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1. 1Call to Order - Roll Call▶ 0:00
2. 2

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   Multi-Day Special Events in Sims Park

   discussed

   Council held a work session on multi-day special events in Sims Park, discussing blackout schedules, entertainment approval, vendor setup/exit procedures, sponsorship and signage, and use of golf carts. Council gave staff direction on tightening controls including requiring temporary sign permits, removing equipment/signs by noon of the first business day, treating entertainers as vendors subject to city approval, and restricting golf carts in the park during vendor events.

   • direction:Council directed staff that entertainment must be approved in advance and treated like vendors, with violations resulting in loss of future event rights. (none)
   • direction:Council directed that event equipment and temporary signage must be removed by noon of the first business day after the event. (none)
   • direction:Council directed staff to require temporary sign permits for event sponsors and review sign size/content regulations. (none)
   • direction:Council directed that golf carts not be allowed in the park during events with vendors, with exceptions for event organizers' operational needs and designated parking areas. (none)

   📍Sims Park📍Williams Park🏢Bourbon on Main🏢Hacienda🏢Historical Society🏢St. Pete Times👤Debbie Manz👤Elaine Smith👤Gene Sullivan👤Mr. Allman👤Ms. Farrell#Bike Fest#Chasco#Holiday Street Parade#Movies in the Park#Winterfest#blackout schedule#golf cart ordinance#temporary sign ordinance

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   [00:00:15] Tonight's meeting is the second meeting we've had on workshops. [00:00:20] I am relieved to see that it's not on special events and I'm relieved to see we don't have [00:00:28] a standing room only crowd ready to give us grief for an hour and a half. [00:00:35] We will have public comment, but we are going to try to restrict this, not talking about [00:00:42] any specific event that you do or do not like, but rather the issue is specifically multi-day [00:00:49] events and the impact that they have on the park and how we might mitigate that so that [00:00:57] the park remains good looking. [00:01:00] Ms. Manz? [00:01:02] Okay, Mr. Mayor. [00:01:05] Special events unquestionably in the City of New Port Richey are a very important part [00:01:11] of our local culture. [00:01:14] That was one of the first things I learned when I entered the scene five and a half years [00:01:18] ago and it's been reinforced for me several times since then. [00:01:25] Their benefit to the downtown and to the residents is abundant. [00:01:33] I think the popularity of Sims Park, though, as the Mayor indicated, as an event venue [00:01:44] is the purpose of the discussion this evening. [00:01:48] I think that we have learned some things from events that the administration needs [00:01:55] to change so that we can do a better job informing special event organizers of processes or procedures [00:02:06] of the city and there are some controls that need to be put in place and in that respect [00:02:17] I've heard from a number of you in addition to the staff perspective and there are specific [00:02:26] elements related to special events that I'd like to introduce and discuss with you this [00:02:31] evening. [00:02:32] We may not have captured them all, but I think we've done a pretty good job of at least recording [00:02:41] your preferences and with your permission I'll just go through the list at the conclusion [00:02:48] of that. [00:02:51] The Mayor, I'm sure, will open it up for any additional elements that you would like to [00:02:56] introduce for our consideration. [00:02:59] The first that we're going to start with is the blackout schedule. [00:03:04] The blackout schedule is the period of time that we allow the park to rest between events. [00:03:13] The blackout dates vary depending on the type and the intensity of an event and I'm going [00:03:22] to let Elaine Smith talk briefly to you about some changes that she has made in our blackout [00:03:31] schedule so that in the following year we won't see the amount of damage that we did [00:03:39] at the conclusion of some events this year. [00:03:42] Yes, sir. [00:03:43] Before you do that, I think that if we address some of these others that it's probably going [00:03:49] to change the blackout schedule. [00:03:51] So I was wondering if we might come back to that because of my talking with you and talking [00:03:57] to some other people in town, I think that some of these others will change the length [00:04:01] of the blackouts. [00:04:02] Okay. [00:04:03] We can mix them up however you'd like. [00:04:07] I'll move on then and talk about entertainment. [00:04:13] One of the things that we've learned is that the city needs to play a role in the approval [00:04:23] of entertainment. [00:04:26] Williams Park is a public place. [00:04:30] It is a municipal property. [00:04:32] It is not a concert venue. [00:04:36] And when I say that, what I mean is that the entertainment has to be family friendly. [00:04:42] We can't have entertainers in place throwing inappropriate words, inappropriate slang, [00:04:51] showing inappropriate videos. [00:04:54] And so from the staff's perspective, our recommendation is that we are advised in advance [00:05:02] of events who the entertainment is and we have an opportunity to investigate them and [00:05:10] determine that they are going to comply with appropriate standards for a public park and [00:05:20] that we get to have that discussion with them in advance of an event. [00:05:24] With the entertainer or with the event coordinator putting the event on? [00:05:29] It would be the responsibility of the event organizer and they would be told, and hopefully [00:05:37] this language isn't too strong, if their entertainers violate the provisions of appropriateness, [00:05:49] they won't get an event the following year. [00:05:53] They'll have lost their right to rent the park. [00:05:58] I didn't consider them any different than a vendor. [00:06:02] An entertainer is a vendor, whether he's promoting music or he's selling his stuff. [00:06:07] And I think we had some situations where we shut vendors down and I think that if they're [00:06:13] providing music, they're a vendor too. [00:06:15] And if we need to shut a vendor down, we shut a vendor down. [00:06:18] And if we're approving vendors, and I think that that should be done in the set meeting, [00:06:23] you know, that we approve the vendors, we approve the music as the same as a vendor. [00:06:30] I personally agree, we should have the right to shut a vendor band down if there's inappropriate [00:06:36] language. [00:06:37] But in my opinion, everything that happens at that event comes back, someone's got to [00:06:41] be in charge, right? [00:06:43] Anything negative happens, a new perjury comes back to us. [00:06:45] If you're the event organizer, you're responsible for what happens during that event. [00:06:51] And I think you need to be 100% sure, if you're hiring a band, that they know, I don't want [00:06:56] to hear the F word, I don't want to hear any sexually explicit language, none of that, [00:07:01] because if you do, I can and possibly will lose my event or my right, like Debbie said, [00:07:07] to have that event. [00:07:08] I'm just saying, I don't want to just put it on the band, okay, you're shut down, you [00:07:11] can't come back. [00:07:13] Right, and I agree with that, but I also think that it's just, I treat them the same as somebody, [00:07:18] you know, they bring in a vendor and it's selling inappropriate stuff, they're done [00:07:22] too, as far, you know, so they're, not only are we going to police them, but they've got [00:07:25] to police themselves. [00:07:26] We're on the same page, sounds like. [00:07:30] Yeah, yeah, I just want to include, I just include the entertainment with the vendors, [00:07:35] it's a vendor, it's just producing music instead of stuff. [00:07:38] I'm trying to hold my comment, too, so I won't let you get through your thing, so I know [00:07:42] what I want to say, so I'll hold the option. [00:07:46] With all due respect, Councilman, this is a work session, so if you have something on [00:07:50] your mind, I'm more than okay with you covering the topic while we're at it. [00:07:55] Yeah, I'm okay with what you're doing, I'm just saying I have something to say probably, [00:07:58] but I want to hear all of what they have to say before I talk. [00:08:02] I don't mind you guys jumping in, it gives me food for thought. [00:08:08] With your permission, then I'll move on to another element, which is vendor setup and [00:08:13] exit procedures. [00:08:15] We have set some standards for how vendors enter the park and exit the park. [00:08:25] We, though, have not been as strict about it as we should be for the benefit of the park. [00:08:37] We've allowed people to come in late, we've allowed people to exit late, to not use the [00:08:45] appropriate routes for entering and exiting the parks, and when we designed the park, [00:08:50] we did so with the fact that it would host special events in mind. [00:08:56] Some of our concrete on the pathway system is thicker in some places so that it can [00:09:02] accommodate weight, and it's not in others. [00:09:06] From the staff's perspective, we'll make sure to distribute maps and to require people [00:09:15] to follow the entrance and exit procedures of the park. [00:09:21] Elaine, did you have something additional to say in relationship to that matter? [00:09:26] Sure. [00:09:27] But you're exactly correct, though, that each event organizer is provided with a map that's [00:09:32] shown the drivable areas and the sidewalks that are traffic bearing or load bearing. [00:09:38] And then what we're looking at implementing now, too, is so that we don't have the event [00:09:43] and then three days later, after the event ends, they still have equipment in the park, [00:09:48] you know, tents, trailers, so forth. [00:09:51] So what had been discussed is by noon on the following day of their final day of their event, [00:09:57] they need to be completely out of the park. [00:10:00] That helps us monitor a little bit more effectively. [00:10:04] Conceptually, that works, although I can give you a very recent example where it probably [00:10:11] didn't work, and that was the Winterfest, because there were some of those light trailers [00:10:19] that stuck around until Monday. [00:10:21] I don't know that they could have gotten them picked up on Sunday. [00:10:27] Final place that happens. [00:10:29] Okay. [00:10:30] That's good for us to know. [00:10:36] We would know that in advance, and we would know when they were leaving, [00:10:39] so that we might, you know, at least be monitoring that. [00:10:43] I'm just saying we don't want to have a strict, [00:10:45] you absolutely positively must be out of the park by noon the next day. [00:10:49] See the gear truck there for a couple days after. [00:10:53] Or the first business day. [00:10:55] And that may be the answer, is the first business day. [00:10:58] Okay. [00:10:59] That's good. [00:11:01] Yeah. [00:11:02] Okay. [00:11:03] Great. [00:11:04] I'll move on to sponsorship and event signage. [00:11:10] One of the practices that's become quite common for the city is that local