ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

TO:

Standing Committee on Transportation and Traffic

FROM:

General Manager of Engineering Services

SUBJECT:

Approval of 2003 Special Events

RECOMMENDATION

D. THAT Council express to the Department of National Defence and to Molstar Sports and Entertainment its concerns about the F-18 flypast that traditionally signals the start of the Molson Indy Vancouver, and request that the fly-past over downtown Vancouver be eliminated from the race day program.

CONSIDERATION

COUNCIL POLICY

The FEST Committee obtains Council approval annually for the anticipated Special Events that use City property, or where the event could have an impact on the adjacent public.

In a September 1984 Policy Review, Council approved a Special Events policy that all events except those deemed as civic sponsored events be charged costs of providing police services, and recommended that direct Engineering costs continue to be billed to event organizers, while administrative costs continue to be funded from general revenues.

On February 20, 2001 Council deemed a summer fireworks event to be a civic event, and agreed that, if certain conditions were met, the City would cover direct costs to put on the event.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this report is to submit for Council approval the list of anticipated special events to be held in 2003 and in the first two months of 2004, to identify issues about specific events on which staff are seeking Council direction, and to re-examine the longstanding practice of not charging for staff time for administrative work on commercial special events.

BACKGROUND

The role of the Special Events Office is to help facilitate events that occur on City streets and public property. Staff `manage' the resource that is City property, and assist event organizers in assessing and addressing neighbourhood impacts including traffic disruptions, noise issues and health and safety concerns. While the Cultural Affairs Office often deals with major festivals and some events from a programming perspective, the Special Events Office coordinates the delivery of City and related services to ensure that events are put on safely.

The City requires that anyone planning an event on City property, including streets, sidewalks and other public space, seek permission from the City Engineer to hold the event. Applications are submitted to and vetted by staff in the Film & Special Events Office, in the Projects Branch of Engineering Services. Although final approval for all events comes from Council the vast majority of the applications are dealt with at a staff level, only events that have a significant impact on specific neighbourhoods or the City as a whole are brought to Council's individual attention for approval.

At present, there is no charge for submitting a Special Event application to the City. The film industry, through the permitting fees it pays to the City, provides significant funding for the City's Film & Special Events Office, allowing staff to work on special events with no costs charged back to the applicants. Applications to hold special events are reviewed by Special Events staff and, if other City departments and outside organizations like BC Ambulance, Coast Mountain Bus Company or the Coast Guard have input, a FEST (Festival Expediting Staff Team) meeting is held with the organizers to address issues before deciding whether or not to approve the event.

The main issues addressed at FEST are the safety of participants and the general public. The impacts on businesses and residents in each area are also considered. Although the Park Board has an application process and policies which apply to events held completely within a park, Parks staff also participate in the overall City process to ensure that no conflict between City and Park events occur.

City costs (signage, barricades, sanitation, policing, etc.) and outside agency costs (Transit re-routing, Ambulance Service attendance) associated with the event are identified and the amount to be charged to organizers is calculated. Event organizers must demonstrate that they have adequate insurance coverage for events on City property, then submit a deposit to cover City costs. A letter of permission is then issued to the organizers.

Some financial assistance is available to event organizers. A sum up to $500 is available to assist Event Organizers in covering the cost of policing services. This assistance is funded by the City through the police budget and is applied against policing charges for an event.
Following an October 2002 policy report to Council regarding City support for Festivals and Celebrations, Council asked staff to investigate alternatives to using sworn police constables for traffic control for street festivals and parades. A report on this will be coming to Council later in the year, and will likely include discussion of the FEST Grant.

2002 Events

In 2002 the Special Events Office received approximately 250 Special Event applications. Of those, 59 were annual and ongoing events; 28 were considered to have enough impact to warrant a FEST meeting with City staff, outside agencies and event organizers and only 2 were considered significant enough to bring individually to Council's attention - the Canada Day festivities that once again involved a shut-down of Cordova Street, and the newly revived Gastown Grand Prix Bike Race, both of which are planned again this year.

The following is a breakdown of some of the 2002 events approved, by type:

· 78 Block Parties;
· 34 festivals (Canada Day, Celebration of Light, Dragon Boat Festival, Festival d'été; Greek Summer Festival, Word on the Street);
· 23 runs (Childrun, CIBC Run for the Cure, Pacific Road Runners Half Marathon, Vancouver International Marathon, Vancouver Sun Run);
· 20 parades (Fools Day Parade, Kerrisdale Carnival Days, International Shrine Convention Parades, Pride Parade, Vaisakhi Parade,);
· 14 demonstrations (Take Back the Night, Eracism, End the Arms Race);
· 13 walks (Winter Solstice Procession, Terry Fox Walk);
· 4 openings (Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue, Wall Street Community Garden).

