Williamstown Planning Conditions For Motorcycle RallyBy Stephen Dravis, Special to iBerkshires
12:26AM / Tuesday, June 12, 2012 | |
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Town Counsel Joel Bard suggesting putting conditions on a proposed motorcycle event that has neighbors in the Hopper and public officials concerned. |
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Selectmen on Monday night directed the town manager and town counsel to draft a letter to the organizer of a planned motorcycle rally detailing the steps he needs to complete before the August event can go forward.
The board already has denied a request for an alcohol permit for the Aug. 17-19 "Hogs on the Farm" event, but organizer Charles "Rusty" Ransford of Hopper Road is continuing to promote the event without being able to sell alcohol to participants.
In response to numerous objections raised by neighbors, the board members asked Town Counsel Joel Bard to research what options the town had to deal with the event — including whether it could deny Ransford an entertainment license.
Bard outlined the results of his research at Monday's meeting and recommended that the board not reject a license application but instead grant such a request — if made — with conditions.
"It's a difficult license to deny," Bard said. "The approach is to condition.
"The burden is on the board to prove it acted properly in denying an entertainment permit. That's partly due to First Amendment concerns. But there is nothing about an event like this that can't be addressed by conditions."
Bard proceeded to list a number of possible conditions that the town might want to see met before a permit is issued. And several residents of South Williamstown added additional concerns in the public comment session that followed Bard's lengthy presentation.
In the end, the Selectmen asked Town Manager Peter Fohlin and Bard to draft a letter to Ransford outlining several hurdles he needs to clear, including: obtaining an entertainment license, developing a plan approved by the Board of Health to deal with sanitary facilities and potable water at the site, acquiring a permit from the Zoning Board of Appeals to host a campsite and establishing that the event is a fund-raiser.
"I think we have a sense of the board's wishes, and we'll start on it [Tuesday] morning," Fohlin said of the letter.
Ransford, who did not attend Monday's meeting, has posted fliers announcing a $50 charge to participate in the event, with the money going "to benefit our U.S. Vets."
When the Selectmen denied his alcohol permit on May 14, some of the members focused on — among other issues — the fact that the event did not have non-profit status. Bard reported Monday that Ransford had obtained charitable contribution status from the commonwealth, but the Selectmen still wants Ransford to detail how much of the admission fee is going to charity and what charity specifically stands to benefit from the event.
"In my opinion, (the phrasing on the flier) is not enough to establish that it is a fund-raising event," Bard said. "If it's not a fund-raising event, it can't go forward under this exception to the zoning bylaws."
Even if Ransford meets that standard, there are more issues to be addressed.
"The bylaw also says 'provided the necessary permits are obtained,'" Bard said.
That opens the door to the Selectmen — which has authority over entertainment licenses — to require, for example, that Ransford pay for a police detail to provide traffic control. At the May 14 meeting, Ransford told the board the rally could draw anywhere from 500 to 5,000 bikers.
"You could put a cap on numbers," Bard said. "It's a 165-acre site. What's the carrying capacity of the site and the roadways? At what point is it unsafe to have X-hundreds or X-thousands of people in one location."
Hopper Road resident Sandy Laitman was one of several residents who spoke urging the board to make tough demands on Ransford.
"I'd like to see another approach: Put an economic squeeze on him," Laitman said. "For example, with Porta-Potties, let him show us a contract that someone is prepared to provide however many he needs if 5,000 people show up.
Resident Sandy Laitman urged the Selectmen to be tough. |
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"I'd like to see him post a bond for any and all damages that might occur to anything on Hopper Road. I don't know how much pressure this would be, but it's time to nudge him a little bit."
Another issue raised was the fact that Ransford is promoting the event without the necessary permits.
"A scary scenario is a whole lot of people arriving expecting an event only to find it was shut down," Paul Jennings of Hopper Road told the board.
Ransford has said in the past that he would promote the event in motorcycle magazines, and in addition to the event's own Facebook page, it is currently advertised on the website bikerplaza.com.
Selectman Ronald Turbin suggested on Monday that the town might want to consider taking out its own ads to let people know if and when the event is canceled.
The timing of that cancelation is tied to how long it takes for Ransford to get the permits he needs to go forward. On Monday, Bard told the board each of the permits in question requires a lengthy process, and he indicated the town should set a deadline — weeks ahead of the Aug. 17 event — after which it would seek a court order to bar Ransford from hosting any rally on his property.
"There's been a tremendous amount of worry in the town of Williamstown about this issue," Selectman Tom Costley said. "It isn't just a 'noise' issue. It's a public safety issue."
In other business on Monday night, the board heard a report from Police Chief Kyle Johnson that two town businesses failed a May 26 alcohol compliance check. Colonial Pizza on Main Street and Hops and Vines on Water Street, neither of which had a prior history of violations, failed the May 26 check and employees were issued summonses.
The Selectmen voted to ask representatives of both businesses to appear before the board at its next meeting.
Johnson also reported that 18 other businesses tested in the same round of compliance checks passed.
• The board also signed off on an Historic Preservation Agreement that allows the Williamstown Community Preschool to move forward with its plans to purchase the former United Methodist Church on Main Street. A closing could be held as soon as the end of the month, school officials reported.
• Judith Ensign was appointed to serve a two-year term on the Northern Berkshire Cultural Council.
• The Selectmen elected David Rempell to serve as chairman, replacing Thomas Sheldon. Jane Allen was elected vice chairman, and Turbin was elected as the board's secretary.
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