HomeMy WebLinkAboutSpecial Event Committee Minutes_7-6-21_
SPECIAL EVENTS COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES
July 6, 2021, 10:00 AM
731 S. Lafayette Blvd, South Bend, IN 46601
Members present: Brad Rohrscheib, Toy Villa, Jonathan Jones, Gerard Ellis
1. Call to Order
The meeting was called to order at 10:05 AM by President Rohrscheib.
2. Approval of minutes
Upon a motion by Rohrscheib and seconded by Villa the minutes from the previous meeting
held on June 15th, 2021 were approved unanimously.
3. Approval of Special Event Permits
a. Housing Authority Job Fair/Community Party-7/15/21
The South Bend Housing Authority is hosting a Job Fair and Community Party featuring
employment opportunities combined with music, food, and family friendly activities for
the residents as well as the community. In addition, a mobile vaccination clinic partnered
with Health Link will be on-site to offer and administer Covid-19 vaccinations to
residents and attendees. Michael Williams of the SBHA was on hand to comment and
answer questions concerning this event. Other entities involved in this event are the Kroc
Center, Robinson Community Learning Center, and Boys and Girls Club of American.
Currently (26) employers have agreed to participate in this event and the hope is to bring
jobs to the community and contribute to the fight against Covid-19. Mr Williams voiced
his hope that this event and future similar events will benefit the community. A street
closure for Fremont Street from Marquette to Hamilton was discussed by the Committee
and no conflicts were noted.
Upon a motion by Rohrscheib and seconded by Jones the permit was approved unanimously.
b. South Street Block Party-7/17/21
Neighborhood event on South Street with family games and potluck food requested the
closure of South Street from Sunnyside to Longfellow from 3:00 pm to 8:00 pm. This
event has been held is years past with no issues. All necessary neighborhood signatures
were submitted by the applicant. No conflicts were noted by the Committee.
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Upon a motion by Rohrscheib and seconded by Jones the permit was approved unanimously.
c. Rebel Art Fest-8/1/21
Amanda Parker joined the meeting via Teams to discuss this art and music festival to be
held in Potawatomi Park as part of Best.Week.Ever. 2021. The event will take place on
Sunday August 1st between noon and 8:00 pm. Wall Street (from the Zoo Parking Lot
Entrance) between Southwood Ave to Greenlawn Ave is the proposed street closure for
the event. Food trucks, bands and art vendors will be on hand as in previous years. The
entrance to the Zoo and pool will remain accessible to the public. Food trucks will park on
Wall Street. It was decided that Jersey Walls combined with cones for the street closures
would allow for emergency vehicles should they be needed. The event organizer
requested the closure be from 8:00 am to 10:00 pm to allow for setup and cleanup of the
event. Ellis reminded the organizer that food trucks will need St Joe County Health
approval as well as being inspected by the Fire Department if they are operating in the
City. Parker was advised to contact Michelle Adams in the County-City Building to
schedule the inspections.
Upon a motion by Rohrscheib and seconded by Villa the permit was approved unanimously.
d. Best.Wednesday.Ever.2021-8/4/21
LaCasa de Amistad along with VPA will hold a family friendly evening of fun and games.
Live music, a beer garden, kid zone, food trucks, local vendors, and service organizations
will be on hand for Best.Wednesday.Ever. 2021. The event will take place from 4:00 pm
to 8:00 pm and will close Western from Kaley to Dundee and Bendix at Liberty. The event
is a block inward from the requested street closure but it gives more room for crowd
control. The LaCasa team is working to ensure adequate parking for the event and their
only concern was that detours are in place for any large trucks that may be traveling in
the area. Villa noted that detours will be needed for traffic coming down Olive Street as
well as truck traffic coming from the West that can be detoured down Sheridan. The
Committee agreed on side street closures based on past events.
Upon a motion by Rohrscheib and seconded by Villa the permit was approved unanimously.
e. Payne Birthday Block Party-8/6/21
The application is for a block party with games and potluck food on College Street from
Humbolt Street to Elwood Ave. The event organizer originally asked for (2) days closure
but was told only (1) day would be considered. The Committee discussed amending the
closure request on the application as well as the number of households fronting the
proposed closure listed on the application vs actual number of households on this block.
The applicant obtained 10 signatures but there are potentially (39) households fronting
on the block of the proposed closure. The Committee decided to table the request and
ask for additional signatures to be submitted by households affected by this closure. The
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Committee also agreed that the time of the closure should be adjusted to 5:00 pm to
12:00 pm.
Upon a motion by Rohrscheib and seconded by Villa the permit was tabled (until additional
information is provided) unanimously.
f. Best.First Fridays.Ever. Flashback Friday-8/6/21
VPA will hold a family friendly evening of fun and games in Downtown South Bend
including promotions for DTSB restaurants. Also included will be ROC UR Body
entertainment activities and children’s activities. Fireworks are scheduled to be launched
from the Jefferson Street Bridge and viewing of the fireworks from the Colfax Ave
Bridge. For this reason, the conclusion of this event will be 10:30 pm. The event organizer
requested the closure of streets in addition to the approved DTSB closures to allow for
the fireworks display and a kid’s space which will include Touch A Truck. The event will
require the closure of the entire bridge on E Jefferson between E Wayne and Niles from
noon to 12:00 am to allow for setup, launch and cleanup of the fireworks display. Security
will be hired for the area of the fireworks setup. Also to allow for public viewing, the event
organizer has requested the closure of the Colfax Ave Bridge from Dr MLK, Jr Blvd to
Sycamore Street from 7:30 pm to 11:00 pm. The County will need to approve the closure
of the bridges based on how the heat will effect the bridge. Also, the County usually
doesn’t allow for both bridges to be closed at the same time and therefore will need to
approve the closure of the bridges. Villa suggested Parker contact Andy Hayes at St
Joseph County Engineering to apply for the approvals. Villa clarified setup times with
Parker as to avoid a time conflict with the construction team working in the area of the
proposed fireworks setup. Parker and the Committee discussed options on closing the
Colfax Bridge for the shortest amount of time that would allow for the safety of
spectators. The application was tabled until the next meeting of the Special Events
Committee on July 20th pending County approval.