As well there were a number of cultural and religious events, exhibitions, marches and ceremonies.

DISCUSSION

Appendix A contains the list of Special Events which are anticipated to occur in the City this year and which staff recommend be approved. Confirmed dates are noted, as is the type of event. If no application has been received to date, but the event is a recurring one, last year's date is shown.

Special Event proposals are received throughout the year. Any significant new applications that are submitted after the annual report is approved are brought to Council's attention, while smaller events are routinely approved by staff. A regularly updated list of Special Events is available on the Special Events Office website. The web-site also provides information for the public about guidelines for holding an event in the City of Vancouver and explains the application process, possible involvement of FEST, downloadable forms and an option to submit the Special Event application online. The website address is www.city.vancouver.bc.ca/-engsvcs/events/index.htm.

Although the majority of event applications are received in March and April, many come in at a later time, closer to the event date. This is particularly true of Block Parties, which City and Park Board staff help coordinate. Special Event staff work with Community Centres to provide barricades to block the street for safety reasons, and assist the organizers in getting neighbourhood support for the event through the distribution of a notification letter and sign off sheet. Since the Block Party program was initiated in the mid 1990's interest in them has grown significantly, and there were more than 75 Block Party applications approved in 2002, nearly double the number in 2001.

There are several on-going events for which we seek Council direction, and one major new event to bring to Council's attention for specific approval.

Celebration of Light

When Benson & Hedges withdrew corporate sponsorship for the Symphony of Fire late in 2000, the City was approached to help `save' it. On February 20th, 2001Council approved a summer fireworks event to be a civic event, and to cover direct City costs, on condition that private sponsors be secured to fund the rest of the event, and on condition that a not-for-profit society be established to secure corporate sponsorship and to organize the
production of the event. In July of 2001 a two-year commitment was approved, and costs for Engineering Services, Park Board and Policing ($362,100 in 2001 and $392,350 in 2002) were paid by the City (General Government Account). $400,000 has been budgeted for a 2003 event, should Council approve the continued designation of the Celebration of Light as a civic event. Tentative dates for this year's event are July 30th, August 2nd, 6th and 9th.

Celebration of Light Extension

Should Council approve the Celebration of Light as a civic event for 2003, it may also wish to consider a longer term commitment to the event. In the past, Council approved the Symphony of Fire for a period of five years, and the Molson Indy for periods of three years or longer. A longer-term commitment from the City would enable the not-for-profit Society to develop on-going corporate sponsorship for the event. A Tourism Vancouver study after the 2000 Symphony of Fire showed that more than 1.6 million viewers attend the four nights of fireworks. Visitor spending related to the event was greater than $13.6 million, and spin-off from that spending (Industry Output) was in excess of $28.8 million. This report recommends that the Celebration of Light be approved for five years.

Molson Indy Fly Past

In July of 2001 Council approved a three-year extension to the Vancouver Molson Indy, allowing the race to continue on its current site through 2004. For the past number of years a fly past by F-18 fighter jets has been part of the Indy Race opening ceremonies on the Sunday of race weekend. The flypast is one component of the Federal Government's sponsorship of the Race. Prior to 2002 there were a few complaints about the noise of the jets, but last year's fly past generated numerous letters and calls from the public expressing fear and anger that this would be allowed. Sensitivities relating to the events of September 11th, 2001 were obviously a factor, and weather conditions likely affected the noise levels as well.

The City's agreement with the Molson Indy authorizes street use and start and end times for the race. Neither the City nor Transport Canada has direct control over the fly past, but Molson Indy organizers have agreed to cancel it if Council requests it. Given the strong negative reaction last year, and ongoing fears of war in the middle east, Council may wish to send a letter to Molstar Sports and Entertainment and the Minister of National Defense requesting them to cancel the fly past for the duration of the City's agreement with the event.

Pride Parade

The 25th Annual Pride Parade will take place on Sunday of the BC Day long-weekend, August 3rd, 2003. Each year the Vancouver Pride Society meets with FEST to ensure that as the parade grows in both participants and spectators, impacts on neighbouring west end residents are addressed. Last year the Pride Society was challenged by a 350% increase in their insurance costs for the Parade (from $5,000 to$18,000) and it contributed to financial problems for the Society, and the non-payment of City costs. The outstanding balance still owed by the Pride Society is $17,641.00 for Engineering, Park Board and Policing costs. As well, an additional $2,277.00 is still owed to BC Ambulance for their attendance at the Parade and the Picnic.

