Event organizers looking to rent space in Oneonta city parks must now put down a $500 refundable deposit, after the Common Council approved the measure at its meeting Tuesday, Aug. 5.
After some debate, the council voted 5-1 to amend to the city’s fee schedule to add the deposit for events held at city parks, excluding pavilion rentals. Shannon McHugh, D-Third Ward, abstained and Michael Forster Rothbart, D-Seventh Ward, was absent.
McHugh and Kaytee Lipari Shue, D-Fourth Ward, who voted no, both expressed concerns regarding financial limitations as a result of the fee.
The amendment initially was referred to the Finance and Human Resource Committee, which discussed and ultimately approved the deposit, adding a section mandating a one-year suspension if an organization does not comply, said Cecelia Walsh-Russo, D-Second Ward.
Walsh-Russo said the $500 deposit does not even begin to cover the cost of city employees and time entailed in the clean up process. She said the deposit is a way to “provide accountability” among event organizers.
McHugh pushed back, saying the deposit could be “preventative,” especially for smaller organizations or events which may have trouble coming up with the money.
Lipari Shue agreed with McHugh, and said she shared her concern that the deposit could “potentially be discouraging,” especially for organizations which have never held an event before.
“It is an additional hurdle to that, and I wouldn’t want to discourage community organizing,” Lipari Shue said.
Scott Harrington, R-Sixth Ward, said that park staff have spent upwards of four hours to pick up after events in the past, when people have failed to properly clean up.
City Clerk Kerri Harrington said a sit-down meeting is held with organizers more than two weeks before the start of an event to make sure they know basic logistics, like where any materials they need for the event are.
“The only expectation is that they return it to the condition in which they found it using the materials we provide to them,” Kerri Harrington said.
Elayne Mosher Campoli, D-First Ward, said that the Otsego Pride Alliance has stayed until past 11 p.m. following an event to ensure that the garbage is taken care of properly and that the park is restored to its original state.
“I know it’s not an easy job for volunteers to do, but if it sits there all weekend, it probably gets more difficult to clean up,” Mosher Campoli said.
City Public Works Director Chris Yacobucci said parks should be cleaned up by the morning following any events.
After some back and forth, the motion to approve the amendment passed.
Other business
In other business, the council discussed the future of the vacant 27 Market St. property, which is being used as a parking lot. The council starting by discussing whether to eliminate timed parking in the parking effective Nov. 1.
At last week’s Quality of Life and Infrastructure committee meeting, members discussed ending maintenance of the parking lot by Nov. 1 after constriction of the transit hub and parking lot at 47 Market St. is completed.
Don Mathisen, D-Eighth Ward, requested that the November date be moved up six months to April 1 to ensure that businesses on Market Street understand the new demand for parking.
“It’s the same thing with the dumpsters,” Mathisen said. “I went over and looked at the dumpsters the last two days, and it’s unsightly. They were at times overflowing. There’s no alternative place yet where the dumpsters can be placed.”
He said he wanted business owners to have more time to find places for their dumpsters.
Mosher Campoli said that Nov. 1 was selected because as long as the property is still being maintained, the city continues to accumulate costs.
After some more discussion, the council moved into voting. The motion failed 4-2, with Len Carson, R-Fifth Ward, abstaining.
Two motions passed to terminate site access for both Casella Waste Management and Logan’s Trucking to property. The companies have had usage agreements to collect store garbage and recycling on the property. Mathisen voted no on both.
The council also approved via consent agenda changes to the city code to prohibit parking on the north and south sides of Hudson Street within 20 feet of the crosswalk near Valleyview Elementary School.