Parks and Recreation Event Rest Periods
Received from Yolanda Quesada, Fred Weiss Parks and Rec Oct 20, INC PARC Meeting
Background
In 2014 and 2015 a cap was in place that did not allow new races and walks in Denver. In 2015 the cap was extended to include special events. With the cap expiring for the 2016 season, there was insufficient time to analyze the data and to promulgate new rules, including stakeholder involvement prior to the opening of permits for the 2016 season on November 2nd. We determined that something needed to be put in place to manage the anticipated influx of requests to hold events until new rules are adopted at the end of the 2016 season. The impetus for this decision is the Ordinance that provides priority status for events that occur in the same park on the same date(s) for two consecutive years. These events have the right to continue into the future as long as the location and date(s) remain the same and would pre-empt any new rules that might result from a more thorough review process.
To address these issues the City will be implementing rest periods in seven of our busiest parks for the 2016 season. The purpose of these rest periods is to provide a balance between passive park use and programmed activity in and around these parks. In addition, they will allow time for the turf to recover from the concentrated use that results from events. We will be gathering input from stakeholder throughout the season on the effects of the rest periods and engaging the community in a discussion about new rules following the end of the season. The details of the rest periods are as follows:
Parks where rest periods will be implemented
Downtown Parks
Civic – 2 weekend days per month
Confluence – 2 weekend days per month
Large Regional Parks
City – 3 weekend days per month
Stapleton Central – 3 weekend days per month
Sloans – 3 weekend days per month
Washington – 3 weekend days per month
Medium Regional Parks
Cheesman – 4 weekend days per month
Policy
- The Rest Period policy is being instituted on a 1 year pilot basis and only applies to the parks listed above.
- Priority events (events that have occurred in the same park on the same date(s) for 2 consecutive years as defined in Ordinance) are not impacted except as noted below.
- Rest periods in effect from April 1st through October 31st.
- “Weekend days” are Saturday and Sunday.
- DPR Permit office will determine exact rest period dates after priority events are booked and prior to permit opening date.
- DPR will work with the Office of Special Events and other City agencies in establishing
specific rest period dates and publish them internally & externally - Guidelines for determining specific rest period dates will be:
- Whole weekends versus individual weekend days
- Weekend before or after a large event
- Weekend when other City resources (DPD, PW) are limited
- Turf condition
- Maintenance requirements
- DPR will work with the Office of Special Events and other City agencies in establishing
- The 5th weekend in a month will not be booked for an event except for: priority events or when two priority events conflict and the weekend is needed to accommodate moving one of them. These days do not count towards rest period requirements.
- No new events, races or walks will be allowed within one block of these parks during rest
periods. This includes races and walks that are exclusively on the streets. (Public Works &
Denver Police Department). - No new events on Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day. These days do not count towards rest period requirements.
- No races/walks will be permitted on trails except for Priority events, races/walks that remain exclusively within a park boundary, and races/walks that are associated with a convention booked by Visit Denver prior to October 1, 2015. Pre-defined routes will be established for races/walks associated with a convention.
- Events will be limited to a maximum number of consecutive days at all parks for the entire year. The maximum will be 3 event days, plus one setup day and one tear-down day. Priority events that currently exceed this maximum will be allowed to continue but would not be allowed to add additional days.
- A mechanism will be put in place to obtain feedback from the various stakeholders at the end of the 2016 event season.
From: Ramirez, Grace L. – Office of Special Events <Grace.Ramirez@denvergov.org>
Subject: Creating Balance in Our Parks & Neighborhoods
Date: Fri, Oct 30, 2015 5:05 pm
Dear Neighborhood Leaders, Residents, and Businesses,
Hello again! Many of you may have heard that the new Of ice of Special Events (OSE) is updating Denver’s procedures in regards to special events like races, walks, festivals and farmers markets that take place on city property. Like many other cities, Denver is experiencing a surge in special events. It’s been an exciting year. We’ve spent the past 10 months bringing Denver’s procedures up to industry standards by creating better internal and external communication mechanisms about special events; improving our processes; and providing better guidance to special event organizers so that we can ensure safe, compliant and successful events.
Denver prides itself on our it and healthy lifestyle and the hundreds of walks, races and runs we host on public property each year. Our mission is to continue to support special events held on Denver property; maintain the quality of our parks; as well as to support our residents’ need to hold family picnics in our parks, enjoy a quiet walk through our city streets and drive through our beautiful and historic neighborhoods.
With that in mind, we are ready to roll out the first of a series of updates for how Denver works with special events.
Notification of Special Events
The new procedures will focus on better community notification, mitigating negative impacts like trash, street closures and congestion, and creating better enforcement measures that are the result of the hundreds of Special Events held on public property each year.
In an effort to let you know what is happening in your neighborhood and when, all special events held on city property will be required to email notification to impacted Registered Neighborhood Organizations (RNOs) several times before the event and City Council of ices. The larger events will be required to create a customized notification plan in partnership with our of ice. This will be implemented in 2016.
Check out our website for more information on notification, an event calendar, and other special event procedures!
Parks Now Have Rest Periods from Events
Denver’s beautiful parks are the focus of the recreational and active lifestyle we cherish in our city. In order to help protect the quality of the park, and maintain balance between recreational use and as a venue for Special Events, Denver Parks and Recreation (DPR) is initiating a one-year rest period pilot program in 2016.
The pilot program will only be implemented in seven of the busiest regional parks from April through October 2016. The parks included are Civic, Confluence, City, Stapleton Central, Sloan’s Lake, Washington and Cheesman parks.
The number of rest period days were established by the type of park and vary from 2 to 4 single weekend days per month. Also taken into consideration were maintenance requirements including protecting the turf, major holiday weekends, weekends before and after large events, and staffing needs.
Please note that this is not a ban on new special events in our parks. This is a pilot program for 2016 to help DPR better manage the park’s natural resources and achieve balance between passive park use and programmed activities in and around these specific parks. We are encouraging input from parks stakeholders, the public, and event planners, for consideration throughout the season and will engage with the community in a public meeting next year concerning new rules and regulations. For more info on DPR permits please visit the website here.
Pocketgov.com: Making City Living a Whole Lot Easier
Keep up on Special Events taking place in your park or neighborhood by visiting our interactive events map on Pocketgov.com, Denver’s online resource app. Or you can check out our online special events calendar!
We want to hear from you! Please let us know if you have any feedback about events in your
neighborhood by giving us a call at 720.913.1507, shooting over an email or through our online feedback button.
Warm regards,
Grace López Ramírez | Community Affairs Liaison
Office of Special Events (OSE) | City and County of Denver
720.913.1501 OSE Office | 720.913.1517 Direct | 303.877.8173 Cell
Grace.Ramirez@denvergov.org
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