business community, [00:11:21] who may be sponsoring the event in one fashion or another, advertise the event [00:11:28] or the event sponsors. [00:11:31] What we haven't done in the past is let them know that, in large part, [00:11:40] they're in violation of our sign ordinance when they do that. [00:11:44] We have not sent ordinance out other than at the conclusion of an event this year. [00:11:51] Chief, I don't recall what it was. [00:11:53] It may have been Bike Fest. [00:11:56] We did advise the business owners that if they want to go forward with advertising for events in the future, [00:12:05] that they need to obtain a temporary sign permit. [00:12:09] I think that by going through the process, [00:12:13] we get rid of the carte blanche that we're giving currently to the downtown business community [00:12:20] to maybe oversign some of the special events. [00:12:27] And putting them in the wrong places. [00:12:29] And putting them in the wrong places. [00:12:31] And we need to find out specifically from event sponsors what their plan is for signage, [00:12:40] not be surprised by it when it surfaces on the fence at the Hacienda [00:12:48] and maybe it's oversized or ill placed. [00:12:52] So we will be requesting in advance some detail on signage [00:12:58] and we'll additionally be notifying the local business community [00:13:03] of the fact that you need a temporary sign permit [00:13:07] and that temporary sign also needs to come down because it's temporary. [00:13:13] We had, and again, it was Cody River, Bike Fest, [00:13:22] where signs were still up weeks after the event. [00:13:26] And that just shouldn't be the case. [00:13:32] Well, Gene Sullivan's here. [00:13:35] Why don't we do that same thing by putting that in the ordinance with the first business day, [00:13:41] by noon of the first business day. [00:13:43] Okay. [00:13:45] Have those signs, temporary signs down by noon of the first business day. [00:13:50] Same as everything else, yeah. [00:13:52] And there's some signage that's just, it doesn't fit the scale of the downtown. [00:14:00] Bourbon on Main had something that must have been 10 by 20 hanging from the roof. [00:14:04] Three of them. [00:14:06] Oh, and the other competing attorney paid $15,000 to have their sponsorship of the event [00:14:12] when one paid nothing, so. [00:14:14] That's another. [00:14:16] I'm a sponsor for an event. [00:14:17] I'm not so sure that temporary signs can allow, you know, whether they should be presented. [00:14:22] That's businesses in our town versus associated businesses that don't reflect. [00:14:28] Don't our sign ordinances only allow us to put signs up for our own businesses? [00:14:32] Can we promote other businesses? [00:14:35] You can promote events, but you can't have off-site signage for other businesses. [00:14:41] But my point is, this was a sign for an attorney who was throwing a party at the bar. [00:14:47] Okay. [00:14:49] And I'm just wondering, you know, having that. [00:14:53] We've had this discussion with the St. Pete Times about the publications they put, [00:14:57] and they sell a lot of advertising. [00:15:00] None of it goes to the events. [00:15:01] So it's like if we have people sponsoring events [00:15:04] and we can draw that income into our city [00:15:06] to put these events on, they would [00:15:09] like to have some sense of recognition for that [00:15:12] and not be overstepped by somebody [00:15:14] that doesn't pay anything. [00:15:15] And I would agree with that, but it doesn't give them [00:15:17] the right to hang a sign on a Wednesday [00:15:19] before an event, a weekend event, [00:15:21] and have it up there for a full week after the event. [00:15:24] And I'm talking huge signs. [00:15:27] No, I agree. [00:15:28] A couple of issues, though. [00:15:29] She brought up the businesses downtown. [00:15:31] We want to present our business. [00:15:32] We want to promote our businesses, not have. [00:15:37] Well, you're going to get temporary sign permits, [00:15:43] and then we can dictate how that's handled and how much [00:15:48] recognition. [00:15:50] And that would be associated with the event itself. [00:15:53] I definitely agree with Mr. Allman. [00:15:56] If somebody's putting up signage in conjunction [00:16:01] with an event, that ought to be the organizer that's doing it. [00:16:06] I mean, they've got some big expenses [00:16:09] to try to put on these events. [00:16:11] And have somebody else just put a, yeah. [00:16:16] Another element that we're not, I'm sorry. [00:16:19] Temporary sign ordinance or the one that allows for that. [00:16:24] If I'm not mistaken, and I could be on this [00:16:26] because I haven't personally enforced it, [00:16:28] but I think it's a 30-day period of time. [00:16:33] And so we're going to be looking at that? [00:16:34] Yeah, because we've had that downtown [00:16:36] where some businesses had it. [00:16:37] You're right. [00:16:38] We wanted to have them taken down. [00:16:40] I think for an event, it should be different. [00:16:42] Absolutely. [00:16:42] I would say that's for a new business that [00:16:44] wants to get their signage up while they're [00:16:45] waiting on permanent signs. [00:16:46] I think we need to look at size of those signs, too. [00:16:50] That is regulated currently, but we'll [00:16:53] look at that real closely. [00:16:56] In the coming months. [00:16:58] And the content. [00:17:00] Another element that we need to address as a council [00:17:05] is one that we haven't done a particularly good job of. [00:17:07] And that is the use of golf carts in the park. [00:17:12] We currently allow golf carts in the park. [00:17:16] It is done in an orderly fashion at movies in the park. [00:17:22] It is not done so in an orderly fashion at special events. [00:17:26] And the risk we're running is that someone's [00:17:29] going to get hurt. [00:17:31] When someone gets hurt, the risk to the city [00:17:34] is that we're named in the suit if it results in a suit [00:17:43] as a contributing party. [00:17:46] Now, our ordinance for golf carts [00:17:49] does not allow them in Sims Park. [00:17:52] We have just been sort of turning a blind eye to the fact [00:17:57] that they're used there. [00:18:00] They're now used with more regularity with special events, [00:18:04] with higher speeds at special events [00:18:07] when we're already congested just by nature [00:18:12] of the attendance at the event. [00:18:16] So I'm asking you to make a decision as to whether or not [00:18:22] we continue to allow golf carts in the park. [00:18:28] An element relating to this is that some of our special event [00:18:31] organizers want to use golf carts too. [00:18:36] And it may be that it's appropriate to allow them to [00:18:41] for purposes of running the event, [00:18:45] but not to allow beyond a certain number [00:18:51] or not to allow the public to transverse the park on golf [00:18:59] carts during special events. [00:19:01] So here's my opinion. [00:19:03] The reason we don't have issues during the movies [00:19:05] and during the concerts that we put on in the park [00:19:08] is because there's no vendors. [00:19:09] It's completely open space except for the folks [00:19:11] that are sitting down, bringing their chairs. [00:19:13] You're not driving around tents. [00:19:15] You're not driving around trailers. [00:19:17] I don't think we shouldn't. [00:19:19] I'm personally OK with having golf carts, not [00:19:22] these huge hunting four-wheel things [00:19:25] that we see on the roads as well. [00:19:26] Those will tear up the grass. [00:19:28] Golf carts to me during movies in the park, [00:19:29] during our own concert series in the park, 100% OK. [00:19:33] But where you have to be careful is I wasn't in the park. [00:19:37] I was on the boat. [00:19:38] But this past weekend, we have vendors. [00:19:39] We have a lot of folks in the park. [00:19:41] I don't know, they probably wouldn't be able to see, [00:19:43] but I remember in the past seeing golf carts pull up [00:19:46] to the river to watch the parade. [00:19:49] Now it's like five and six rows deep, [00:19:51] so you can't even get a view. [00:19:52] But I think that's where you have to be careful is when [00:19:54] there's vendors in the park and people in the park drinking [00:19:57] and walking around, yes, golf carts [00:19:59] don't belong in the park at all whatsoever, in my opinion. [00:20:03] However, there should be some exceptions to allow golf. [00:20:07] I think our events are fine because there's no vendors. [00:20:09] I personally don't have an issue during the Holiday Street [00:20:12] Parade with some golf carts lining up [00:20:14] next to the cut through by the Historical Society over there [00:20:18] where people just watch the parade [00:20:19] and it's pretty limited space anyway. [00:20:21] No, we're not driving through the middle of the park [00:20:23] and things like that. [00:20:24] I don't know how you regulate that 100%, [00:20:28] but with events with a large amount of vendors in the park, [00:20:32] we should not have a resident driving their golf [00:20:34] carts through the park, period, in my opinion, [00:20:36] with vendors in there. [00:20:37] If the event organizer, they cover, Ms. Farrell can attest, [00:20:41] they cover a lot of ground. [00:20:42] They have a lot going on. [00:20:43] I don't have an issue with an event organizer riding around [00:20:46] or two or three golf carts or however many [00:20:49] they say they may need in the park [00:20:51] to get stuff done logistically. [00:20:53] I'm OK with that. [00:20:53] But as far as someone just coming [00:20:55] in the park with their golf carts or in Bike Fest or Chasco, [00:20:58] that's just a resident. [00:20:59] I don't personally see the need for that myself. [00:21:02] I'd like to see them have. [00:21:05] Good points. [00:21:06] I'd like to see us, when we have a big event in the park, [00:21:10] a Bike Fest or a Chasco or whatever, [00:21:13] have an area that's basically designated golf cart parking, [00:21:18] where they can come up to the park [00:21:20] and park in a designated area that [00:21:23] doesn't require them to go driving through the park. [00:21:27] Because like you say, if we're going [00:21:29] to have the vendor tents inside the park, [00:21:35] it gets really cozy in there. [00:21:37] And it's not safe to have the golf carts bouncing back [00:21:41] and forth. [00:21:43] We could also talk about the issue [00:21:46] of the vendors in the park. [00:21:47] But that's a separate discussion. [00:21:50] Well, I'll put in my agreement, because I guess [00:21:52] this seems to be working. [00:21:55] Just if it comes to a final decision, [00:21:57] maybe we review this whole thing after another, [00:21:59] just kind of restate our position versus, you know. [00:22:04] But I do agree that some of these events, [00:22:08] we don't need all of the volunteer staff and the folks [00:22:11] riding around in golf carts. [00:22:12] They might have someone involved in money collection. [00:22:15] We had ice collection. [00:22:17] We have a little similar to the city parks vehicles [00:22:22] that are driving things around a little bit. [00:22:25] But as far as having staff driving in golf carts, [00:22:30] I think foot traffic is enough. [00:22:32] So I'm happy to see you limit them for events, whatever [00:22:36] they are, in the park. [00:22:40] I mean, as far as the traffic