Board approves trial permit to let M Days vendors camp overnight in Boil Park

The Mancos Board of Trustees approved a trial special permit allowing vendors at the M Days festival to camp overnight in Boil Park adjacent to their merchandise on a one-year trial basis.

Staff said current ordinances technically prohibit camping in the park and that the board would need to authorize a variance for the event. Victoria Peterson, speaking for the vendor committee, described vendors sleeping in popup tents or vans next to their booths and said porta‑potties will be provided and Park Street will be closed for parking. "We're envisioning that they would sleep in their popup tent," Peterson said.

Trustees discussed limiting the number of people who may stay overnight, using vehicle tags or wristbands to distinguish permitted vendor campers, and roping off a designated camping area so marshals can quickly identify authorized campers. One trustee said most vendor groups tend to be two to three people and favored a trial approach with staff to set exact permit limits.

The motion approved a special permit for overnight vendor camping on a trial basis and directed staff to develop an application form, number-of-person limits on permits, and identification/tagging for permitted campers; staff will evaluate the trial and report findings to the trustees after the event.

Why it matters: Allowing vendors to camp may reduce security burdens during teardown and support traveling vendor practices, but it raises park maintenance and crowd-control questions; trustees set conditions and required staff follow-up.

The transcript records the vote as a voice vote; no roll-call tally by name appears in the record.