Jig & Jive Dance Studio proprietor urges more changes to new Special Events Code – will town staff, council listen?

As the Front Royal Town Council prepared to readdress citizen and organizational concerns about a ranking “matrix” developed to qualify or disqualify special event applications for the downtown historic business district at a Monday, July 12 work session, one of those concerned citizens with a vested interest in the proposal circulated a critique of what was being brought to the table that evening.

While acknowledging some minor improvements, Annie Guttierrez of the East Main Street-based Jig & Jive Dance Studio echoed an overarching critique she first made at council’s June 28 meeting. We will let Guttierrez speak for herself as stated in a widely-circulated morning of July 12 email:

Annie Guttierrez offered a community event friendly alternative, along with her critique of the ‘Matrix’ ranking proposal on the table, at council’s June 28 meeting. At least five other public speakers supported the Jig & Jive Dance Studio proprietor’s ideas. But town staff appears committed to the bulk of the original proposal generated through the Joint Tourism Committee, weighted heavily toward larger and higher revenue-generating proposals. Royal Examiner File Photos by Roger Bianchini

“Events that make money, bring in tourists, and have a large support network are highly favored. The matrix criteria and the information required reek of micromanaging and government oversight … We (the Studio and other small businesses) most likely won’t meet the 33 minimum requirement (score), but draw too large of an audience to qualify for the first level, ‘Community Gatherings’. Thus, we either reduce our numbers to less than 25 in order to use our Town’s public space or we jump hoops to make the event bigger (vendors, more businesses participating, etc…) than a simple performance or small festival for the community. The hole in this matrix system is still gaping,” Guttierrez offered.

She repeated concern expressed in late June at the subjective authority given to the town manager or “his designee” and the “Catch-22” the ranking “Matrix” (there’s two nightmarish Hollywood film references to this proposal) appears to relegate smaller, community-directed event to:

“Small community events (ex: Shamrock Festival and our winter recital) which bring in far more than 25 persons and use amplification, have to qualify on the matrix and go through the extensive paperwork process where the organizer must ‘demonstrate on the application’ why the event is worthy of being permitted, how it’s being run, why, and whom it will benefit. All the questions and requirements from the initial matrix proposal remain,” she asserted, adding, “The updated proposal still requires a ridiculous amount of early planning and detailed paperwork on the permit application. It borders on writing a defensive paper – College flashbacks are forthcoming.” – OUCH!!!

Council ponders what it heard from the public on proposed changes to the Special Events Code on June 28. While small changes have been made, the overall ‘Matrix’ ranking system favoring larger, revenue-generating, tourist-attracting events appears to remain in tact, Guttierrez asserts.

And with her email going out before noon, Guttierrez urged its readers to contact council, the mayor and town staff about the unresolved concerns the proposal would bring to community events like her dance studio’s outdoor performance recitals.

Did they or might they show up for the 7 p.m. Town Hall work session to seek input, and to what effect? – See tomorrow’s Royal Examiner story on the July 12 work session discussion.

Guttierrez included LINKS to both the current Town proposal and her alternate proposal presented to the Town on June 28, as well as the Royal Examiner story on the June 28 meeting discussion and the Town video of that meeting:

• The Current Proposal: frontroyalva.com/AgendaCenter
• The Three Tier Alternate Option Proposed at the Last Council Meeting: docs.google.com/document
• Royal Examiner story: Special Events code, credit card fee waiver set for further council review
• The Last Council Meeting on this Topic (Video and Article): frontroyalva.new.swagit.com