Council to Update Rules On Depot Plaza Use

The Mill Valley City Council is set to update rules on the use of the at its meeting Tuesday night, with city staff recommending the council loosen many of the restrictions on events there, some of which have been selectively applied in recent years.

The use of the plaza, which was changed from a bus station and parking lot into a public gathering space in 1982, is governed by rules in the city’s municipal code. After by the city’s Parks and Recreation Commission throughout 2011, the council will consider a series of changes, including raising the limit on the number of people that can attend an event on the plaza and a limit on the number of amplified music events that can be held each year.

The recommendations are a slight pullback from discussions at the commission in 2011 that raised the possibility of allowing more large special events. Instead of changing the rules to allow for specific new events – a flea market or farmers market, for instance – City Hall is focusing on giving the parks commission more discretion to decide what’s in the public interest.

“The idea is to maintain a set of rules on the use of the plaza without it being so rigid and to give the parks and rec commission more discretion,” City Manager Jim McCann said.

There are a number of recurring events on the plaza each year, including popular events put on by the Art Commission like and , as well as the , which is by far the most heavily attended plaza event of the year, annually serving as the biggest fundraiser for the .  In addition, the , which in December 2011 and proved a successful, affair, has been one of the largest plaza events.

The current ordinance includes three main restrictions:

1. Events may have no more than 50 participants
2. There can be no more than six events featuring amplified music per year
3. Events can occur only from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.

“In recent years, the commission has not adhered to these restrictions,” interim Parks and Recreation Director Stuart Kesler wrote in a staff report (attached at right) on the matter. “The commission made the decision that the community’s desire for local community events, the positive nature of the events and impact on downtown economic vitality provided the basis for relaxing the regulations.”

For example, eight events featuring amplified music were held on the plaza in 2011, with nine in 2010 and seven in 2009.

The most glaring restriction is the 50-person limit, as many events far surpass that figure, with the wine and gourmet food event regularly drawing hundreds to the plaza in June.

The rule changes spawned from a from a 2009 recommendation made by the Business Advisory Board, as well as the increasing number of event-related requests being made to the parks commission. The commission received minimal negative feedback from past plaza events, city officials said.

The council is considering recommendations that including lifting the limit on the number of people that can attend an event and the number of events per year that include amplified live music. The proposal also includes changing the time slot for amplified events to 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The 411: The Mill Valley City Council meets tonight at 7:30 p.m. at , 26 Corte Madera Ave.