map of the facility, drawn to scale, clearly locating the ring (or other space where fighting will take place), staging areas, stairways, spectator areas, emergency exiting, and all other interior information, including walls, bathrooms, and other interior features.
B. The number of private security personnel hired to be on duty during the event, and the company from which private security personnel are hired.
C. The number of persons expected to attend and the capacity of the facilities.
D. The contact information, including cellular telephone number, of the primary contact person for the fighting event. The primary contact person shall be present during the entire event.
E. A vehicle parking plan, including reference to ingress and egress to and from the facility, formulated specifically for the fighting event. If the parking plan includes using adjacent private property for parking, proof of permission in writing must be provided. The parking plan shall accommodate parking spaces for attendees, and shall include specifically designated parking spaces for police officers, referees, physicians and participants, as well as specifically designated lanes for emergency vehicles. The vehicle parking plan must be approved by the fire chief and the police chief to obtain a permit.
F. Off-duty Wapato police department officers shall be present from one-half hour before through one-half hour after the scheduled fighting event, the number of which to be determined by the police chief. Arrangements for off-duty police officers are to be made through the police chief.
The safety plan is subject to the approval of the police chief and the fire chief, and if the police chief and/or fire chief deems necessary, shall be altered at any time during the permit process to ensure the public health, safety and well-being of the citizens of Wapato. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.070 Medical staffing requirements.
A. All participants shall obtain medical clearance from an on-site physician prior to participation in their event.
B. A physician shall be ring-side during the event, and available during the event on site and for thirty minutes after the last event for medical aid.
C. Two Wapato fire department EMTs shall be present at the facility during the fighting event, and an area must be designated in the facility where the fighting event is taking place for the physicians and EMTs to work on patients and store necessary medical equipment during the fighting event. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.080 Inspection.
A. The police chief, the fire chief, and the code enforcement officer shall inspect the premises proposed for the fighting event and report to the city clerk their findings, and any alterations necessary, including, but not limited to, changing the capacity of the building due to the placement of the ring, before the permit may be issued. Their findings shall be in writing. The results of these inspections shall be factored into the determination as to whether the clerk should issue the final permit. The event organizer and premises owner shall not withhold permission to inspect the premises during regular business hours.
B. Three days prior to the fighting event, the premises shall be set up as it will be set up during the fighting event (i.e., the ring will be in place), and the police chief and fire chief shall inspect the premises as it will appear during the fighting event. In the event any conditions on the permit need to be changed as a result of the inspection, including but not limited to capacity and fire exits, those conditions shall be altered within twenty-four hours of the inspection.
C. In the event alterations are necessary under subsection B of this section, the police chief and fire chief shall inspect the event facility twenty-four hours after the alteration is demanded. If the alterations are not made, or if the facility does not meet the requirements of city, state or federal laws, the clerk may revoke the initial temporary permit obtained under this chapter. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.090 Issuance of permit.
A. The initial temporary permit, issued contingent on approval of the safety plan by both the fire chief and the police chief and the final inspection prior to the fighting event, shall be issued by the clerk within fifteen business days after a complete permit application is provided to the clerk. A permit may be denied or refused if it shall appear that the applicant or the act or fighting event requested on the application violates any applicable provisions of the Wapato Municipal Code or Washington State law. A denial or refusal to issue a permit shall be in writing and mailed to the applicant no later than fifteen business days after a complete permit application is provided to the clerk.
B. Upon approval of the safety plan as required in Section 9.40.060 and the inspections of the premises as required in Section 9.40.080, the final permit shall issue. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.100 Denial of permit--Appeal.
The clerk may deny a permit request if it does not meet the requirements of this chapter. In the event a permit is denied, the person requesting the permit may appeal the clerk’s decision to the Wapato city mayor within five days of the denial. The mayor shall render his decision to uphold or reverse the clerk’s decision within ten days. The applicant may appeal the mayor’s decision to the Wapato city council, who may address the mayor’s decision and the permit application at the city council’s next regularly scheduled business meeting. The city council’s decision shall be final. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.110 Expiration and transfer of permit.
The permit issued under this chapter shall be issued for a single fighting event. The permit expires upon the conclusion of the fighting event, and shall not be transferred. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.120 Deviation from permit.
No person participating, holding, or hosting any fighting event, including the applicant, for which a permit has been granted under the provisions of this chapter shall deviate from or alter any of the terms or contents of such permit. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.130 Revocation of permit.
A. The clerk may revoke a permit required under this chapter at any time if information is obtained after the permit is issued from which the clerk may reasonably conclude that the permit should have originally been denied.
B. The clerk may revoke a permit required under this chapter at any time if he/she finds the person, group, association, property owner, or applicant authorized under the permit has deviated from, or will deviate from, what was approved in the permit.
C. The police chief or fire chief, or any other officer, may revoke a permit required under this chapter at any time if he/she finds that:
1. The contestants are violating the law or permit conditions.
2. Criminal activity is occurring during the fighting event.
3. The fighting event must be concluded to protect public safety. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.140 Pyrotechnics.
Pyrotechnics shall not be allowed before, after, or during any fighting event, or as part of a fighting event. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.150 Penalty.
Anyone found in violation of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to a maximum penalty of ninety days in jail and a one-thousand-dollar fine, or both, for each violation, and law enforcement shall have the ability to stop any fighting event from occurring, or immediately end the event if necessary, if it is found that such fighting event is occurring without a valid permit in place. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)
9.40.160 Severability.
If any section, subsection, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase of this chapter is declared unconstitutional or invalid for any reason, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining parts of this chapter. (Ord. 1203 §1(part), 2009)