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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance No. 2025-11 Amending Chapter 6 Special EventsORDINANCE NO. 2025-11 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 6 AMUSEMENT AND ENTERTAINMENT, ARTICLE V. SPECIAL EVENTS OF THE EDINA CITY CODE The City of Edina Ordains: Section 1. Chapter 6, Amusement and Entertainment, Article V. Special Events, is repealed in its entirety. The full text of the repealed language is shown in Exhibit A. Section 2. Chapter 6, Amusement and Entertainment, Article V. Special Events, is amended by adding new Chapter 6 to read as follows: Sec. 6-122. Purpose and Intent. This article regulates the time, place, and manner of special events held on public property within the City of Edina when the event’s anticipated impact on public health, safety, or city services—such as fire, law enforcement, or transportation—exceeds what is typically provided to that property, and on private property when the event will generate unusual volumes of traffic, requires temporary traffic controls, or requiring the use of shuttle service. Special events governed by this Article include, but are not limited to, parades, festivals, fairs, carnivals, concerts, community celebrations, charitable events, mass participation sporting events (such as marathons or bicycle rides), and other similar activities. Additional procedural and operational guidelines for special events are outlined in the City’s Special Events Policy. Sec. 6-123. Definitions. The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this section, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this subsection, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning: Applicant: The person sponsoring or organizing a special event and applying for the permit. Special Event: Special Event means parades, festivals, fairs, carnivals, concerts, community celebrations, mass participation sporting events (such as marathons or bicycle rides), and other similar activities that take place on public property, or require the closure of public streets or right-of-way, or require city support services (e.g., police, public works, sanitation), or on private property requiring overflow parking, increased vehicular or pedestrian traffic, traffic control or signage needs and obstruction of public right-of-way. Special Event Permit: A permit issued by the City after the applicant has met all applicable requirements in this section. Special Event Review Committee: Committee of city employees designated by the director of each of the following city departments: police, fire, public works, parks & recreation, engineering, administration and risk management to review and approve or deny special event applications. Sec. 6-145. Permit Required. No person shall conduct or be allowed to conduct any special event as defined in this section without first obtaining a special event permit, unless specifically exempted. Exempt events include (1) Private gatherings on private property that do not impact public streets or services. (2) A governmental agency acting within the scope of its duties. (3) National Nite to Unite events organized with the Edina Police Department. (4) Funeral processions. (5) A permanent place of worship, stadium, athletic field, arena, theatre, auditorium, or school- sanctioned events on school property. (6) First Amendment activity that does not result in the obstruction of city streets and does not compromise the ability of the City to respond to a public safety emergency. (7) An event taking place entirely within the confines of a city park subject to the written permission of the park director pursuant to article VII of chapter 24, except when the event is expected to attract 150 or more people. The provisions of this chapter regarding special event permits shall not apply to activities protected under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution or Article 1 of the Minnesota Constitution, provided that such activities are conducted on public property traditionally used for public speech and assembly, such as streets, sidewalks, and parks. Nothing in this ordinance shall prevent the City from enforcing laws or regulations concerning the time, place, and manner of such activities that are content-neutral, narrowly tailed to serve a significant government interest, and leave open ample alternative channels for communication. Sec. 6-147. Application Procedures A special event application must be submitted in writing to the City Clerk at least 60 calendar days before the event begins. The application must be completed using the form provided by the City Clerk. Sec. 6-148. Permit Review Criteria After receiving a complete application, the City Clerk sends the application to the Special Event Review Committee, which evaluates whether the event can safely and responsibly take place. The Committee considers public safety, traffic and parking impacts, sanitation plans, noise levels, food and alcohol compliance, event timing, community impact, and cleanup responsibilities. Applicants may be required to provide services like police or sanitation at their own cost and must restore the site afterward. Sec. 6-149. Insurance Requirements Prior to permit issuance, the applicant shall submit a certificate of insurance demonstrating proof of commercial general liability coverage, with a minimum combined single-limit coverage of $2,000,000 for any single occurrence, in a form acceptable to the City. The applicant shall procure and maintain, for the duration of the event, commercial general liability insurance or equivalent special event coverage that protects against claims for bodily injury and property damage arising from or related to the operation of the event and the use of City