By Patrick Sherry
Big community events in Lantana could face new requirements from the town if they impact public safety or nearby streets.
The Lantana Town Council on April 13 gave an initial OK to a proposed ordinance that would create a new approval process for special events that “significantly impact public rights-of-way or town services.”
Town staff proposed the ordinance to improve how the town handles special event requests. The ordinance, which still requires a second council vote to take effect, would create a two-tiered approval system to ensure events are managed in a way that protects public safety, maintains access to public property and prevents roadways from being blocked.
“It really establishes a very consistent, streamlined approval process for small-scale events and large-scale events on a very consistent, very transparent basis,” Town Clerk Kathleen Dominguez said.
Events with fewer than 60 attendees that involve town property or affect traffic would be considered Tier 1 and require town staff approval. Anything over that threshold would be Tier 2 and would need to be approved by the Town Council. Large-scale events, depending on their size, would require a site plan to be submitted, a mandatory $1 million liability insurance policy and a special fee payment.
Originally, the ordinance applied to events on private residential properties if they were not contained on the site or affected traffic. The ordinance faced criticism from some who attended because of that.
“You don't get to make the decision on how many people they’re allowed to have – it’s a local government,” resident Alex Hankinson said.
Council members clarified that they won’t be putting limits on how many people can attend special events. Instead, their goal was to create a more effective process to give them approval. Yet, Council member Kem Mason was more concerned about the town being involved in approving events on residents’ properties.
“It’s a little bit of government overreach… when it comes to private property,” Mason said.
The rest of the council emphasized that the ordinance is to prioritize safety and improve enforcement if incidents occur. They subsequently approved it on its first reading 5-0.
At a later meeting, on April 27, Town Manager Brian Raducci suggested removing residential private properties from the ordinance based on feedback. The council agreed to the change, but still would like to further discuss the ordinance at another workshop before holding a vote on final approval.
Comments