is concerned, [00:22:47] I'm in agreement with you when there are restricted space. [00:22:52] And the final comment on that is that people come in, [00:22:58] and they come in to the movies with food and beverages [00:23:02] and chairs. [00:23:03] So when you have an event, whether it's [00:23:05] a Main Street event, or whatever it is, or a bike event, [00:23:08] you want those vendors to be able to sell their product. [00:23:12] And people bringing in golf carts [00:23:14] have all kind of places to stash beer, liquor, food, drink, [00:23:19] whatever. [00:23:19] So I think that that's as good a reason as anything, [00:23:24] because we're trying to really have to secure the park [00:23:26] to get the entertainment that we can afford [00:23:28] to bring when we get the typical grandpa's [00:23:33] stop at the dollar store and get the candy we can stuff [00:23:36] in our pockets before we go to the movie. [00:23:38] I mean, I had that discussion with my grandkids. [00:23:40] It's like, if you like going to the movies, [00:23:43] this is part of the revenue stream, [00:23:45] the accountant discussion there, which makes no sense. [00:23:48] But the fact is, we don't want people smuggling their food [00:23:52] and drink in when we're trying to let people raise money [00:23:57] to pay us for the cost of getting in there. [00:24:01] The golf cart for events, I mean, [00:24:03] that should be based on the event, I think, [00:24:05] and how many is needed. [00:24:07] Depending on the event, it could vary, [00:24:09] depending on what they need. [00:24:11] So that's something I think you have to kind of do per event. [00:24:14] I think it will vary. [00:24:16] Yeah. [00:24:16] And then as far as, and I'd ask the chief about this, [00:24:19] as far as making golf carts OK to drive [00:24:23] in the park for city events and then not for other events, [00:24:26] it's going to be kind of hard to regulate that. [00:24:29] People are going to be, you know, when can I do it? [00:24:32] When can I can't do it? [00:24:33] I can't figure it out kind of thing. [00:24:35] So it may be a little, you know. [00:24:36] I think it's pretty simple. [00:24:37] If there's vendors in the park, you can't do it. [00:24:39] If it's a event put on. [00:24:40] We know that, but how do they know that? [00:24:42] And then it gets stuck on the police [00:24:44] having to shoot people out. [00:24:45] So it's public. [00:24:49] We post signs. [00:24:50] No carts in the park. [00:24:51] No carts, just like we did for the sign. [00:24:54] No golf carts in the park for specific events. [00:24:58] I think that's fairly straightforward. [00:25:00] And if we give them a designated parking area somewhere [00:25:05] close to the park where they can park the things and walk in, [00:25:08] they should be fine. [00:25:09] The problem is not the vendors or the event organizers [00:25:13] with their golf carts. [00:25:16] The problem is if you get 30 or 50 civilians coming in [00:25:20] with their golf carts, then it just becomes a free-for-all. [00:25:25] On that range, back to security, when the Hacienda opens, [00:25:29] which is coming up, you know, and I've heard, [00:25:33] I don't know what their format is toward the back, [00:25:35] but that they want that back to be kind of their open back [00:25:38] space toward the park. [00:25:40] And we have established ours, although they're very liberal, [00:25:43] let people stay late at night, but at least maybe [00:25:46] to flush them out of the park until early morning, [00:25:49] because then you've got the early walkers that [00:25:50] want to come in at 5 o'clock before they go to work [00:25:53] or whatever. [00:25:55] You know, they thought, again, about having security [00:25:59] around the park, securing the park with a fence. [00:26:03] And then you can't drive the cart in. [00:26:06] And then you don't have to worry about patrolling [00:26:08] every open space that somebody is driving in [00:26:10] when you turn your back on it. [00:26:12] In the long run, I think maybe we [00:26:13] talk to the Hacienda about what they feel about, [00:26:17] because we do have a problem sometimes late at night [00:26:20] in people that are getting into the park. [00:26:22] And it's probably easier to make it [00:26:25] where they have to break in than simply walk in and say they [00:26:29] didn't know about it and chase them out. [00:26:31] But I know from our standpoint, with the big event [00:26:35] that we're talking about, trying to secure that they cannot get [00:26:39] in until they come into designated areas [00:26:42] to make sure they don't bring in beverages and drinks [00:26:44] and security and those sorts of things. [00:26:46] I hear what you're saying. [00:26:47] I personally feel like the park should be an open space. [00:26:49] During large events, maybe have some type of security barriers [00:26:52] up. [00:26:53] But I personally have received complaints [00:26:56] of someone more than once, one that sticks out [00:26:59] as someone I've known for a long time, [00:27:01] was just walking through the park at 7 [00:27:03] in the morning for exercise, which they do every single day. [00:27:07] And someone that was affiliated with the event [00:27:10] was there and said, you can't be in here. [00:27:12] So we had someone, this was a few years ago. [00:27:14] So you start putting barriers up at the park. [00:27:17] I'm not a fan of that myself. [00:27:18] Maybe during concerts and things like that, [00:27:21] for a certain event, people have paid for tickets for concerts [00:27:25] and whatnot. [00:27:25] But the way I look at it, it's public space. [00:27:28] Our residents and people that come to visit our city, [00:27:30] whether it's an event or not, if they [00:27:31] want to jog through and walk through the park for exercise, [00:27:34] they should have the right to do so. [00:27:37] It would diminish the park's beauty. [00:27:39] I do as well. [00:27:42] What fencing you put up, it's going to diminish. [00:27:45] I'll just say, if I may, we're covering a lot here. [00:27:47] But to me, the biggest focus for this meeting for myself, [00:27:51] which is why I wanted you here when you were getting ready [00:27:54] to go out of town, it's great we're going over these things. [00:27:57] I want to continue to do so. [00:27:59] But what really drove me to ask for this work session [00:28:02] after the debacle of the work session we had last time [00:28:05] was when I walked through the park on a regular basis [00:28:08] and I saw our huge investment just going down the tubes. [00:28:12] I mean, literally 40% of the park [00:28:15] on this side of Orange Lake was dirt or weeds. [00:28:18] And that's where it had gotten to. [00:28:19] So I just wanted to sit down with everyone. [00:28:21] And Elaine's done a good job with this, a great job, [00:28:24] I think, with this memorandum she sent us all. [00:28:26] If we're going to have all these events [00:28:28] and we're going to have that wear and tear on the park, [00:28:30] we just have to budget and figure out [00:28:32] a time where we're going to re-sod, [00:28:33] like we did just a couple of months ago. [00:28:35] I think that's something. [00:28:36] If that's the case, we either do that or we limit the events. [00:28:39] So I'm OK having the events, we just [00:28:41] need downtown to re-sod and we need [00:28:42] to come up with the funding to do that on an annual basis here. [00:28:45] Where we started, it looked like you [00:28:46] were going to do it in April, correct? [00:28:48] So I'm glad that we recognize that as a city, [00:28:51] that this is a huge investment that's [00:28:53] had dynamic positive effects on our downtown. [00:28:57] And just like a house or a yard or a car or a boat, [00:29:00] when you buy something, you take care of it. [00:29:02] And that's why I'm very, very happy we're doing this, [00:29:05] because we have to continue to take care of Sims Park, [00:29:07] because it was just too much, you know? [00:29:12] OK. [00:29:13] I'd speak on the golf carts by chance. [00:29:16] Can I speak on the golf carts by chance? [00:29:18] OK, let's be realistic. [00:29:21] How many golf carts were at the last event? [00:29:24] I think it was Tina Turner. [00:29:26] 60. [00:29:27] Yeah, how many maybe a year ago? [00:29:29] How many? [00:29:30] 38, I counted. [00:29:31] Much less, right. [00:29:32] About a year before, I counted 38. [00:29:34] I counted 55, so I'll go along with your 60. [00:29:37] It's growing to the point that, but we've [00:29:40] got so many kids in the park. [00:29:41] We've got so much going on in the park. [00:29:43] I mean, really, if we designate that north parking [00:29:46] lot as a parking lot for golf carts, [00:29:48] do you have to have your golf cart right next to you? [00:29:50] You know, sitting in the park. [00:29:51] And why not park it and walk the rest of the way in the park [00:29:54] and make it kind of a safety factor? [00:29:56] If we have, you know, and let's be realistic. [00:30:00] When going to the events, there's alcohol on those golf carts. [00:30:05] And those people are leaving after dark, going out of there, [00:30:08] along with a couple thousand people, and it's just not safe. [00:30:13] And we have a law on the books right now, a rule, ordinance on the books right now, [00:30:19] that there's no golf carts, and I'm sorry, I'll be the bad guy, but [00:30:24] I don't think you need to park the cart in the circle so you can see the bands, [00:30:27] so you can drink out of your golf cart that wouldn't possibly put them over there [00:30:32] in the north parking lot and make that a north parking lot. [00:30:35] What about for, say, movie nights, though? [00:30:38] Same thing. [00:30:39] I mean, see, you're still pushing away the idea that there might be alcohol on those carts. [00:30:47] I don't think you're a bad guy, I just disagree with you. [00:30:49] If we're getting more carts in the park per event, [00:30:51] you just have one way in to the golf cart parking. [00:30:53] If you want to sit, this is where golf carts parking will be for the concert or [00:30:55] the movie, we only have a certain number of spots, it's first come, first served. [00:30:58] If you've got 40 spots, they're taken up, you're turned away. [00:31:01] Well, the kids are going to still, you know, under, your kids and [00:31:06] under are going to run in the park, and somebody's going to be moving their golf [00:31:10] cart going, and you can hot rod them up to 20 plus miles an hour now. [00:31:17] I mean, I agree that, you know, you can state your statement again, but [00:31:20] realistically, there's alcohol on these carts. [00:31:23] They can go up to 20 plus miles an hour, and they're mixed in a park with kids. [00:31:29] And that, you're talking about suits, that's a suit waiting to happen. [00:31:33] And we're going to, I say, provide them a parking [00:31:35] spot in the north parking lot and walk into the park. [00:31:39] Let's come back to the parking issue when we... [00:31:42] All right, I've got a couple of issues related to parking. [00:31:45] Okay. [00:31:47] One is parking on the lawn, and the second and [00:31:51] the one I'll address first is vendor parking on the lawn. [00:31:56] And what I mean by that is food vendors on the lawn. [00:32:01] It's been the practice of our events to house all of their food vendors in the park. [00:32:11] It is a major contributor to the damage