FENWICK ISLAND – The Town Council will deliberate over adding private commercial properties under those required to apply for special event permits and pay associated fees to cover public safety expenses.
At Friday’s monthly Town Council meeting, Councilman William Weistling, who serves on the Charter and Ordinance Committee, brought forward a discussion to amend Chapter 116, Peace and Good Order, of Town Charter regarding special event permits on private commercial property.
Currently Town Code states, “permits for a special event shall be required for any outdoor event held on public property and shall be issued only to a person 18 years of age or older. The Town shall require the applicant to complete a special event application, and a fee and deposit will be charged for any special event, except for nonprofits. Such fees are set annually by resolution by the Town Council. Rules and regulations will accompany a special event permit that is also set by resolution of the Town Council. Any person violating the provisions of this article shall be filed $100 and costs for each and every offense.”
Following the Ropewalk’s Oyster Fest, which supported the Oyster Recovery Partnership and was held on Saturday, April 26 the same weekend of an annual spring motorcycle rally, Bikes to the Beach, held in Ocean City and surrounding areas, the matter was brought to city officials’ attention.
“There is definitely a loophole there from when we came up with special event permits. It is just something that we overlooked,” Fenwick Island Police Chief William Boyden said. “We had an event in town, and luckily the event went very smoothly with very limited police contact but I think it is a good idea to add that to the ordinance.”
Weistling explained currently special event permit fees include police assistance.
“We might want to consider also adding special event permits on private commercial properties, or commercial businesses to require them to also take out a permit, and what that normally requires is a police officer would be available and we would charge the business according to our special event rules and regulations, which is $100 per hour for police coverage for events exceeding 75 persons,” he said.
Councilman Todd Smallwood found the timing and the proposed fee unreasonable.
“I just hate to put this on the businesses right now. They had such a hard winter, and I hate to implement this at the time for them to make some money,” Smallwood said.
Weistling explained the fee would be set within the ordinance following further council discussion.
“The council would have to take a look at the fee schedule once the ordinance is drafted, and we will have to make a decision on what we are going to do,” he said.
With Mayor Audrey Serio and Vice Mayor Gene Langan absent, the remainder of the council was in consensus to have the Charter and Ordinance Committee draft a proposed ordinance for further discussion.
Later in the meeting, several ordinance amendments came before the council on second reading for their final approval.
First on the table was an amendment to Chapter 61, Building and Construction, to add a new section, Information Required Before Issuance of Permit, that read “Sidewalks approved by Delaware Department of Transportation (DELDOT), incompliance with ADA regulations and no less than five feet in width or a DELDOT and ADA approved alternative are required for all new construction and substantial improvements in the Commercial Zone.”
Due to lack of state funding, the town is working with DELDOT to require all new construction on Coastal Highway to install five-foot sidewalks on the highway to help keep pedestrians off the busy roadway.
Next was a change in Chapter 122, Parking, to replace the language “reserved” with “Resident Merchant employee parking permits are available for a fee and shall be valid for bayside street parking only. Such permits may be purchased by Resident Merchant license holder only.”
The recommendation came to the Charter and Ordinance Committee from the Parking Committee to allow for employees to park on bayside streets with permits that will be purchased by the employer from the town to help free up parking spaces in the businesses parking lots.
The final amendment on the table was a housekeeping measure to add language to Chapter 52, Beaches, starting with the definition of “Smoking” being the burning of a cigarette, cigar, pipe or other matter or substance that contains tobacco, as well as add the language “Smoking on the beach is prohibited.”
The council voted 5-0 to approve all amendments in their final reading with Serio and Langan absent.