Bountiful council weighs a broad event-permit code versus a film-specific restriction

City Attorney Jepsen told the Bountiful City Council at its Sept. 9 work session that staff proposes either a broad event-permit ordinance covering most public activities that affect streets, parks or parking, or a narrow, film-specific ordinance targeting productions.

Jepsen said the city must account for constitutional protections for speech when regulating filming and other events: "we can't just carte blanc, stop movie filming, stop wedding filming, stop filming in our city completely." He told the council the ordinance must establish a compelling governmental interest, be reasonable and not operate as an outright prohibition.

The draft presented creates three permit timing categories and fees: a standard application filed at least 10 business days before an event; an expedited application (filed 5—— business days before) with a proposed fee of $150; and a late application (filed with fewer than five business days' notice) with a proposed fee of $200. Jepsen said the city would refund fees if staff cannot process late applications in time.

The broad draft distinguishes short events that wrap within 24 hours from multi-day events, which the draft defines as events longer than 48 consecutive hours or events that exceed 72 hours in a 12-month period. The draft also proposes an "ongoing event" category for repeat activity, defined in the packet as three days in a 12-month period.

For neighborhood impacts, staff proposed requiring notice to "impacted neighbors," defined in the draft as properties within 400 yards of the proposed filming site or properties whose only access would be blocked by the event. Jepsen acknowledged that the 400-yard measure is not scientific and was chosen by combining approaches used by St. George, Salt Lake City and Park City.

Council members expressed broad support for the wider event ordinance over a film-only code, while urging additional safeguards. "I would prefer a 1 with some plus plus," Councilwoman Bradshaw said, adding that she favored notifying neighbors and requiring off-site parking when filming occurs in residential areas. Councilman Higginson said Bountiful could benefit from the clarity offered by Film Ready Utah and similar location-promotion efforts. Councilman Murray and Councilmember Childs also indicated support for the broader approach while asking for stronger notice and scheduling lead times for multi-day events.

Council members debated the timing of notice and the permit lead times. The staff draft uses a 10-business-day standard (which Jepsen noted equates to roughly 16 calendar days in Bountiful's work schedule) for standard permits, with shorter windows for expedited or late requests. Several council members proposed longer lead times for multi-day or larger events (suggested ranges in the discussion included 30 days for normal multi-day submittals and 15 business days for expedited multi-day requests). Jepsen said those numbers are adjustable and asked for council direction.

The council discussed the purpose of notice: whether notice should be given before the city accepts or acts on an application (potentially creating a public comment or review process that staff said it lacks resources to administer) or whether notice should be sent after staff has made an administrative determination and issued a permit so neighbors can make logistical arrangements. "The notice would simply be to alert the residents that an activity was happening, not to give notice and wait to issue the permit until after we've received public comment," Jepsen said.

Other draft provisions discussed included: penalties for violations (Jepsen noted enforcement could include removal of unauthorized closures or equipment and cited that city ordinances may be punishable by up to a class B misdemeanor); limiting overnight camping as part of multi-day events; a prioritization that gives the first completed application for the same impacted area priority over later requests; and a proposed limit that no more than one event be approved for the same impacted area without a meaningful break.

Council direction: members generally signaled support for the broad, citywide event-permit approach with additional notice and parking requirements for residential filming and asked staff to return with revised language and options for multi-day lead times, notice mechanics for parks/trailheads (posting, social media or entrance signage), clearer definitions for "impacted area," and fee schedules tied to estimated staff time.

No formal motions or votes were taken during the work session; staff said it would redraft the ordinance for further council consideration.