to the grass. [00:32:16] We don't charge any of the event organizers any money for restoration of lawn. [00:32:28] It, though, does cost the city in excess, Robert, of $30,000 to re-sod. [00:32:37] And in fact, we re-sodded and seeded this year [00:32:42] because we didn't budget enough to re-sod the whole park. [00:32:47] It's probably the most radical idea of the staff, [00:32:51] and I haven't introduced it to any of the event organizers. [00:32:55] But the concept that they could rely on a hard surface rather than on the lawn for [00:33:03] the vendors is one that we'd like to introduce to you for your consideration. [00:33:07] Meaning they would be in Bank Street, they would be in Circle Boulevard, [00:33:12] they might be in the Gloria Swanson parking lot, or in the most northerly parking lot. [00:33:20] It'd be a centralized food source concept on concrete or asphalt. [00:33:30] I sort of like it. [00:33:31] The one thing I wanted just to toss out, and I've kicked it around with Mrs. [00:33:37] Mann's a couple times, particularly for the events where there are beer trucks. [00:33:41] And these are extended events. [00:33:44] If they're going to be in the park adjacent to the concert circle, [00:33:51] I'd like them to be on some sort of pad. [00:33:57] Because I guarantee you, when those trucks roll out at the end of the event, [00:34:02] the grass underneath them is just gone. [00:34:05] It's going to be a sand pit. [00:34:07] And between the foot traffic and the vehicle traffic. [00:34:14] So if we're going to do that for something that's going to get a lot of traffic, [00:34:18] the beer trucks being probably the prime example of that. [00:34:24] Just accept that we need to modify the design of the park to make it so [00:34:31] they won't tear up the grass. [00:34:35] It's just not them. [00:34:36] It's the food vendors that come in with the larger trucks, too. [00:34:40] It's also the food vendors that cook underneath the tent. [00:34:43] If that oil goes onto the grass, the grass is dead. [00:34:46] If you go to your house and you park your car for two weeks, [00:34:50] we can have two weeks. [00:34:51] The grass is dead under. [00:34:52] If you put a trash can down for two or three days, which is Bike Fest or [00:34:56] one of those others, then the grass can come back in a couple days. [00:35:00] But for something that goes on for nine plus days, the grass is going to be dead. [00:35:04] If we're going to put the food vendors out on the pavement, [00:35:12] I would think the one exception to that would probably be the beer trucks. [00:35:17] That you wouldn't necessarily want to have all the way out at the Swanson Lot or [00:35:21] on the far side of Circle. [00:35:24] There's other trucks that can house beer. [00:35:29] It doesn't have to be a beer truck. [00:35:31] Are you talking about a permanent pad? [00:35:34] Yeah. [00:35:35] With a concrete pad set up so there'd be vendor spots. [00:35:38] I'm not in favor of having a permanent pad. [00:35:40] I'd rather just re-sod it. [00:35:42] I mean, just my opinion. [00:35:44] There'll be little concrete slabs. [00:35:45] We've got beer trucks on it five times a year in our park. [00:35:48] I mean, I'd rather just re-sod it if we're going to allow them in there. [00:35:51] So when we do get to the point of talking to the events that are held, [00:35:56] and we're talking to larger events, but not for nothing, but [00:36:01] there are a lot of events that are not the events that, and [00:36:06] I guess they go through the set, but the event that we had for [00:36:08] the children went through you all as well. [00:36:12] It was all kind of stuff, and out there on the grass and [00:36:15] on the kids' rides and all the other stuff that's there. [00:36:20] And again, maybe as Chopper says, the two, [00:36:21] three days may be different from the nine day events. [00:36:24] But the revenue that is generated to put the events on, [00:36:32] particularly by volunteer groups or non-profit groups, is a discussion that [00:36:40] I always feel we can start moving some of that stuff into the downtown too and [00:36:43] intermix it with the businesses. [00:36:45] We got the whole stuff we're doing on Railroad Square, and [00:36:49] we've got other parking lots that can hold things. [00:36:52] The carnival is a big event. [00:36:54] That's not going to be able to go where it was. [00:36:56] So as we're rethinking events, I hope we think in terms of intermixing [00:37:02] our promotion of our city and our downtown businesses in where we do them. [00:37:07] So that, this is the first, I've heard of it as well, but [00:37:13] change happens, and it happens for a reason. [00:37:15] So they're bringing up reasons. [00:37:17] I think it's going to be an interesting dialogue here in the weeks ahead when we [00:37:21] find out the responses. [00:37:22] So I think, Councilman, we're going to need a follow-up meeting after we get [00:37:26] the responses from what we're discussing today, and [00:37:29] then we'll hear the devil's advocates on some of these ideas. [00:37:32] But I appreciate what you're saying, and in my view, [00:37:37] one of the things I would have liked to change in the long run is the carny stuff. [00:37:42] I like the rides, but the carnival folks that come in, I've said this before. [00:37:49] When I was a kid, Chopper, I don't know if you were in town yet, but there was a day- [00:37:53] No, I wasn't in town when you were a kid. [00:37:55] You didn't? [00:37:55] Did you visit maybe? [00:38:00] No. [00:38:00] All right. [00:38:01] We had our local non-profits were doing the games of chance. [00:38:06] And it's cool, because it's kind of like the golf cart parade we had. [00:38:09] This was all our residents came out and had an event, which was a community event. [00:38:14] That Christmas parade was cool. [00:38:16] It was our people in our city that were enjoying our town that night. [00:38:20] It wasn't just a bunch of outside people. [00:38:24] And I think our non-profits that we try to support by having these food tents, [00:38:30] they may well be better served to get into the vending, and [00:38:35] that's to lose the carny stuff. [00:38:37] So there's a whole bunch of income trade-offs that we can try to make with [00:38:42] these non-profits to give them better opportunities that fits more of the charm [00:38:47] of our little town. [00:38:48] So I'm just introducing that thought. [00:38:50] If the non-profits, they bring all their food in every year until you can't go there, [00:38:55] they may not be selling as much stuff if they're not right there in the ring of [00:39:00] business. [00:39:01] And maybe if we can't have the carnival, we can redirect them into raising money [00:39:06] with duck poles and other things that they can make money off of. [00:39:10] You're thinking out on railroad squares? [00:39:12] I think the thing that just came up right now is that we need to grow the events in [00:39:16] the park into the city. [00:39:17] Right. [00:39:18] You know, that's the bottom line of it, you know, and [00:39:21] that's the imagination of the event coordinator and [00:39:24] working with staff and the council. [00:39:26] How so? [00:39:27] Throw it into the city, how? [00:39:29] Well, possibly shutting part of Grand down. [00:39:33] What, to have vendors out there? [00:39:35] Well, not necessarily vendors. [00:39:37] Vendors maybe that sell stuff, but not food vendors, because then we are brick [00:39:40] and mortar. [00:39:41] But we could also have the games of chance down there and things of that sort. [00:39:45] I don't think you can shut down Main Street because you need to run through the [00:39:49] town, but you can, you know, people that want to go south on Grand, you can cut [00:39:53] them a block before or something. [00:39:54] That was a... [00:39:55] So you're talking street closures? [00:39:56] Yeah, that was what we... [00:39:57] Well, that's... [00:39:58] A week and a half long. [00:39:59] That's what we did, designed Railroad Square to be, so you wouldn't have to shut [00:40:03] down Grand or... [00:40:04] Yeah, but that's... [00:40:05] Cavalier Square is coming back into our hands again, too. [00:40:08] But that's also a year down the road before, you know, before Nebraska is going [00:40:14] to be finished. [00:40:15] So that's not 2020, that's 2021. [00:40:18] Well, the lease is up on Cavalier Square. [00:40:20] I don't know that we're going to present the same kind of lease back to a private [00:40:24] business owner again, or that we can't have events that can start to work with [00:40:30] businesses. [00:40:30] But Missouri Avenue, Nebraska Avenue, the side streets can keep us maybe from [00:40:37] closing off the main drags and allow us to still have our town get explored anyway. [00:40:44] The other... [00:40:44] A little football, sorry. [00:40:45] I'm sorry to interrupt, Councilman. [00:40:48] The other element related to parking that we need to really address is the number of [00:40:54] vehicles that are being parked in the park. [00:40:58] Sometimes they're associated with a vendor who, for reasons of convenience, [00:41:07] maybe move their stock in with relying on a vehicle and then they park it because [00:41:13] it's hard to find a parking spot. [00:41:16] One of the suggestions that the staff has is we need to find out which vehicles, [00:41:22] if any, are to be parked in the park because it's setting a terrible precedent [00:41:27] that it's acceptable to park anywhere on the grass, and it's just not. [00:41:32] I think that's totally up to the SET committee. [00:41:36] You know, that's not... [00:41:37] Comes to us. [00:41:37] The SET people say, hey, you park your trailer there and sell your stuff or put [00:41:42] your tent up, but you can't use your vehicle here as a storage area for your [00:41:46] stuff. [00:41:46] I agree, Councilman. [00:41:47] It is a staff issue and it is facilitated through the SET committee, but we're [00:41:55] bringing this to your attention so that you know what the standard is and in the [00:42:01] event that the unthinkable occurs and there may be an event organizer that [00:42:05] doesn't like that particular rule, you know why. [00:42:09] We have it. [00:42:10] I've definitely seen people that have sold their wares and have their van there [00:42:15] unloading and loading as they need. [00:42:18] We could also have the, there might be a mobile golf cart that helps people move [00:42:28] their stuff in and out too. [00:42:30] I agree with you. [00:42:31] I mean, some of these food vendors, I'm sure they store a lot of their inventory [00:42:35] on their vehicles, but once again, it's a city park. [00:42:38] It's a green park. [00:42:38] It's not a fairground. [00:42:39] So that's what we're trying to, I think, figure out. [00:42:43] Yeah, it's a fine line actually between a park and a fairground. [00:42:48] Yeah, I mean, I want it to be different and you want it to be different. [00:42:52] So food trucks would gladly come into these events and, you know, food trucks [00:42:57] seem to be happening all over, but they would gladly come into these events and [00:43:01] provide the food for the vendors at a level that we don't have now. [00:43:06] My point is, we've got a whole bunch of people who have historically the golf [00:43:10] high choir, all of these groups, and if we want to make change, we might need to [00:43:16] entice them into something else