Evansville building authority, event organizers reach compromise after festival blocked access to Back 40

Dave Rector, a representative of the Evansville Building Authority, told the City of Evansville Board of Public Safety that tents and closures during a recent Mac and Cheese Festival blocked the driveway and parking used for the Back 40 and impeded Evansville Police Department officers’ access. “They couldn't get out. They were driving down the sidewalk to get out,” Rector said, describing vehicles and workers blocked by festival setups that remained through Monday morning.

Event organizer Joe Nader acknowledged the permit-based process but said some operational decisions were made at the last minute because of severe-weather concerns. Nader said his team hired TRU Rentals to install pole tents with 600-pound weights as a safety measure and that the equipment was intended to protect volunteers from an approaching storm. “I didn't realize that it was on their driveway. It was literally adjacent to the sidewalk,” Nader said, apologizing to Rector and describing the choice as a manpower- and safety-driven, last-minute adjustment.

Curtis, a city special-events staff member, said special-event permit applications are routed to the police, fire and legal departments and that police and fire normally review traffic and safety plans. “When these special event permits are submitted, the applications do go to the police department, fire department, and legal,” Curtis said. He said the city had not previously had the Building Authority included in that sign-off process and that adding that step would help flag site-specific access issues earlier.

Participants described how overlapping events will complicate access during an upcoming weekend when the Ford Center hosts Monster Jam (estimated attendance of roughly 5,000 for the 1 p.m. show and 4,000 for the 7 p.m. show) at the same time as Taco Fest. Rector asked that Ninth and Locust remain open so vehicles could enter and exit the Back 40 and so officers could access the lot. Nader and other event staff agreed to reposition tents off the Building Authority property and to preserve a police/egress lane. “Maybe it'd be easier if I just got a Google site map and mark where I think we could close the road and leave it open for the traffic,” Jerry Schneider said; Schneider volunteered to produce a site map and work with Curtis on a plan.

The board did not take a formal vote on rescinding or changing previously issued closures. Instead members and the parties present reached a practical compromise: organizers will keep tents and equipment out of the Building Authority's property line, leave a vehicle/police egress lane to the Back 40 (including keeping Locust open at Ninth and a short opening from the court parking lot to Sycamore), and provide a marked site map to city staff. Curtis said he would include the map in the record and work with both sides to make the plan part of the permit file.

The board also agreed to add the Evansville Building Authority as an additional review step for future special-event permit applications involving the Back 40 or adjacent property, so building-authority concerns about egress and emergency access are flagged during permit review rather than raised after setup. The parties characterized the outcome as an operational resolution rather than a formal policy change: staff will coordinate adjustments for the imminent Taco Fest, and the Building Authority will be incorporated into the permit review workflow going forward.

Why this matters: downtown closures and festival setups can interfere with municipal property access and emergency response. Board members said the new inspection step and requiring clear site maps should reduce future conflicts between event organizers and property owners.