City policy requires event organizers to provide, in advance of any work done by the City, a deposit equal to an estimate of the cost for the work to be done. Last year the Pride Society failed to meet its obligation to the City and FEST partners. We are hoping to arrange a payment plan that will enable them to have the outstanding balance paid by the 30th of June this year so we can approve the August 3rd event. As well, our FEST partners require that outstanding invoices for past services be paid in full before they will commit to provide services for a subsequent event. For that reason, we recommend approving this event subject to all past due invoices being paid, and subject to a reasonable deposit being received to cover costs of this year's events.

Carnegie Centre Centenary Celebration

2003 is the year of Carnegie Centre's 100th anniversary, and a number of activities are planned to mark the occasion. Three events in particular have direct City involvement. On April 27th, 2003 a 100th Anniversary Parade and Celebration will close Hastings Street from Cambie Street to Main Street, and Cambie Street from Pender to Cordova from 10am to 2pm. Workshops, vending and street performances will occur on the sidewalks along Hastings and a procession will travel eastbound on Hastings Street from Cambie to the Carnegie Centre. Outdoor and indoor performances will occur at the Centre throughout the afternoon and early evening. A smaller outdoor event will occur on May 25th, 2003 with a five kilometer `Walk the Talk' fund raising walk through the Downtown Eastside. Organizers are not certain whether the participants will be on the sidewalk, or if street closures will be required. Another event, the Community Play, will occur in late fall. This event should not require any street closures, but has received City support from the 2002 Cultural Grants budget. Because the Carnegie Centre is a City facility, Engineering Services will provide barricades and traffic signage for the events at no cost. A preliminary estimate for these services is $2500.

Commercial Events

In the past several years there has been a significant increase in applications to the Special Events Office that are decidedly commercial in nature. Public relations and promotion are considered much more focused ways of developing a company's image than advertising. The complexity of these events often requires a multi-faceted approach to dealing with them, which makes the FEST process more appropriate than permits from individual branches. As well, because the Film and Special Events Office coordinates City services for filming in various locations in the City on a daily basis, we have the ability to assess the impacts of these requests more easily than other branches.

Currently Special Events staffing costs are covered by Film Schedule fees. However, the number of events and the complexity of organizing them in an already busy City put a strain on the resources of the Film and Special Events Office. Charging a permit fee for commercial/corporate events would enable us to provide better service to community organized events.

A fee of $100 per permit is consistent with the fees currently charged to film production companies requiring similar work. Film Schedule fees are charged on either a per day or per location basis, depending on the amount of staff time required to coordinate City services involved. A similar fee structure would be appropriate for corporate events that are using City streets for commercial purposes. This report also recommends that commercial and corporate event sponsors pay full cost recovery of meter revenue that is uncollectible when streets are inaccessible for parking because of their events. Again, this is consistent with the charges that are paid by film companies. These fees would go to general revenues, as do other parking meter revenues.

National Street Hockey Tournament

A sport marketing company called the William Wilson Group is presenting a National Street Hockey Tournament called "Game On" in cities across the country. Their proposal calls for a ten city national on-street ball hockey series starting in Halifax on May 26th , 2003and ending with the national championships in Vancouver on August 23rd & 24th, 2003. They request the closure of two kilometers of downtown streets from 7pm Friday night, August 22nd until 5pm on Sunday, August 24th. The plan is to create 70 `rinks' to accommodate 1120 four-person teams of participants. City staff encouraged the proponents to look at an off-street venue; however the proponents believe that both logistically and esthetically only a street site will work, and they have asked us to consider closing the following for the weekend of August 23-24th:

CONCLUSION

The number and variety of Special Events listed in this report show that Vancouver offers a huge selection of activities to its residents and visitors. Although many Vancouverites choose to participate in individual and non-organized pastimes like cycling, roller-blading, rowing, paddling and alike, a great number also enjoy a myriad of organized events. From sporting activities to religious celebrations, from block parties to major festivals, hundreds of individuals, groups and organizations come to the City each year for advice and approval to hold events on City properties. An equal number approach the Park Board about events exclusively in parks. City staff and our FEST partners work proactively to ensure that public safety issues are addressed and that impacts on citizens who do not choose to participate are managed. We are anticipating another busy year of special events in all areas of the City, and RECOMMEND that Council approve the 2003 Special Events included in Appendix A.

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Link to Appendix A.

tt20030311.htm

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© 2002 City of Vancouver