that can help them make money. [00:43:19] I don't know, parking, park and ride, whatever, you know. [00:43:23] We have volunteers that make money. [00:43:25] Maybe we should be thinking like a little bit of how we can help to make us [00:43:33] redesign, as Chakra said, the way in which we manage our events and interact [00:43:38] them. [00:43:39] Yeah, if some of these, if we're expanding out into the pavement areas, [00:43:45] some of these groups very easily could be located there. [00:43:49] I mean, the Sertoma with their funnel cakes could easily be set up on the [00:43:58] pavement side. [00:43:59] I mean, they don't have to be right at the concert circle. [00:44:02] That's if we don't allow carnival rides and the carnival there, that opens up a [00:44:06] whole lot of... [00:44:07] That whole area starts becoming available for that sort of thing. [00:44:10] ...that kind of activity and decide what part of that activity, because the [00:44:14] carnival makes like 50 grand, 60 grand. [00:44:17] And so... [00:44:18] Yeah, we can't get rid of it, you know, we'll lose the event itself. [00:44:25] That's the argument we hear from Chaska. [00:44:27] I mean, they tell me without the carnival, we can't have Chaska or Fiesta. [00:44:30] Well, that's... [00:44:31] That's what I've been told year after year after year. [00:44:34] I know, but maybe we relocate the carnival, you know. [00:44:39] I mean, Debbie has already told us that the parking lot may not be available [00:44:44] because A, it's brand new, and B, the last thing we need with a brand new [00:44:47] parking lot is stuff that may mark it up. [00:44:51] So, the food vendors with their trailers and wheels are fine in there, and the [00:44:58] rides, you know... [00:45:00] They may not make it around the lake, and that committee is working with a lot of stuff right now to try to decide how to make it work. [00:45:08] But I think there are some solutions, but I think it does expand into the city. [00:45:11] We just need to be creative. [00:45:13] Yeah. [00:45:15] Ms. Vance, anything else? [00:45:17] No, sir, Mr. Mayor. [00:45:18] Can we go back to these, what we started out with, the event calendar and the blackout dates, get that out there? [00:45:23] Why I ask that that be moved now is because I think if we take some of these heavy vehicles and we put them on the pavement, they will have a lot less damage. [00:45:31] And that also ties into the blackout dates might not have to be as long, and also that might be, that ties into the damage deposits. [00:45:41] So when we bring in some of these, maybe it's the beer truck or whatever that we know that's going to cause a certain amount of damage, [00:45:49] we know we're going to have to replace some sod there, then that becomes part of their deposit. [00:45:55] We know that's going to happen, but also the dates. [00:45:58] And I think the only place that we really have a problem, when I looked at this list, the city had 18 events, which was 5% of the year being used by the city. [00:46:11] The other events, meaning Chasco, Seafest, Wrap River Run, Kia Fest, 9-11 Memorial, Bike Fest, and Main Street, Christmas time, that was 6% of the calendar dates, or 21 events, 21 days. [00:46:26] So the big problem was, talking about blackout dates, and it is Chasco right into the Seafood Festival. [00:46:37] They were so close to one, the last week in March, the first week in April was Chasco, then at the end of April is Seafood Festival. [00:46:44] So I think if we move Seafood Festival, maybe even to later May, somewhere in that area, that you would get these blackout dates automatically, without us backing up on top of each other, especially if we get the trucks out. [00:47:00] The only thing that I want to say is the way we've worked it out to have two large blackout dates included in this proposed calendar fits well with everything that we're trying to do. [00:47:16] An example would be, if we throw rye seed down, yeah, we could do that in a few days, but we really need a few weeks for it to take hold and to keep traffic off of it. [00:47:28] We need to be able to water. We have a lot of these events that we have to turn that irrigation system off, and so if you're not getting any rain or anything like that and you need the water, now you're working against yourself. [00:47:42] My grass is in the fall, right? [00:47:44] Well, I'm talking about both dates. [00:47:46] Oh, okay. [00:47:47] So to have those month blackout dates that are consecutive, even if you have a movie night in between there, you're still trying to get, and for this example, you're still trying to get that grass to grow. [00:48:01] It seemed like to me it was longer than a month, though. Was it a month? Okay. [00:48:08] Did we bring the calendar up so we could see it, or didn't I have it? [00:48:11] You have it in your packets. [00:48:13] Private? [00:48:14] No, you have it in your packets, too. [00:48:16] I'm looking at it. [00:48:17] Okay. [00:48:18] And not only do we talk about the seed, we've also looked at the usage of the park. [00:48:24] With all the improvements that we've done, another example would be the playground. [00:48:30] I'm sure all of you have noticed that it needs major work now. [00:48:34] Well, that's because we haven't been allowed to be able to shut it down for a few weeks to be able to get some of that work that we need to get done. [00:48:42] In other words, pressure washing, inspecting all the well joints and the canopies, taking and being able to get some of these playground equipment apparatuses and shutting those down, taking the bearings out, doing all of that type of work that needs to be done. [00:48:58] And so what we're proposing is to have these. [00:49:02] The little blackout dates, and this is just my opinion as somebody that does the maintenance, the little blackout dates do nothing for me. [00:49:11] It helps staff maybe do some pressure washing here or there or maybe paint the back of the stage. [00:49:18] But if we're talking about major maintenance, I need time. [00:49:23] And so that's what we tried to look at is where can we take at least two times a year to where we can not only maybe get some seed down or get sod down, we can take and do concrete repairs, we can go in, we can do the shelters, pressure wash, we can do painting, we can take and replace some of these pieces of equipment that need to be replaced, those types of things. [00:49:48] And that allows us to do it. [00:49:49] It just seemed to me like it was longer than a month. [00:49:51] That's all I meant. [00:49:53] Robert, spot on. [00:49:55] Spot on. [00:49:56] And I looked at this calendar. [00:49:57] I liked everything I saw. [00:49:58] The only question I had, and actually had somebody call me tonight to make a similar comment, the rainy season doesn't start until early to mid-June usually. [00:50:15] Would we be well served to have that spring date, at least the blackout date, at least somewhat overlapping that so that if you're putting down a bunch of sod, you've got rain coming in on a daily basis? [00:50:28] You could. [00:50:29] But we were typically looking at historically when these large events were being held, trying to still accommodate those. [00:50:37] And then also when we talk about that, we also know that we have an irrigation system. [00:50:42] So while the rain is nice and it actually will help that grass grow a lot faster than what regular irrigation will, we kind of tried to look at all the variables and fit a month of consecutive days in there to where we could accommodate the historically large events and then still get our stuff done. [00:51:04] But yes, if we were, just like you'll notice we did the sod, and typically you're not going to do the sod when we did, we were forced, we were backed into it. [00:51:13] And so that's what we're trying to do. [00:51:15] We're trying to get these dates to where we can now call out the maintenance items that we need to do and do them on a consistent basis. [00:51:23] Debbie just confirmed it's reclaimed water, so the irrigation expense is minimal, right? [00:51:27] Correct. [00:51:28] A comment about Chopper's point of moving the seafood fest. [00:51:33] My suggestion would be the seafood fest would happen in a month with an R in it, just in case somebody's got oysters. [00:51:39] So could we not? [00:51:41] And also I think they would prefer to have it during the tourism time. [00:51:45] So once you get past Easter, then you get the snowbirds back. [00:51:49] So maybe they find that, put it in January or in a date that works, that will have more people in town. [00:51:56] It's just the recovery from Chasco, because like I said, you put something down for 10 days, it's going to kill the grass. [00:52:02] You put a trash can over the wrong spot in your house for three days, you rake it in water and it comes back in a couple days. [00:52:09] I think the seafood festival is indeed the problem or problematic event because it comes so close on the heels of Chasco each year. [00:52:18] Chasco's definitely killing it. [00:52:20] Move it, yeah, into one of the other winter months. [00:52:24] That would work. [00:52:25] It would still let them do what they've got to do. [00:52:28] That's a little rough for them back there now to think, oh, my God, they've got to do it in a month. [00:52:33] Tell them you're going to be doing this the second week of January. [00:52:36] Whenever we implement this, my view would be to tell that group that I know they struggle to do that. [00:52:45] And then the 4th of July, I've been advocating the city take over the 4th of July. [00:52:49] We fund the fireworks. [00:52:50] We put on the event in the park. [00:52:52] And we let them focus on- [00:52:54] John Gillis is doing a fine job right now. [00:52:57] Let's let him keep paying. [00:52:58] He still can. [00:52:59] He can put his money in if he wants to. [00:53:00] But the point is, he may be doing a fine job, but the work is on the group and they have to struggle to make it break even. [00:53:09] And that's not what Main Street is- [00:53:11] Yeah, and that's not what they're supposed to be doing. [00:53:13] But they have to do it. [00:53:15] But just for the sake of discussion, if we went from the end of Chasco until Main Street Blaster, 4th of July, [00:53:29] you'd basically have a couple of months where the place would have a chance to recover without the big multi-day events. [00:53:40] You could still have the little one-day things. [00:53:42] It wouldn't hurt anything. [00:53:43] The only thing in there is Wrap River Run. [00:53:45] And that's a one-day thing. [00:53:48] They're there for a few hours and they're gone. [00:53:50] That's when I kick Kim's ass. [00:53:52] Of course, the other thing, if we do like what you're suggesting and take over the 4th of July thing, that doesn't need to be a three-day event. [00:54:02] It could very easily be a one-day with the fireworks, start it off, do some fun stuff, have fireworks that night and call it a day. [00:54:10] Well, let's leave that for now. [00:54:12] Let's be honest. [00:54:13] I agree. [00:54:14] Fireworks doesn't need to be a three-day event. [00:54:16] And I appreciate all the sponsorships of all our events. [00:54:19] But I see the commercialization of our park. [00:54:22] It drives me nuts sometimes with some of these events. [00:54:25] Twenty cars in there for a car dealership. [00:54:27] VIP area has taken up a huge