Upon a motion by Rohrscheib and seconded by Jones the permit was tentatively approved
pending County bridge approval.
g. Back 2 School Parade/Boogie-8/7/21
Charles Black Center along with VPA, Empowerment Zone and Mix 106 are sponsoring
the end of Best.Week.Ever. 2021 with a back to school parade from Washington High
School to the Charles Black Center Parking Lot where activities have been planned from
10:00 am to 6:00 pm. Marching Bands, dancers and floats will travel down Washington
Street from the High School to the Charles Black Center. The parade closure will occur
between 9:00 am to 10:00 am on Washington Street from Summit to Lake Street and the
activities will continue on Washington from Iowa to Falcon from 10:00 am until 6:00 pm.
Officers and volunteers will be on hand to accompany the parade and to open the
closures after the parade goes by. The Committee had no other questions or concerns.
Upon a motion by Rohrscheib and seconded by Villa the permit was approved unanimously.
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h. Tim’s 60th Birthday-8/21/21
60th Birthday Party celebrated by friends and family. The applicant is requesting the
closure of Golden Ave from the alley to Riverside for the safety of the party-goers. Two
households would be affected by the closure. The Committee would rather have the
closure on Golden from Woodward to Riverside as all households in the block have alley
access. As the Committee had no additional questions, a vote to approve was taken.
Upon a motion by Rohrscheib and seconded by Villa the permit was approved unanimously.
i. Art Beat 2021-8/21/21
Art Beat is a annual day long showcase of visual, performing and culinary arts on the City
streets of Downtown South Bend. Free entertainment along with vendors are featured at
this event. Kylie Carter from DTSB was on hand to discuss the event and answer any
questions from the Special Events Committee. Art Beat 2021 will follow a similar layout
as used in 2019 however vendors will not be on Niles Ave as in 2019 but will instead
utilize the finished Howard Park area which will extend to St Louis Street and across to
Wayne Street. This plan will result in fewer street closures. The event organizer has been
working with Century Center to park emergency vehicles for easy access. Friday’s setup
won’t need street closures, the stages will be setup Saturday morning and will come down
Saturday night. Currently working with the Health Department on Covid-19 protocol.
Attendance is unknown at this point however; booths will be spread out more this year to
allow for distancing. (4) performance stages are planned for the event at various locations
at the venue. Indoor booths are not planned for this year. The Committee directed the
event organizer to speak with the County to obtain permission to set up/close the bridge.
Closure times were agreed upon as 6:00 am to 10:00 pm. Jones suggested additional
parking for the event off of St Louis St. Street closures as related to booth(s) locations
were identified for planning purposes in the placing of barricades and types of barricades
used to allow for emergency access if needed. Traffic & Lighting identified additional
alley/street closures where vehicles could be used in lieu of a hard closure to more easily
facilitate access to the venue should the need arise. A First Aid Center along with
emergency vehicles will be located in the Century Center Parking Lot. Vendor access was
established in discussion with the event organizer. SBPD Officers will be on hand as
security for the event and SBFD will provide first aid for the event. Ellis directed the
organizer to obtain City approval and to schedule fire inspections of the booths at the
event. Approval is contingent upon County approval of the bridge closure.
Upon a motion by Rohrscheib and seconded by Ellis the permit was approved unanimously.
j. Farmer’s Market Classic Car Show-8/28/21
Annual Classic Car Show with live entertainment and Market Café food available. The
event is asking for the closure of Eddy Street to the Armory from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm.
Vendors selling food and liquor will need to be identified to establish the need for
temporary licensing. The Committee requested that the event organizer be made aware
that any food trucks will need a City permit and alcohol sales will require a temporary
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liquor license and security for the event. The Committee decided to table the event due
to insufficient information. The event will be considered when additional information has
been received.
Upon a motion by Rohrscheib and seconded by Jones the permit was tabled at this time
unanimously.
k. Stanley Clark 5K-10/16/21
Annual sponsored 5K Run and 3.5K Walk along with music and entertainment to benefit
Stanley Clark School teachers and students was outlined for the Committee by David
Story on behalf of Stanley Clark School. The event has been held for several years and will
follow the same established route(s). 100-200 spectators in addition to the race
participants and volunteers are expected to attend. The race route will begin on
Donmoyer at the school and proceed East, South and West thru the nearby
neighborhood and conclude back at the school. The race will utilize officers and Traffic &
Lighting to assist with the race and crossing at more traffic prone intersections as
needed. The event will be held on an off weekend from Notre Dame Football. Villa does
not expect construction concerns to affect the event. The Committee had no additional
questions or concerns.
Upon a motion by Rohrscheib and seconded by Ellis the permit was approved unanimously.
4. Other Business – None
5. Privilege of the Floor – None
6. Adjournment
With no additional business, Rohrscheib motioned for adjournment and Villa seconded. The
meeting ended at 11:37 AM.