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Home My WebLink About7/17/2002 - STAFF REPORTS (30) DATE: July 17, 2002 TO: City Council FROM: Director, Department of Parks, Recreation and Facilities PALM SPRINGS MOTORCYCLE & HOT ROD WEEKEND RECOMMENDATION: That City Council consider adopting a resolution suspending certain regulatory ordinances to allow for the 2002 American Heat, Palm Springs Motorcycle & Hot Rod Weekend to occur October 11 through October 13. SUMMARY: In October 2001, Roadshows, Inc. (RSI) produced the Palm Springs Motorcycle & Hot Rod Weekend along Palm Canyon Drive in the Central Business District. RSI is again proposing to produce the event in Palm Springs during the weekend of October 11-13, 2002, and is seeking City approval. Due to an incident that occurred earlier this year at an unrelated bike weekend in Laughlin, Nevada, the Police Department has expressed concern about this event and the potential for violence that may exist. In June, City Council held a Study Session on this matter. Although no formal action has been taken regarding this event, a majority of the City Council felt that the public safety concerns were legitimate and that the event should be suspended for a year. If the City Council wishes to facilitate this event, certain regulatory ordinances thatwould normally impede such an activitywill need to be temporarily suspended. BACKGROUND: On March 21, 2001, City Council adopted Resolution No. 20008 suspending certain regulatory ordinances to allow RSI to produce the 2001 Palm Springs Motorcycle& Hot Rod Weekend at its sole expense. The event occurred on Palm Canyon Drive as planned. Itwas determined by many business owners, attendees and event participants to be highly successful and a financial windfall to the City in that it generated in excess of $1 million in business and tax-related revenue. These financial statistics were presented to the City Council and the public during a Study Session post-event review. This was the first event following the tragedy of Sept. 11,that brought tourist dollars back into the desert economy through hotel and sales taxes. This spring, there was a violent incident at an unrelated bike weekend in Laughlin, Nevada that resulted in the death of several individuals.As a result of this incident, the Main Street Board requested that the event be re-evaluated. On June 6, Main Street members met with the promoter to discuss their concerns regarding the tragic incident in Laughlin and how to prevent a similar incident from occurring in Palm Springs. After considerable discussion, Main Street asked the Police Department for its input.After receiving input from the Police Department that the event was too risky and a potential "powder keg" for future violence, the Main Street Board decided to vote against the return of the event in 2002. ,u f J PALM SPRINGS MOTORCYCLE & HOT ROD WEEKEND DATE: July 17, 2002 PAGE: Two After discussion with staff,the promoter asked that the event be taken forward for consideration by the Parks and Recreation Commission and the City Council for approval or denial. On June 12, the Parks and Recreation Commission voted 5-1 in favor of the event continuing in the year 2002. The one commissioner who voted "no" had asked for presentations from RSI and the Police Department prior to making a recommendation to City Council. The Special Events Planning Team has discussed the event and supports the promoter in his desire to move forward. The promoter of American Heat has demonstrated over the last two years his ability to produce a quality event and bring in needed TOT dollars. On June 26, City Council held a Study Session to discuss the Motorcycle & Hot Rod Weekend and the concerns raised by the Police Department regarding the potential threat of violence. After a lengthy discussion on the matter, the majority of City Council felt that the concerns expressed by the Police Department should not be ignored and that it might be in the best interest of the community to take a one-year hiatus from this event. Because this discussion was conducted at a Study Session, no formal action was taken. If City Council wishes to facilitate this event, certain regulatory ordinances that would normally impede the conduct of such an event will need to be temporarily suspended. Specifically, the City Council needs to temporarily suspend the Sign Ordinance, Zoning Ordinance and Noise Ordinance during the event. As was the case last year, the promoter has agreed to work with the City in mitigating noise and safety concerns through the implementation of strict controls on motorcycle traffic in residential areas through an aggressive pre-event promotional campaign with local hoteliers, business owners, residents and attendees. In addition to implementing an aggressive campaign prior to the event, the promoter willuse a combination of traffic signs and security checkpoints at designated locations to discourage motorcycle traffic and reduce neighborhood noise impacts. Furthermore, due to the safety concerns raised by the Police Department, the promoter has committed to pay for additional police and security personnel to monitor the event. All of these efforts, in addition to a more aggressive event promotional effort by RSI, are being targeted to improve upon previous events and make them more enjoyable, profitable and entertaining for the entire community. C Y✓ pj�,,.., OYT MIKESELL, Director /Department of Parks, Recreation and Facilities APPROVED: 'y City anag r i, ATTACHMENT: 1. Resolution RESOLUTION NO. OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA,TEMPORARILY SUSPENDING CERTAIN REGULATORY ORDINANCES TO FACILITATE THE 2002 PALM SPRINGS MOTORCYCLE & HOTROD WEEKEND. WHEREAS the City of Palm Springs designated the Palm Springs Bike & Hotrod Weekend as a City-sponsored event; and WHEREAS the City Council desires to facilitatethe staging of the City-sponsored event to maximize revenue production; and WHEREAS the City Council finds that certain regulatory ordinances, which are generally deemed desirable and necessary, may, nonetheless, impede the conduct of special events; and WHEREAS the City Council finds that in holding special events,the public interest and the benefits derived therefrom outweigh the temporary public inconvenience; and WHEREAS the City Council has enacted Ordinance#1310 authorizing temporary suspension of regulatory ordinances, NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Palm Springs, California, as follows: Section 1. A. That the Palm Springs Bike & Hotrod Weekend is a special event beneficial to the community and its visitor-oriented economy. B. That the dates of the 2002 Palm Springs Motorcycle & Hotrod Weekend are from October 11 through October 13. C. That Roadshows, Inc. and BR Entertainment are the event promoters, along with their construction and concession personnel and staff. D. That the venue of the Palm Springs Motorcycle& Hotrod Weekend is Palm Canyon Drive in the Central Business District. Section 2. That the following ordinances are hereby temporarily suspended for the special event designated in Section 1 above: Sign Ordinance, Zoning Ordinance, and Noise Ordinance. Section 3. That the regulatory ordinances designated in Section 2 above shall remain in full force and effect except as to the event dates and persons or organizations as designated in Section 1 above. ADOPTED this 171h day of July, 2002. AYES: NOES: ABSENT: CITY OF PALM SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA By City Clerk City Manager REVIEWED &APPROVED AS TO FORM