amount of a public park for employees of that company and whatnot. [00:54:34] I appreciate everything that these larger businesses have done and continue to do. [00:54:40] But at some point, the commercialization is just really starting to irritate me a bit. [00:54:44] It's not your business. [00:54:46] It's not your business location. [00:54:48] It's our park. [00:54:49] You can go ahead and sponsor an event. [00:54:51] It's a non-profit. [00:54:53] It's supposed to be for non-profit, right? [00:54:54] The sponsorships. [00:54:55] All these events are non-profits. [00:54:57] I get the sponsorships. [00:54:58] You need them to put the events on. [00:55:00] But I don't need 20 cars in the park from any company. [00:55:03] They could park on the pavement, too. [00:55:05] No, they're advertising their cars. [00:55:07] No, but I'm saying we could still have them on. [00:55:10] That's the opening of your mind to move your project to the people. [00:55:13] I agree with Al. [00:55:14] As soon as people take it over, I don't have it. [00:55:16] If they want to have a carnival somewhere and they've got a space in town to do it, then that's another option. [00:55:21] But I think we're trying to drive business to town. [00:55:24] And we've had this tug and pull between the businesses and not. [00:55:28] And I'm ready to – I think it's a city event. [00:55:33] And I'm not trying to push that away from that group. [00:55:35] But I don't think they make money on it. [00:55:37] I think they bust their butt on it. [00:55:39] And I know that Chasco lost 40 grand last year. [00:55:43] So there's a good number of reasons for that. [00:55:45] But, you know, it's a labor of love for everybody that gets involved in events. [00:55:51] And we don't want to lose the volunteers, and we don't want to lose the energy. [00:55:55] We just have to figure out how to reallocate. [00:55:58] Ten percent of the people do 90 percent of the work. [00:56:00] Yeah, and that's true of any group, including the Main Street group. [00:56:04] But, you know, for them to kill themselves trying to do Main Street Blast [00:56:09] and then lose money on it, just, you know, that's not good. [00:56:14] And if the city steps up, makes that a nice one-day affair, [00:56:20] celebrate the birth of our country, I think that would work. [00:56:25] And let them concentrate on the other stuff. [00:56:28] And I know they've been trying hard to get some other things organized [00:56:33] that are part of the Main Street program. [00:56:36] I would suggest that, given that being said, [00:56:39] and the timing of this that whatever we talk about moving the Seafest out [00:56:44] might ought to be giving them a notice of the year [00:56:47] because if we can let them have an event moving out to 2021 [00:56:51] and then if we move some of the food vendors off, Hacienda won't be open yet. [00:56:56] Our parking lot will be ready. [00:56:59] So I would like to think that we kind of merge into a different way of doing things. [00:57:06] I would agree with that. [00:57:08] Matt, any thoughts? [00:57:11] No. [00:57:12] I mean, I know, like Robert was saying, he's kind of built in already a schedule [00:57:16] so he has that maintenance taken care of. [00:57:18] So, I mean, if it's something we feel we do need to move events, [00:57:22] and like Chasco, we definitely want to hear from people first [00:57:25] before we make a decision on that. [00:57:27] So hopefully there's some people here for that. [00:57:31] I think Robert, this department, knows what they need to do [00:57:35] and how they need to space it out. [00:57:39] Just another thing that's on the memo that we didn't really bring up is street closures. [00:57:42] I mean, a lot of complaints of when the street closures take place. [00:57:46] You had a complaint with your own business. [00:57:48] Oh, yeah. [00:57:49] During an event. [00:57:50] And we need to let these businesses and residents know well ahead of time, [00:57:55] it should be a surprise for them when the street in front of their house [00:57:58] or their business is going to be closed. [00:58:00] And the – I don't want to pick on Bike Fest, although it happened to be this time, [00:58:07] but it's been other events over the years that there's going to be a street closure [00:58:12] and it never gets communicated out. [00:58:16] And then all of a sudden when you think you've got time where you can access your business, [00:58:21] all of a sudden you discover you're blocked out. [00:58:24] And I literally had to move barricades to get out this year at the start of Bike Fest [00:58:31] because the barricades went up before they should have. [00:58:35] And, you know, and it's not – I say it's not just Bike Fest. [00:58:39] It's happened with other events as well. [00:58:42] And we just need to make sure everybody knows when that's going to happen [00:58:48] and then stick with it. [00:58:49] If we say that we're going to block off the streets at 4 o'clock, then let's not block them off at 2. [00:58:58] In response, Mr. Mayor, if you would allow me, [00:59:00] I apologize for not bringing up the street closure event. [00:59:03] Somehow I missed it on my agenda. [00:59:06] But what we've decided to do as a staff is we're going to make the notifications ourselves. [00:59:13] That way we're certain that they go out, we're certain that they go out to the right person, [00:59:18] and we're certain that they go out in a timely manner. [00:59:23] The event organizers, many of them have tried very hard to do it, [00:59:28] but they don't have as reliable of lists as we do, [00:59:32] and they don't always get out. [00:59:35] Sometimes even – I know Mrs. Farrell's here, [00:59:40] and she's personally notified the property owners, [00:59:44] but the message doesn't get to the right person in the business, [00:59:50] and then they're aggravated. [00:59:52] So it would just be better if we did it and it's done. [00:59:56] That's a great idea. [00:59:57] And we're the ones that block the street off too. [01:00:00] Exactly, so we know when they're going to go blocking them. [01:00:04] The other thing I'd like to toss out, we've had a couple of events now that have brought [01:00:13] in the shuttle services and they worked well for Faith Baptist Church back in the fall [01:00:20] of last year. [01:00:22] I thought they worked remarkably well for Chasco this year and if we had not run into [01:00:29] trouble with street closures, it would have worked real well with Main Street Blast. [01:00:35] I think we need to encourage, particularly the multi-day events that are drawing in thousands [01:00:41] of people to bite the bullet, let's figure out where we're going to park people. [01:00:48] The churches love it, I mean my own community congregational, they all love being able to [01:00:57] do that. [01:00:58] They're getting it organized and I absolutely commend Chasco for doing a superb job this [01:01:04] year in making that happen. [01:01:07] Chief, you had a question? [01:01:09] The other thing I'd like to see us do, and I'd be involved and so would Robert, and that [01:01:13] is to use our signage. [01:01:17] I was part of a little team that did the latest mailing. [01:01:21] We've been meeting for hours and hours and hours trying to go through the list and thankfully [01:01:26] the city finance department gave us some data to be able to work from, trying to identify [01:01:32] all of the streets along the parade route, all the businesses, all the residents that [01:01:37] are affected by when we shut it down for the parade. [01:01:41] You're talking about the parade this coming Saturday? [01:01:44] Yeah, I mean we've been working night and day on this, kind of last minute trying to [01:01:48] get it together, working with the chamber as well. [01:01:53] It is a huge expense for that not-for-profit to send out those notices. [01:01:59] By the time you do the envelopes, do the paper, get the branding done, put stamps on it, and [01:02:04] the time that's spent, it's been a lot. [01:02:07] We had a lot of volunteers from my rotary and some others working on this. [01:02:12] So I love the idea and I can see where it would be very good to do it, like with the [01:02:20] water bill or something like that where people get advance notice. [01:02:24] But I think it would be very important to have the map of the route there. [01:02:29] Like the mailing that we just did, it's got that route and Angel Cook is the one coordinating [01:02:36] all of it. [01:02:37] She has had so many responses from people saying thanks for giving the detail on that. [01:02:44] So I think that would be important, but I would also like to see us do our signage. [01:02:50] You mean using the message board? [01:02:52] Message boards at both ends of the city. [01:02:55] If it's for a parade, catch Grand Boulevard before Gulf, south, right in that area. [01:03:03] You'll see a sign up there this week if it's not already there. [01:03:07] I think Robert's already worked with us and he has one of his signs out here. [01:03:11] One of my message boards was down, but I think they've got the other one out at the other [01:03:17] end of Maine. [01:03:18] Do you see that coming in? [01:03:20] So we've got two. [01:03:21] I just don't know if we've done the one on Grand, but nobody can get into our city unless [01:03:26] they come those routes that are going to be pretty much affected by this. [01:03:32] We had another one. [01:03:33] We might even do it over there on Massachusetts Avenue for anybody coming that way. [01:03:39] I think that is a very inexpensive way between that and the cards to get the notice out there. [01:03:48] Good points. [01:03:49] Can we rent one from the county for a week? [01:03:50] We don't need to rent it. [01:03:51] We can get these things. [01:03:53] Robert has a couple. [01:03:54] We've got a couple. [01:03:55] Oh, he just said if we had another one, that's what I said. [01:03:56] When mine's repaired. [01:03:57] Oh, oh, oh. [01:03:58] We were trying to fast track it. [01:03:59] Oh, okay. [01:04:00] We had someone shoot it. [01:04:01] I agree. [01:04:02] May I make a suggestion? [01:04:03] I think Councilman Altman said, can we have, especially larger event organizers, many of [01:04:12] them are here, many of them will watch this meeting, come back to staff with concerns [01:04:16] that you've heard based on, maybe give them a copy of this memorandum that we have in [01:04:20] front of us, any concerns that you have with, well, that's not going to work for our event, [01:04:25] and then we can come back and maybe have a follow-up work session to address those issues. [01:04:29] Because like you said, every event is a different size. [01:04:33] They're just all different. [01:04:34] So once again, my stance is, I'm not against large events. [01:04:38] We just need to maintain the park. [01:04:39] As long as we do that, I'm good with whatever is family-friendly and all that. [01:04:44] I'm sure they're going to have concerns, so if they can just bring them to staff, and [01:04:47] then come back here, let staff digest it, and get with us, and we'll have a follow-up [01:04:52] meeting. [01:04:53] And bring them in on the discussion at the next meeting. [01:04:56] I mean, tonight as well, but I'm just saying that we've just thrown a lot out there, so. [01:05:00] I hate to put them on the spot, but this is their only opportunity to have input. [01:05:06] Any other comments