property, as required by State law. If alcohol is to be sold or served, the applicant shall obtain liquor liability (dram shop) insurance with minimum limits of $1,000,000 per occurrence and provide proof of the applicable license(s) required by State law and City Code. The City shall be named as an additional insured on all required liability policies. All coverage shall be primary to any insurance maintained by the City. The City reserves the right to adjust insurance requirements based on the nature, size, scope, or risk profile of the proposed event. Sec. 6-150. Indemnification and Claims, Damage to City Property, Waivers, and Additional Conditions Indemnification and Claims: The applicant shall agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the City, its officers, employees, and agents from and against any and all claims, demands, actions, damages, or causes of action arising out of or related to the special event, including reasonable attorney’s fees and litigation expenses. Damage to City Property: The applicant shall be responsible for any damage to City-owned property resulting from the event. The City may recover the costs of repair or replacement from the applicant through deposit retention, direct billing, or other lawful means. Waivers: The City Manager or designee may grant a waiver from one or more provisions of this section if the applicant demonstrates that strict compliance would result in exceptional and undue hardship or that, under the circumstances, the requirements are unnecessary. No waiver shall be granted if doing so would compromise public health, safety, or welfare; impair the intent or purpose of this section; or provide an unfair advantage to the applicant over similarly situated event organizers. Additional Conditions: The City Manager or designee may impose additional conditions on the permit as deemed reasonably necessary to protect the health, safety, and welfare of event attendees, City personnel, and the general public, or to mitigate impacts to City property, infrastructure, or operations. Sec. 6-151. Issuance of Permit After the Special Event Review Committee approves the application, the City Clerk shall issue the Special Event Permit if the Committee determines that the event is suitable for the requested location, does not conflict with other scheduled events or activities, and will not significantly disrupt traffic or emergency vehicle access. The Committee must also find that any traffic impacts can be managed, required permits or approvals have been obtained, anticipated noise levels meet City Code, and the application is complete and accurate with all requirements met. Sec. 6-152. Permit Fees and Cost Recovery The non-refundable fee for a special event permit shall be established by the City Council as set forth in Section 2-724. The City shall also require payment to the City of other charges for the recovery of City costs related to the special event, which may include the hourly cost for any employees working on a special event and equipment charges for the use of City equipment, at usage rates as established by the City Manager or designee. In accordance with the Special Events Policy, the City may sponsor, participate in, or otherwise support a special event, provided the City Manager or designee determines all the conditions are satisfied with respect to the Special Event Policy. Sec. 6-153. Reservation Priority for Parks and Recreation Events The Parks & Recreation Department may preempt a scheduled special event in a City park to conduct a City-sponsored event, provided that at least one hundred eighty (180) days’ written notice is given to the special event organizer. In such cases, the Parks & Recreation Department is not responsible for providing or securing an alternative location for the preempted event. Sec. 6-154. Public Notification The City requires that the applicant provide written notice, at least five days, but not more than 14 days before the event, to all households and businesses immediately adjacent to the area in which the special event will be conducted and the regular flow of traffic will be disrupted. Sec. 6-155. Denial of Permit, Revocation, and Termination Denial of Permit. The Special Event Review Committee shall recommend to the City Manager that a special event permit be denied if any of the following findings are made: (1) The applicant has not met all the requirements for applying for a special event permit. (2) The application or any supplemental information contains false, misleading, or incomplete information. (3) The special event will unnecessarily disrupt traffic, substantially interfere with scheduled construction or maintenance, or seriously inconvenience the general public's use of public property, services, or facilities. (4) The special event presents an imminent risk of violent or disorderly conduct likely to endanger public safety or cause significant property damage. (5) The special event violates public health or safety laws. (6) Another event has already been permitted at the same time and/or location, or so close in time and place that the events would cause undue traffic congestion or exceed the City's capacity to provide necessary services such as law enforcement and emergency medical response. (7) The special event will create or constitute a public nuisance. (8) Any other reason the City Manager or designee deems appropriate and consistent with protecting public health, safety, and welfare. Revocation of Permit. A special event permit may be summarily revoked at any time by a City law enforcement officer or fire official if, due to disaster, riot, public calamity, or other emergency, it is determined that public safety or property protection requires immediate termination. A City official may also revoke a permit if