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Proctor council votes to convene Hoghead steering committee after event disruption
Summary
After this year’s Hoghead event experienced late cancellations and planning gaps, the Proctor City Council voted to ask Administrator Rich to convene a steering committee of businesses, volunteers and staff to guide planning, insurance and permits for next year’s festival.
The Proctor City Council voted to have Administrator Rich convene a Hoghead Steering Committee of business owners, volunteers and city staff to guide planning for next year’s Hoghead festival.
Councilor Johnson opened the discussion, saying the event ‘‘went really, really good’’ but noting it was ‘‘smaller’’ this year after last-minute cancellations and that the city should consider helping steer future planning. Councilors and business participants raised liability concerns for donated attractions such as bouncy houses and said some institutional knowledge — including the Lions Club manual used in earlier decades — had been lost.
‘‘I’m wondering if the city needs to take a lead on organizing a committee of businesses and community members so that this doesn’t happen again,’’ Councilor Johnson said. The council repeatedly emphasized that the city would guide the effort rather than take the event over.
Several councilors said the city lacks staff capacity to run a large festival but can host coordination meetings and connect volunteers with permits, insurance information and detour/traffic contacts. Administrator Rich agreed to set up a meeting with a few council members, Chief Gatiss and event volunteers to recap this year’s issues and identify next steps.
The motion to direct Administrator Rich to set up the Hoghead Steering Committee was seconded by Councilor De Waal and passed by voice vote.
Councilors and participants noted practical next steps, including gathering the list of volunteers and businesses who helped this year, reviewing insurance options for donated attractions and holding a post-event after-action review ‘‘so people don’t forget what happened’’ and can document best practices for future volunteers.
The council’s direction is procedural: staff were asked to convene stakeholders and report back with a meeting summary and any recommended follow-up actions. No additional funding or formal city takeover of the event was approved at the meeting.
The council will announce meeting details and any subsequent recommendations at a future meeting.