before I open it up for the public? [01:05:11] Yeah, please, any of you that come up, please try to keep it to three minutes, so we can [01:05:16] get out of here. [01:05:18] But anybody that is interested in addressing this, please come on up. [01:05:23] If you haven't signed in, please do. [01:05:27] John Cain, 6041 Florida Avenue. [01:05:31] I would like to, first of all, the comment that Councilman Davis had kind of dealt with [01:05:37] the gorilla in the room, in my opinion. [01:05:40] One of the things I had witnessed when we first opened up golf carts to come in the [01:05:44] park, a friend of mine, who's a part-time resident, comes down from up north, he's a [01:05:49] talent buyer, and also a event coordinator, does huge events upstate New York. [01:05:55] And we were in the park, and there was a guy sitting there with a full party of people, [01:06:03] and they were in their golf cart, and other people had their children. [01:06:09] And I guess this mother wasn't watching, it's tough to watch, she was watching the show, [01:06:13] she had two little kids who were bored with the event for them, and went behind, found [01:06:20] a nice little spot behind this golf cart to play with their dolls. [01:06:24] Now there's no way that you would have seen these kids. [01:06:28] Fortunately, where I was standing with my friend, we happened to see it, and it was [01:06:34] just kind of as the event was ending, and this guy, you could hear the beeping, he put [01:06:38] his thing in gear, and we ran up and we stopped him, otherwise that would have been possible [01:06:43] fatality. [01:06:44] These are the things that we don't perceive or we think of when we think people are going [01:06:49] to be cautious. [01:06:51] So I've kind of listened, I'm trying to speed this up, because I've got to get out of here. [01:06:57] It seems to me the first thing that probably should have been done, from everything I'm [01:07:01] hearing, from everyone, is that you should have gotten a common consensus on what you [01:07:05] feel a park should be, and what should go on in a park, because I'm hearing all different [01:07:10] opinions. [01:07:11] Speaking from my opinion, the number one thing is safety. [01:07:15] A park should be safe. [01:07:16] It's a place for children, I'm more concerned about safety than I am, I don't like the exposure [01:07:22] to foul language either, but if I really had to make a choice, I want the safety. [01:07:27] I want to know that they might come home and tell me they heard something that they shouldn't [01:07:32] have heard, but that they made it home. [01:07:35] And so safety is paramount. [01:07:38] And I think it's really simple, there's a big sign there, I was there for 11 days in [01:07:43] that park last year, and I have to tell you, my friend's comment, I kind of overshot it, [01:07:50] he asked me when he saw the golf course, he goes, whose idea, he goes, you're involved [01:07:54] in this city, whose idea was this? [01:07:56] I said, you know, I really don't know. [01:07:57] It's a big sign that says no motorized vehicles in the park, I said, this is new. [01:08:03] He said, well, I'm going to tell you, he goes, I do this for a living, he goes, whoever came [01:08:07] up with this, it ain't a good idea, because this is an accident waiting to happen. [01:08:11] So I think it's a privilege to ride on our streets, I think that's fine, golf carts on [01:08:16] our streets are a great thing, shooting around downtown is fine, but you're talking about [01:08:22] a park, once again, you need to get an evaluation of what you feel. [01:08:26] I feel a park should be a park. [01:08:28] It's for walking, it's for people to park their vehicles and walk in. [01:08:33] If you have a golf cart, enjoy it. [01:08:35] Ride it in, park it, and then walk in like everyone else. [01:08:39] You cannot mix children and people in a confined area, it is a fair size park, but let's look, [01:08:47] it's not Central Park, it's a confined area, and have motor vehicles in there and expect [01:08:52] that something is not going to happen, and when it does happen, we kind of like try and [01:08:58] point fingers as to, you know, it could have been avoided, but, you know, to me, it's just [01:09:05] not good. [01:09:07] The other thing I wanted to bring up real fast, Railroad Square. [01:09:12] You know, we built that a long time ago, it's been sitting there, let's use it, that's a [01:09:15] perfect place for food vendors, perfect. [01:09:18] I've heard things where it's going to rub the brick and mortar people wrong. [01:09:23] I disagree totally. [01:09:25] It's going to move a lot of the people over to their area, and when people see those other [01:09:31] brick and mortar stores, they might go in there because they're more comfortable to [01:09:35] sit or whatever, as opposed to coming up to a vendor's stand to get their food. [01:09:40] I think it would serve the purpose and would get them out of the park, which is, to me. [01:09:47] The other thing is, I don't know if there's ever been a study that's really been done [01:09:50] as to, does the city make any money on these events, and then if so, subtract all the services [01:09:58] between security and public works and all the things we do. [01:10:01] I think not. [01:10:02] I don't see how we could. [01:10:06] So to that, I would look for innovative ways, and this is going to be really unpopular, [01:10:11] but you go to a lot of other parks, and to park in a park, there's usually some kind [01:10:16] of a meter machine. [01:10:17] It might not cost a fortune, even if it's a quarter. [01:10:20] Something to start. [01:10:22] We have to start considering other ways of putting back. [01:10:25] Thank you very much, and I have to run out to River Bridge, so you guys have a good night. [01:10:31] Thank you. [01:10:32] Anyone else? [01:10:33] Carmen Passarella, I have Jilly's on Main Street, as well as Village on Grand Boulevard. [01:10:49] My God. [01:10:50] I also have several properties in the downtown area that I bought, put a lot of money into, [01:10:56] renovate, sell, rent, rents are gone. [01:10:59] Very high downtown now, and a lot of the reason is, of course, some of the things that [01:11:05] are happening down there, and I want to thank the council for helping to expedite a lot [01:11:09] of what is happening downtown, the growth. [01:11:12] I've been a little negative in the past with the stagnation, as I called it, over the last, [01:11:18] God, 10, 15 years, but over the last year, two years, it's really been a big change, [01:11:24] and I thank you for that. [01:11:26] I want to bring up a few quick points regarding the few big events that we have down there, [01:11:32] you know, the Chasco, the bike fest, the parade, so forth, but I think it helps to give the [01:11:39] city some exposure and credibility, gives it a name now, and I think, you know, we're [01:11:45] seeing that. [01:11:46] A lot of people that are outside the area are talking about New Port Richey and how much [01:11:49] is happening downtown, and I'm really glad to, as a business owner and a property owner, [01:11:53] I'm really glad to see that. [01:11:55] But it's also important to the employees of a lot of the businesses downtown, because [01:12:01] that's like a windfall to, you know, not the business owners, not just the business owners, [01:12:06] and a lot of cases, not the business owners, but the people that work there benefit the [01:12:10] most from that, and there's, you know, it's growing more and more people that are working [01:12:14] downtown now that weren't working downtown before. [01:12:18] Also the shops and the businesses that now want to be a part of what's going on downtown, [01:12:27] you're seeing more and more of that, people that wouldn't want to be a part of downtown [01:12:31] in the past, in downtown New Port Richey. [01:12:34] When I first bought the village seven years ago, I had a few people ask me, why do I want [01:12:39] to do that? [01:12:40] It's, you know, it's not going anywhere, but, you know, I believe it could go somewhere, [01:12:44] and we're seeing that now, and I think part of that is, and part of what the growth is [01:12:48] about is the fact that these, again, these events, some of the bigger events especially, [01:12:55] crowds that they're bringing in, and the people, and I know there's, you guys have addressed [01:12:58] a lot of the issues with those, and I guess just to wrap it up, I really think that from [01:13:03] hearing everything that happened today and looking at the memorandum you put out that [01:13:07] it looks like you guys are at least on board to having these, there are issues with them, [01:13:12] and if we can solve the issues and work together to solve the issues, I think that's a better [01:13:16] course rather than, I think a lot of business owners over the past have thought, we better [01:13:21] show up for this thing because it looks like they're trying to get rid of it, and if we [01:13:24] don't get up here, it's a fight, it's a struggle all the time because there's a negativity [01:13:28] about it, but I'm hearing more of a positive reaction now, and it's greatly appreciated. [01:13:34] Thank you. [01:13:35] Appreciate it. [01:13:36] Thank you. [01:13:37] Hey. [01:13:38] Anyone else? [01:13:39] While Wendy's coming down, yeah, the whole idea and part of what we've done with the [01:13:49] city events, the concerts and the movies, is to encourage people to come down early [01:13:57] and visit the restaurants and places and enjoy before they go enjoy the concert or the movie. [01:14:04] Yes, ma'am. [01:14:05] Hi. [01:14:06] Wendy Brenner, 7224 Grand Boulevard. [01:14:08] Just a couple of observations. [01:14:12] The issue with putting vendors in the street is the parade. [01:14:17] Where's the parade going to go? [01:14:20] At Chasco specifically, and the Hacienda, once that opens, the parking lot's got to [01:14:28] be used by the Hacienda, so that's another issue. [01:14:32] What about other events on the blackout dates? [01:14:38] You know, there's a lot of blackout dates. [01:14:40] An event comes and it's a fundraiser for somebody or it's something that just came up. [01:14:46] I think you need to build in some flexibility in that respect. [01:14:51] The park does need to rest, and it's better to rest and fertilize and water than it is [01:14:59] to remain. [01:15:00] place, you'll get a firmer base and things will work better. The other issue is riding bicycles [01:15:05] in the park. I think that's an issue too. I think people should not be allowed to ride in the park [01:15:13] on bicycles. They need to walk because it's just, when they're sharing the sidewalks with people, [01:15:19] it's an issue, especially during the events. That's a safety issue also. And I agree golf carts [01:15:26] shouldn't be in the park, especially during the larger events. We never had it back in my day. [01:15:34] We had carts because we needed to get stuff around and for emergency purposes, but [01:15:39] it's just too dangerous. There's too many people and they don't see it. [01:15:46] But I think the issue with the golf carts needs to be settled because people are moving to this [01:15:54] city. One of the reasons is because of the golf carts. I mean, my sister just moved here from [01:16:04] Georgia in the last year and the principal reason why they wanted to look in New Port Richey was [01:16:13] because