it is discovered that the permit was issued based on false information or if the permit holder exceeds the scope of the permit conditions. Termination of Permit by Applicant. An applicant may voluntarily terminate an approved special event permit by providing written notice to the City Clerk at least seven (7) calendar days before the scheduled event. If notice is given fewer than seven days before the event and the City has undertaken work or entered into contracts in preparation, the applicant shall pay for a minimum of two (2) hours of staff time and reimburse the City for any incurred contractual expenses or losses. Special event permits may only be transferred to another person, organization, or location with prior written approval from the City Manager or designee. Sec. 6-156. Appeal Process An applicant whose special event permit is denied, revoked, or terminated may submit a written appeal to the City Clerk within five (5) business days of receiving notice. The appeal must state the reasons for the appeal and include any supporting information. The City Manager or designee will review the appeal and issue a written decision within five (5) business days. The decision of the City Manager or designee is final. Exhibit A ARTICLE V. SPECIAL EVENTS DIVISION 1. GENERALLY Sec. 6-122. Declarations; purpose. The purpose and intent of this article is to: (1) Provide a systematic application process for events having an effect on public property and/or public services. (2) Lessen undue impact on private property. (3) Ensure that city, state and federal codes are adhered to. (4) Recapture any city expenditures lost for the development of, and operational costs for, a privately sponsored event. Sec. 6-123. Definitions. The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning: Event means any parade, race or special event that requires closure of a public street or special traffic control. Parade means any parade, march, or procession in or upon any street except the sidewalks thereof, or in or upon any alley in the city. Race means any organized bicycle race, foot race, race walking, wheelchair racing, rollerblading, marathon, jogging event and similar events. Special event means any privately sponsored event as defined in this section, which occurs on a public street, sidewalk or any municipal property. The term "special event" includes, but is not limited to, any fair, show, carnival, sporting event, school event and grand opening. DIVISION 2. PERMIT Sec. 6-145. Required; procedure exceptions. No person shall engage in, participate in, aid, form or start any event, unless a permit has been procured therefore. The provisions of article II of chapter 12 shall apply to all permits required by this article and to the holders of such permits except the permit shall be issued or denied by the manager. No permit shall be required for: (1) Funeral processions. (2) Governmental agency acting within the scope of its functions. (3) Block parties on a residential street that has an average daily traffic volume of less than 1,000 vehicles per day provided that the block party does not occur more than once annually for in excess of eight hours. (4) Lawful picketing. (5) An event taking place entirely within the confines of a city park subject to the written permission of the park director pursuant to article VII of chapter 24. Sec. 6-146. Application for permit; time for application. A person seeking issuance of an event permit shall file an application with the clerk on forms provided by the clerk. The application shall be accompanied by the fee set forth in section 2-724. To ensure an orderly approval process, permit applications should be filed as soon as possible in advance of the event. Permit applications must be filed not less than 60 days or more than one year before the date on which the event is proposed to take place. Failure to file in a timely manner may be grounds for denial of the permit. Sec. 6-147. Content of application. The provisions of this section are in addition to the requirements of article II of chapter 12. The application for a permit shall set forth the following information: (1) The name, address and telephone numbers, daytime and nighttime, of the person who will be responsible for performance of the duties of the permit holder. (2) The date when the event is to be conducted. (3) The details of proposed route requested, the starting point, the termination point and the desired location of any assembly areas. (4) The approximate number of persons who, and animals and vehicles which will, constitute such event; the type of animals, and description of the vehicles. (5) The hours when such desired event will assemble start and terminate. (6) A statement as to whether the event would occupy all or only a portion of the width of the streets proposed to be traversed. (7) Listing of all food vendors. (8) The estimated number of participants in the most recent year. (9) Such other information as the clerk shall find necessary to evaluate the application. Sec. 6-148. Deposit for city expenses. The clerk may require the applicant to deposit with the city the estimated cost of city services to be performed in connection with the event. The estimated cost shall be determined by the clerk. Sec. 6-149. Duties of permit holder. (a) A permit holder hereunder shall comply with all permit directions and conditions and with all applicable laws and ordinances. The permit holder or the person designated in section 6-147(1), shall carry the event permit upon his person during the conduct of the event. (b) Within the two hour period immediately following the end of the event, the permittee or event coordinator will clean up, remove and dispose of all litter or material of any kind, which is placed or left on the street, park