Chapter 5.94
SPECIAL EVENTS
Sections:
5.94.050 Processing application.
5.94.060 Standards of issuance.
5.94.070 Revocation of permit.
5.94.010 Purpose and intent.
The intent of this chapter is to recognize the impact that special events have on the availability of city services and to provide procedures to allow the events, but to protect the public’s health, safety, and welfare. This chapter is not to override any constitutional rights of the public to exercise their free speech or other rights under the United States Constitution. (Ord. 041-16 § 1).
5.94.020 Definitions.
For the purposes of this chapter, the words set forth in this section shall be defined as follows:
(1) “Applicant” means the person, firm, company, nonprofit, or corporation managing, running, operating or conducting the special event and has the authority to do so.
(2) “Block party” means an event that involves a one-block-long residential street closure, is not open to the public, requires no admission fee, and offers no food or beverages for sale.
(3) “City property” means land the city owns that has the capacity and capability to hold an event.
(4) “Parade” means any march or procession consisting of people, animals, bicycles, vehicles, or combination thereof, except funeral processions, upon any city street, state highway, or sidewalk which does not comply with normal and usual traffic regulations or controls.
(5) “Parks” means any site owned by the city designed or developed for recreational use by the public.
(6) “Permit” means a document issued by the city granting permission to engage in an activity not allowed without a permit.
(7) “Right-of-way (ROW)” means any road, public parking lot, city street, highway, boulevard or place in the city open as a matter of right to public travel and shall include arterials, neighborhood streets, alleys, bicycle paths and pedestrian ways; including streets or portions thereof which are designated as portions of the state highway system.
(8) “Run” means an organized procession to contend in a race consisting of people, bicycles, or other vehicular devices or combination thereof containing 50 or more persons upon a city street, state highway, or sidewalk.
(9) “Special event” means any organized formation of an activity proposed to occur that affects the public’s ordinary use of city property, public parks, and/or rights-of-way, including but not limited to runs, street dances, block parties, and parades.
(10) “Special event permit” means a required permit for an activity requiring a permit.
(11) “Street dance” means any organized formation of a dance on any public right-of-way.
(12) “Tourism” means economic activity resulting from tourists, which may include sales of overnight lodging, meals, tours, gifts, or souvenirs. (Ord. 015-17 § 1; Ord. 041-16 § 1).
5.94.030 Permit – Required.
(1) No person, firm, company, nonprofit, or corporation shall run, manage, operate, or conduct any special event without having applied for and received a special event permit in advance of such special event, as required by this chapter.
(2) There shall be a $50.00 nonrefundable administrative fee to process each application submitted, which is to be paid to the finance department. The fee is due when the application is submitted to the city clerk’s office. Each application shall be for only one event.
(3) A complete application for a special event permit for an event that does not require the closure of any street or highway shall be filed with the city clerk’s office no less than 90 calendar days, and no more than one calendar year, before the date when the proposed special event is to take place.
(4) For an event that requires city street or a state highway closure, a complete application for a special permit shall be filed with the city clerk’s office no less than 120 days, and no more than one calendar year, before the date when the proposed special event is to take place. All events requiring street or highway closure shall be submitted to the city council for approval. For an event that requires state highway closure, if the city council approves of the event the applicant shall proceed to seek permission from the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to close the state highway, and the applicant shall provide proof of WSDOT permission to the city clerk upon receipt from WSDOT and in advance of the event as set out in POMC 5.94.040. (Ord. 053-21 § 1; Ord. 015-17 § 2; Ord. 041-16 § 1).