they're fishermen, so they're on the water and the golf cart issue. They can take [01:16:19] the golf cart and go downtown, go shopping, whatever they need to do. So you don't want to [01:16:24] restrict that, overly restrict it. And they enjoy coming down for the concerts and everything. [01:16:31] And so I think it's important to do that and I'm happy to see that y'all are trying to work [01:16:36] something out ahead of time. This is kind of a bad night because most of your committee's at a [01:16:42] their rotary party tonight. Thank you all. Thank you, Wendy. [01:16:48] Something she just brought up while somebody else comes down was that [01:16:55] some of these smaller events, we might be able to entertain people using [01:16:59] Francis Park because I think we are trying to relight it a little bit more. [01:17:06] And we got new bathrooms there and the Kumquat Festival had no problems. [01:17:11] Lowquat. [01:17:12] Lowquat. That's right. That's that other city. [01:17:15] Move to Dade City. [01:17:17] Lowquat Festival. So, you know, there's that opportunity for some smaller events. [01:17:21] That's a good point there. And I was thinking the same thing. There are several parks where [01:17:26] smaller events can be held fairly easily. Anyone else? [01:17:30] I'd just comment on what Wendy said about the golf carts. It's funny because we voted on, [01:17:34] you and I started the same day, so many things since we've been up here. [01:17:38] And I remember the golf cart ordinance and I was nervous about it. And we vetted it very well, [01:17:42] but it never did I ever imagine it would have such an impact on the city as it has. People are [01:17:48] literally moving here because you can't drive right around in your golf cart. And it's just [01:17:53] had it's helped build a sense of community, I think. And people love it, along with so many [01:17:58] other things. But it's just just looking back, it's just I want to point that I never thought [01:18:02] it was going to be such a big deal when we passed the golf cart ordinance as it has been. [01:18:06] Anyone else want to share thoughts? And let's say if you think of something after you get home [01:18:12] and think, oh darn, I forgot. Shoot a note to Mrs. Mance and we'll incorporate it. [01:18:22] Hey, I'm Gene Sullivan. I have the boulevard and a few other rental properties here. But [01:18:27] with your golf cart situation, it is great. But again, everybody's parking parallel like a car. [01:18:34] Instead of the way that when you go get inspected, it tells you right there you got to park like, [01:18:38] you know, nose first like they do in the villages and everywhere else. But it'd be a good thing. [01:18:43] Like I said, if we had some kind of warning thing, we could get people for a month or two [01:18:47] because they're taking up a lot of parking spaces where they could be putting two or three golf [01:18:50] carts at one park nose first, like you're supposed to, you know. But it has benefited, [01:18:55] like Carmen says, you all done a great job. So it's getting busier. Everybody's busy and [01:19:01] everybody's making money and that's what it's all about. Well, thank you. Bob Langford, [01:19:06] who is sitting in the back, and I actually tested the parking back when I had my little [01:19:13] car. And I parked my car nose in, he parked his golf cart nose in, and there was still half the [01:19:20] parking place left. So you could, you're correct, you could get four golf carts into one of those [01:19:26] spots pretty easily. Anyone else? In that case, I'll bring it back. Any final comments? [01:19:34] Something that Carmen brought up is that there's a lot of employees downtown, you know, [01:19:39] that we're employing a lot of people downtown. And I, you know, I thank these businesses for [01:19:44] hiring and keeping them, you know, and we trying to open up the city to bring in more employment. [01:19:53] Mr. Allman? Just two things. One, I'm guessing most of the folks here heard [01:19:58] of our recent meeting where we discussed the expansion of Railroad Square and the addition [01:20:06] of requests to move it all the way down to Bank Street even at some point as a future phase. [01:20:12] The amount of opposition we had to Cavalier Square, which goes over to Missouri Avenue, [01:20:21] I think has proven that it was the right move by the city. I brought up the parklet [01:20:28] behind there. Some folks were unaware that that belonged to the city. I'm not opposed to having [01:20:34] the adjacent restaurant continue to find ways to use it, but I do think that when it comes to [01:20:40] some of our events and other things that we make, when Debbie brings that back, to reserve the right [01:20:46] to have some, have it be part of events or something and not to be exclusive to that owner. [01:20:53] I had a letter from Jimmy's Restaurant related to parking, which was another comment, [01:21:00] I think was a request to Debbie at our recent meeting about parking. [01:21:04] When we were talking about making more parking off of Nebraska, between Nebraska and Missouri, [01:21:11] where the old Red Cross building was, and there was discussion about [01:21:17] turning some of the private parking back into public parking. [01:21:21] When Jimmy's Restaurant, the original restaurant, burned down and he moved across the street, [01:21:28] he was subjected to the city's parking rules and drainage rules, and he had to pick up a lot of [01:21:33] land and make a lot of parking spaces there. So when folks who've had to invest in things the old [01:21:39] ways, when we were kind of slowing down, I think Village Pub also had some parking as well, [01:21:46] when we are looking to encourage the growth, I'm hopeful that the folks that have lived here a long [01:21:53] time can participate in that as we add new parking spaces and come up with new opportunities [01:22:00] that may free up some of those old private parking lots to allow us to repurpose it and [01:22:06] get more density in the town. So in our long-term plan, I just want to remember the folks who've [01:22:10] been with us for a long time, who've invested in this town, and who were subjected to some of our [01:22:15] more difficult rules. The Dulcet building is border-to-border, doesn't even have its own [01:22:24] garbage facility, or parking lot one, parking space one. And that's history, I mean that's the [01:22:34] way it is, but I think as we move forward with sensitivity to the long-standing folks in town, [01:22:40] I think we need to keep that in mind. As to the garbage, Chopper may have seen it when we went to [01:22:46] the redevelopment conference or met as well, there was a garbage company that I think they're in [01:22:52] Orlando with it now, but they have vaults of the garbage and they have a special machine that would [01:22:59] pick it up and empty it. And so when we talk about density, I think we're going to start having [01:23:06] problems with the garbage as we have more and more restaurants and we have these dumpsters that are [01:23:12] out there. I would love to explore as a future plan, maybe a few years out, the idea that we can [01:23:20] locate a number of garbage vaults and maybe get the businesses in on the deal so they don't have [01:23:27] to have the exposed food and garbage, which Cavalier Square gets because Dulcet and Boulevard [01:23:38] Beef and Ale and the other folks and our events, we're probably going to start generating a lot [01:23:45] of garbage the more people we have here. And I think that we can't forget that as an element of [01:23:51] our planning. Thank you. Mr. Murphy. I just want to make sure that everybody gets their [01:23:57] voice heard, business owners, event coordinators, and just anybody, people involved, please, if you're [01:24:02] watching or here, please get your suggestions, ideas, whatever it is, to Ms. Manns and the city so that [01:24:09] we can have all this stuff we can talk about at the next meeting. So make sure everybody's [01:24:14] concerns are addressed. There's a couple groups that I don't see here. I want to reach out to them and [01:24:19] make sure that, you know, because they're going to be impacted, so they need to be here and [01:24:24] talk about it. So I want to make sure everybody does that. Please, it helps us. And, you know, the worst [01:24:29] thing in the world is after we decide on something, put it down on paper and enact it, and then we have [01:24:34] people come up, hey, wait a minute, why I didn't know about this or why didn't, you know, this is a [01:24:39] dumb idea. Well, you know, please, you should have said that beforehand, you know. We just want to make [01:24:44] sure everybody does that. Thank you. Thank you to staff. You guys put a lot of work into [01:24:51] this, and I thought you did a really, really good job with the calendar, with the memorandum [01:24:54] that you sent us. I liked everything I saw. Thank you for the event organizers that came here. Thank [01:24:59] you for all that you do with your events. I appreciate everyone's input, and I also want to [01:25:04] just, I won't do a shout out like individually, but the business owners, I see new business owners, I [01:25:10] see business owners that have been here a little while that take care of your property, commercial [01:25:14] property owners that have upgraded their property to kind of work with the city on our goals and [01:25:20] what we've been trying to do over the last five, six, last decade really, but it's really come to [01:25:23] fruition over the last few years. Thank you very much, because we do have property owners that [01:25:27] aren't getting on board, that aren't getting with the plan, and it's kind of slowing things down a [01:25:33] little bit, so the ones that have, that have opened good businesses, that have put the money they need [01:25:37] to to have their businesses be quality businesses, their commercial buildings be quality commercial [01:25:42] buildings that people want to go visit. Thank you for all that you've done. It's a partnership. I [01:25:46] hope you're making money because you're helping the city grow as well in a positive fashion. [01:25:51] Thank you. These are exciting times here in New Port Richey. There's a lot of stuff going on. [01:25:57] The events are a major part of what makes New Port Richey a cool place to be, [01:26:04] and our goal is not to do anything to hurt the events, but basically to make sure that we keep [01:26:13] the park looking as nice as we possibly can, so it's the sort of place you want to bring an event [01:26:17] to. We've got some challenges, the parking being one of them, but I'm very confident we're going [01:26:25] to be able to work through that. I love the idea that was brought up tonight about possibly using [01:26:30] that north parking lot, designating it out specifically for golf cart parking during some [01:26:37] of the events, because you could put a lot of golf carts in there fairly easily, so, and it's that [01:26:44] sort of exchange of ideas that I wish we had had at our last workshop on special events, but I'm [01:26:54] glad we had it tonight, and I think staff will come back with some other ideas for us, and we'll [01:27:02] move forward. I would like to, at this point, go to communications for anybody that has some...

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3. 3Communications▶ 1:27:12
4. 4Adjournment