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Downtown merchant says festival logistics blocked customers and emergency access; asks board for coordinated tourism strategy
Summary
Business owner James Collie urged the board to address downtown event coordination after a recent festival blocked access to his building, raising safety and economic concerns and calling for a unified tourism strategy.
James Collie, a longtime downtown business owner, told the town board that a recent downtown festival interfered with access to his business and raised public‑safety concerns.
Collie described bounce houses and a tent that blocked a shared parking easement, a truck and trailer that narrowed a one‑way street and events that hampered emergency access. "If there had been a fire or a medical emergency," Collie said, the blocked access "would have been a major problem." He asked the board to coordinate event logistics and push economic development toward entertainment and tourism while fostering cooperation with existing organizations like the Chamber of Commerce.
Supervisor James O'Brien and other board members acknowledged the downtown tension and said they want to promote tourism and historical assets, including Fort Ticonderoga, while improving event permitting and coordination to avoid repeating the disruption residents and businesses described.
The board did not adopt a new policy at the meeting but directed staff to consider permit and traffic management improvements and to engage event organizers on logistics and emergency‑access planning.
