By Dave Fidlin
Correspondent
Hoping to strike a balance between equitably funding municipal operations and accommodating festivals and similar gatherings, Whitewater officials are eyeing a new policy that would require organizers obtain a permit before holding a special event in the community.
The Common Council was slated to discuss the proposed policy at its most recent meeting Sept. 6, but the agenda item was canceled with the understanding it would be revisited on an unspecified date in the future.
The proposed special event permit policy was first presented in mid-July, but was put back under the microscope as council members shared a range of concerns, including some of the proposed costs that were tacked onto the policy.
Although no actual discussion occurred at last week’s meeting, Assistant City Manager Chris McDonell, who has been incorporating suggested edits, provided officials with a memo in the council packet.
From the get go, McDonell said a provision to charge $800 to erect a temporary fence during special events has been stricken from the language since the council “approved a contract to have a permanent fence installed in Cravath Park on both sides of the railroad track.”
Another charge that has been removed was a proposed $25 administrative application fee.
Additionally, McDonell said efforts are being made to draw delineations between for-profit and nonprofit entities.
“A request was made to remove … parking and street closure fees for nonprofit organizations,” McDonell wrote in the memo. “Charges have been incorporated for all nonprofit, governmental and city co-sponsored events.”
The policy, if enacted, would include a schedule of different fees pertaining to for-profit activities. In its current iteration, the document would give city staffers the authority to charge for regular and overtime police staffing.
Other incidental fees touch on facility rentals, and the document adds teeth to what steps the city could take, if necessary, to recoup any costs associated with property damage and clean-up costs.
