Party plan review eating Batavia staff time

Batavia seems to be the place to have a charity run, pub-crawl or party, as groups want to have eight new events in its downtown.

But making sure event organizers have plans for controlling traffic, supervising liquor sales and ensuring safety takes time. With fewer city workers due to budget cuts, managers are looking for basic standards on what types of and how many events the city wants, to weed out those unlikely to come to fruition.

The city council's city services committee will talk about this at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

When somebody wants to have a public event, they must submit a five-page form to the police department. The administrative sergeant and city departments review the request then estimate costs of city services requested or required. That sergeant is retiring, meaning his work will fall to others.

"Due in part to our willingness to support community activities, we are fast becoming a popular place from which to run such events," City Administrator Bill McGrath wrote in a memo.

The city needs to balance the inconvenience caused by street closures with the benefit of supporting small groups with specific interests and the promotion of downtown Batavia, which is popular because of its site along the Fox River.

The city's involvement can include identifying and contacting nearby property owners and users to assess impact on them; fire department inspection and supervision; building department inspection of structures and electrical supplies; directing traffic; police patrol; and dropping off and picking up barricades, trash cans, and other equipment. Festival organizers are billed for the services.

Events already approved for 2010 include Windmill City Fest, Art In Your Eye, a triathlon, Batfest, the weekly farmers market, a downtown block party, a half-marathon, the Loyalty Day parade and Fourth of July fireworks. All but the fireworks are held downtown. All require street closures, and four require police security since alcohol is served.

New events proposed for this year are a Chicago Longboard Society skateboard race, a marathon, an Oktoberfest, Crawl for a Cause, a bicycle race, two 5K charity runs, and the Big City Mountaineers Fire Truck Pull. All would require street closures, and some would need police security.

Crawl for a Cause wants to close North River Street May 30, a move already opposed by one business on the street, the Fox's on the River restaurant. The street closure would be on the second day of the crawl, with the first day being confined to the actual taverns.

Police estimated at least $1,000 worth of police services alone would be needed.