Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Special Events Permit topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Stevensville council approves farmers market permits after debate over 'reoccurring' vs. 'ongoing' events
Summary
After extended discussion about whether a weekly farmers market counts as a 'reoccurring' or 'ongoing' event under town code, Stevensville council approved the Harvest Valley Farmers Market permits for May 2 and May 16 and agreed to revisit the ordinance language and permit fees.
Stevensville — The Stevensville Town Council voted Tuesday to approve permits for the Harvest Valley Farmers Market on May 2 and May 16, resolving a months‑long question about how the town’s special‑events ordinance treats regularly recurring markets.
The market has obtained 501(c)(3) status and paid a $125 special‑event permit. Council members and staff spent more than an hour debating whether a weekly market that occurs over 23 Saturdays this season should be treated as a series of separate "reoccurring" events or as an "ongoing" event subject to different permit and oversight rules. Council settled on a compromise: the market will request a permit renewal every two weeks for the season while staff pursue clarifying ordinance language.
Why it matters: Council members said ambiguity in the ordinance has created repeated legal and administrative cost questions and could expose the town to inconsistent enforcement. Council member Smith warned the town has already spent several thousand dollars on attorney review and urged clarifying the code. Mayor Hugh Cruz and council members said a two‑week renewal process is a pragmatic short‑term fix so the market can operate while an ordinance cleanup is pursued.
Council and staff discussed several concrete fixes and financial details. The market will provide meter photographs to staff to document daily electricity use; staff will analyze usage at season’s end and return to council to set any additional charges beyond the $125 permit. Council members cited attorney fees (discussed in the meeting as about $3,000 so far) and estimated ordinance‑rewrite costs of roughly $600–$850 as items to resolve when they bring forward changes.
Council member Bailey raised questions about whether the ordinance treats cumulative attendance across many days as triggering higher review; council members agreed the town should revise definitions and clean up related permit language. Council member Smith said the pace of statutory change and the costs of repeatedly seeking counsel reinforced the need for a definitive ordinance.
"We reached a compromise that will work right now and that's why we're bringing it back," Mayor Hugh Cruz said, describing the two‑week renewal approach as a temporary solution.
The council approved the permits by a 4‑0 vote. Staff said they will return with recommended ordinance language, a review of special‑event fees and a proposal for how to charge for electricity usage if metering shows significant consumption.
What’s next: Council directed staff to continue working with the market organizers and the town attorney to draft clarifying language and to present a consolidated proposal (ordinance language, application form and fee resolution) in a future meeting.
