Commission approves amended Midland Street "feet on the street" permit, removes Halloween weekend closure

The City of Bay City Commission voted Sept. 15 to approve an addendum to the Midland Street "feet on the street" permit and amended the addendum to delete the proposed Halloween-weekend closure dates.

The amendment was proposed by Commissioner Shalabois, who said she wanted to "delete the Halloween weekend dates" from the addendum. Commissioner Tenney moved to approve the addendum as presented; Commissioner Runberg seconded the motion. Commissioner Morris seconded Shalabois's amendment. After discussion about event timing, family-friendly daytime programming and the overtime costs for closing the street, the commission adopted the permit as amended in a roll call vote.

The commission's debate centered on a request from Midland Street merchants to add dates to the existing permit, and a separate proposal from merchants and community organizers to hold a daytime children’s Halloween event. Supporters of the amendment said separating family-focused daytime hours from adult-oriented weekend events would help make Midland Street more welcoming for families. Opponents and some commissioners expressed concern about the practical and financial difficulty of opening and shutting the street mid-weekend.

City staff told the commission that requiring separate closures for a daytime, family-oriented event would raise overtime and operational costs because crews must close and reopen the street and staff overtime would apply. Commissioners discussed whether the Midland Street Management Board had voted to support the originally requested dates; at least one commissioner said the proposed Halloween-weekend closure had been submitted after the board meeting and had not been approved by that board.

The final roll-call vote was recorded as yes from Commissioners Zanotti, DeWitt, Rhumburg, Charlevoix, Morris, Cubitt, Coakley, Tenney and one additional yes noted by the clerk; the motion was adopted.

The approval allows the applicant, Jay Sanborn, to add dates to the district’s street-permit schedule except for the removed Halloween-weekend dates. Midland Street merchant Ashley Earl had earlier described plans for a children’s Halloween event on Oct. 25 from noon to 2 p.m. and said the merchants requested only limited handicap parking changes during the event. The amendment gives organizers certainty that the daytime, family-focused event can proceed without the larger weekend closure.

Commissioners said the amendment does not bar the applicant from later seeking specific closures for other dates if costs and logistics can be arranged between organizers and the permit holder. The commission did not adopt separate language on cost-sharing; the clerk recorded that the motion was approved as amended, and the meeting moved on to other business.