5.94.040 Application.
The special event permit application shall be submitted to the city clerk’s office. Such application shall state and include the following:
(1) Name, organization, phone number, and address of the applicant;
(2) Name of the event and the location, date and time of the event;
(3) Anticipated number of exhibitors/vendors and visitors, including estimated peak attendance;
(4) Whether an admission fee will be charged for attendees or participants;
(5) Whether there will be temporary structures, tents, and trucks;
(6) Whether there will be cooking done on site, including evidence of Department of Public Health approval;
(7) A certificate of insurance with minimum amounts of commercial general liability coverage and combined single limit auto liability for bodily injury required by the city’s insurer. The applicant’s insurance policy shall name, by endorsement, the city of Port Orchard as an additional insured;
(8) A detailed map showing the location of event routes, tents, vendors, beer gardens, exits/entrances, fire lanes, garbage cans, and adequate restrooms/sani-can(s) and adequate handwashing stations, signage, barricades, first aid, traffic patterns, parking, requested road closures/detours, and other applicable event details;
(9) If alcoholic beverages will be served on city property, a permit approved by the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (note: you may be subject to additional insurance requirements of the city’s insurance carrier); and
(10) If an event will be using both public and private property, the applicant shall provide written documentation to the city that the private property owner(s) have granted permission to them to use the private property for the event; and
(11) Written confirmation of procurement of adequate sanitation facilities for the event (recommended by FEMA); and
(12) If the event is a parade or a run, the following additional information shall be required:
(a) The exact location of any marshaling or staging areas for the parade/run;
(b) The time at which units of the parade/run will begin to arrive at the staging areas and the times at which all such units will be dispersed therefrom;
(c) The exact route to be traveled, including the starting point and termination point;
(d) The approximate number of persons, animals, and vehicles which will constitute the parade/run, and the types of animals and descriptions of the vehicles, as applicable;
(e) A statement as to whether the parade/run will occupy all or only a portion of the width of the street, roadway, or sidewalks to be used;
(13) If the event requires a state highway closure, upon city council approval of the event, the applicant must provide to the city clerk’s office, no more than 45 days after submitting the application, at least one of the following three documents: (a) event agreement with WSDOT; (b) letter of acknowledgment from WSDOT; or (c) written proof that the event organizer has submitted the completed application to WSDOT;
(14) An acknowledgment that the police department, consistent with POMC 5.94.080, will utilize the information provided by the applicant to develop a public safety plan for the event, which may require the applicant to contract with vendors to ensure FEMA-recommended standards pertaining to aid, emergency services, and security are met, based on estimated total attendance;
(15) As a condition to the issuance of any permit under this chapter, the applicant shall execute an acknowledgment agreeing to defend, at no cost to the city, and to indemnify and hold harmless the city, its officers, employees and agents, from any and all suits, claims or liabilities caused by or arising out of any work or use authorized by any such permit;
(16) Any other relevant information required by the city. (Ord. 053-21 § 2; Ord. 015-17 § 3; Ord. 041-16 § 1).
5.94.050 Processing application.
Special event permits shall be processed as follows:
(1) If a special event is proposed to be held in the same location and during the same time frame as the immediately previous year, that event’s organizer will be given first priority over other special event permit applicants; provided, that this applicant submits a completed application to the clerk’s office by February 1st of each year; otherwise, the special event location and time frame will be available on a first-come, first-served basis to other applicants. The remaining requirements of this chapter will still apply.
(2) The city clerk’s office shall route the application to the city police, finance, public works and community development departments, as well as the local fire authority, Kitsap Transit, and any other applicable outside authorities to review. Each of the above-listed departments/authorities shall provide the city clerk a written recommendation of approval (conditional or otherwise) or denial of the application based on the considerations referenced in POMC 5.94.060.
(3) The city clerk’s office shall notify the public of each special event proposed to allow citizens to provide written comments regarding how allowing the special event will impact their property, business or quality of life. The city clerk will consider any information provided and may deny the special event permit application if a showing is made of severe financial impact or other undue hardship on a citizen’s property, business or quality of life.
(4) The city clerk’s office shall bring forth the application to the city council for approval when the event requires a city street or state highway closure. (Ord. 053-21 § 3; Ord. 015-17 § 4; Ord. 041-16 § 1).
5.94.060 Standards of issuance.
The city clerk or designee shall issue (or approve with conditions) a special event permit as provided herein upon certification from the departments/authorities listed in POMC 5.94.050 who have been consulted, based on the following considerations:
(1) The applicant has provided all of the required application materials and has provided any additional documents or information requested by the city.
(2) The applicant has paid the administrative processing fee of $50.00.
(3) The proposed special event location is available because no other events are scheduled to take place at the location on that date and time or, if another event is scheduled to take place, that event organizer has provided written consent to the city clerk to allow a parallel event to take place at the same location, date, and time.
(4) The applicant is holding an event using both public and private property and has provided written documentation that the private property owners allow them to use the private property for their event.
(5) The applicant has received city council approval for a street or highway closure, and for a highway closure, the applicant has provided a copy of either an event agreement with WSDOT or a letter of acknowledgment from WSDOT, as needed.
(6) The police department, fire authority, and public works department have determined the following:
(a) The proposed event will not endanger public safety or health, with necessary public safety and traffic control provisions;
(b) The proposed event will not seriously inconvenience or impair the general public’s use of public property, services, or facilities;
(c) The location of the proposed event will not substantially interfere with any construction or maintenance work scheduled to take place upon or along public property or right-of-way, or a previously granted encroachment permit; and
(d) The proposed event is not scheduled to occur along a route or at a location adjacent to a school or class during a time when such school or class is in session, and the noise created by the activities of the event would substantially disrupt the educational activities of the school or class.