or other public property because of such event. Should the permittee, or event coordinator fail to do so; the city will bill the permittee or event coordinator for all costs related to the clean up, removal and disposal of litter because of the event. In addition, no future applications will be considered until all obligations are satisfied. (c) Required undertakings. In addition to the information required in section 6-147, the permit holder shall, at permit holder's expense, and without expense to the city, undertake the following: (1) Provide either authorized civilian or police personnel at all intersections requiring traffic control personnel. (2) Provide volunteers to monitor the barricades at all intersections not requiring traffic control personnel, as determined by the police department. (3) Provide, install and remove the barricades, signs and delineation equipment as directed by the engineer, police chief or their designees. (4) Defend and hold the city harmless from all claims, demands, actions or causes of action, of whatsoever nature or character, arising out of or by reason of the conduct of the activity authorized by such permit, including attorney fees and expenses. Sec. 6-150. Notice to abutting property owners regarding races. (a) This section shall apply only to races. (b) Upon issuance of an event permit for a race, the permit holder shall notify the occupants and building managers of property abutting the event route by leaflet at least five days, but not more than 14 days, before the event. (c) In the case of a residential building containing three units or less, a leaflet shall be distributed to each unit. In the case of a residential building or facility containing more than three units, a leaflet shall be prominently posted in the lobby or common entryway. Leaflets shall also be distributed to nonresidential abutting properties. (d) The leaflet shall briefly describe the nature of the event, shall identify the name and telephone number of the permit holder and the date and time of the event, shall contain a map of the route, and shall describe all restrictions upon traffic and parking on or crossing the event route. (e) Prior to distribution of the leaflet, the permit holder shall file a copy of the leaflet with the clerk's office, the police chief and the public works department. The leaflet must be approved by the clerk prior to its disbursal. Sec. 6-151. Insurance. (a) Upon compliance with all other provisions of this article, a permit for an event may be granted only after the applicant has secured and filed with the clerk the insurance provided for in this section. The policy or policies shall specifically provide for payment by the insurance company on behalf of the insured all sums which the insured's shall be obligated to pay by reason of liability imposed upon them by law for injuries or damages to persons or properties arising out of the activities and operations of the insured's pursuant to the provisions of this chapter. (b) All insurance required in this section shall be issued by insurance companies acceptable to the city and admitted in the state. The insurance specified may be in a policy or policies of insurance, primary or excess. (1) Workers' compensation insurance that meets the statutory obligations with coverage B: a. Employer's liability limits of at least $100,000.00 per each accident; b. $500,000.00 each disease, policy limit; and c. $100,000.00 disease per each employee. (2) Commercial general liability insurance with limits of at least: a. $1,000,000.00 general aggregate; b. $1,000,000.00 products, completed operations; c. $1,000,000.00 personal and advertising injury; d. $1,000,000.00 each occurrence; e. $50,000.00 fire damage; and f. $5,000.00 medical expense any one person. The policy shall be on an "occurrence" basis, shall include contractual liability coverage and the city shall be named an additional insured. (c) Acceptance of the insurance by the city shall not relieve, limit or decrease the liability of the event permit holder. Any policy deductibles or retentions shall be the responsibility of the event promoter. The permit holder shall control any special or unusual hazards and be responsible for any damages that result from those hazards. The city does not represent that the insurance requirements are sufficient to protect the permit holder's interests or provide adequate coverage. (d) Evidence of coverage is to be provided in the form of a certificate of insurance. A 30-day written notice is required if the policy is canceled, not renewed or materially changed. The permit holder shall require any of its participants using automobiles in the race to carry automobile liability insurance meeting the statutory limits of the state. (e) The permit holder shall require any of its subcontractors to comply with the provisions of this section. Sec. 6-152. Indemnification. Permit holder agrees to defend, indemnify and hold the city, its officers and employees harmless from any liability, claim, damages, costs, judgments, or expenses, including attorney's fees, resulting directly or indirectly from an act or omission including, without limitation, professional errors and omissions, of event promoter, its agents, employees, arising out of or by any reason of the conduct of the activity authorized by such permit and against all loss caused in any way be reason of the failure of the event promoter to fully perform all obligations under this article. Section 3. Immediately effective upon approval. First reading: September 16, 2025 Second reading: October 7, 2025 Published: Attest Sharon Allison, City Clerk James B. Hovland, Mayor Please publish in the Edina Sun Current on Send one affidavit of publication Bill to Edina City Clerk Sharon Allison (Oct 8, 2025 13:50:47 CDT)