(7) The city clerk received no written comments from the public demonstrating undue hardship or other substantial negative effects of the special event on their property, business or quality of life. (Ord. 053-21 § 4; Ord. 015-17 § 5; Ord. 041-16 § 1).
5.94.070 Revocation of permit.
The police chief, fire chief, or public works director, or their designated representatives, shall have the authority to revoke a permit issued hereunder instantly upon violation of any one or more of the code ordinances or conditions or standards of issuance as herein set forth. (Ord. 017-23 § 7 (Exh. A); Ord. 041-16 § 1).
5.94.080 City assistance.
The police chief, fire chief, and/or public works director may require necessary public safety and traffic control, including but not limited to requiring certified flagger(s), use of downtown parking lots, police protection and/or emergency medical services to be provided at the special event at the organizer’s expense. Special events that have been exempted by the city council from personnel expenses in the form of a resolution shall not be subject to expenses for city support. The finance department shall notify all applicants of the actual expenses related to city support of the special event.
(1) Downtown Parking Lot Usage. No special event may utilize the downtown parking lots, as described in POMC 10.12.580 as Lots 3 and 4, commonly known as waterfront parking, for two or more consecutive days without city council approval. Should a special event request the use of all or a portion of the downtown parking lots, as described in POMC 10.12.580 as Lots 3 and 4, during a weekday, excluding federal holidays, and the city grants the request, the applicant shall compensate the city for lost revenue for the use of the parking lots. The fee shall be set by resolution of the city council.
(2) Police Services Protection. After obtaining as much information as the police chief reasonably deems necessary regarding a special event permit application, they shall determine whether and to what extent additional police protection reasonably will be required for the special event for purposes of crowd control, and security. In making this determination, the police chief shall consider those factors set out in POMC 5.94.060. If additional police protection for the special event is deemed necessary by the police chief, they shall notify the applicant. The applicant then shall have the duty to secure police protection acceptable to the police chief at the sole expense of the applicant and shall prepay the expenses of such protection, as required. The fees are set by council resolution, which establishes the reimbursement rate for enhanced security expenses. The police chief shall consider what additional personnel, equipment and supplies are needed, as well as any other items or expenses which will be necessary.
(3) Fire Protection and Emergency Medical Services.
(a) After receiving notification of the intended special event, the fire chief shall make a determination as to the need for on-site fire watch and/or emergency medical personnel. The fire chief shall consider such factors as the location, number of anticipated participants and spectators, and type of event, including the application of appropriate codes and ordinances. If fire watch and/or emergency medical personnel for the event are deemed necessary by the fire chief, they shall notify the applicant, and the applicant shall be responsible for securing fire watch/emergency medical personnel reasonably acceptable to the fire chief at the sole expense of the applicant and shall prepay the expenses of such protection. Only state-certified, licensed professional fire/emergency medical personnel shall be used for this purpose, preferably South Kitsap Fire and Rescue employees and equipment.
(b) The conduct of the special event shall not introduce hazards to fire protection and/or life safety in the immediate or adjacent areas. (Ord. 017-23 §§ 1, 7 (Exh. A); Ord. 053-21 § 4; Ord. 026-18 § 1; Ord. 015-17 § 6; Ord. 041-16 § 1).
5.94.090 Event signage.
Event signage must comply with POMC Title 20. (Ord. 019-17 § 17; Ord. 041-16 § 1).
5.94.100 Notice of rejection.
Should the application be denied, the city clerk shall notify the applicant by personal delivery or certified mail within seven working days of the denial. This notification shall include the reasons for the denial of the permit, and shall advise the applicant of the appeal procedure. (Ord. 041-16 § 1).
5.94.110 Appeal procedure.
Any applicant aggrieved shall have the right to appeal the denial of a permit, or revocation of a permit under POMC 5.94.070, to the city council. The appeal shall be submitted by the applicant within five days after receipt of the notice of denial by filing a written notice of appeal with the city clerk. The city clerk shall place the appeal on the next available agenda for city council consideration. (Ord. 041-16 § 1).
5.94.120 Violation – Penalty.
A violation of any portion of this chapter shall constitute a class 2 civil infraction and be enforced under Chapter 7.80 RCW. (Ord. 041-16 § 1).