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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCD-41-98 THE CORPORATION OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF CLARINGTON REPORT #2 REPORT Meeting: Council Date: September 14, 1998 File # -PO I .\5 Y Res. # c.- Co 94 - 98". Report #: CD-41-98 By-law # Subject: CLUB CARIB PICNIC AT CEDAR PARK Recommendations: It is respectfully recommended to Council the following: 1. THAT Report CD-41-98 be received; and 2. THAT a copy of Report CD-41-98 be forwarded to Harold Jukic, The Club Carib, Tim Coffey and other interested parties. BACKGROUND: On 9 August 1998, a large "event" was held at Cedar Park, which resulted in several complaints to municipal staff and the Durham Regional Police. Staff have investigated this matter and spoken to the Regional Police and wish to update Council on their findings. The event was billed as a "Family Picnic" held by Oshawa's Club Carib and hosted at Cedar Park. This event has been held each year for the last twenty-five years and has grown in popularity each year. The Club looks after advertising and promotion. Those going to the "Picnic" had their own section of the Park set aside for their exclusive use. The Park charges a standard admission fee for all persons using the facility. A portion of that fee was paid back to the Club for each adult attending the picnic. The Regional Police are familiar with the Club Carib. The group has been around for a long time and is a respected organization in the Oshawa area. Both the Park and the Club freely admit that something got out of control this year. By 4:00 p.m. there were already over 5,000 people in the Park. The line up was described as huge. At that point the Park staff gave up trying to control the entrance of people. There is no count of how many people there were on site in the end. Cars were parked all along Cedar Park Road, the 6th and th Concessions as far west as Highway 57 and as far east as Middle Road. Access along the Concession Roads and Cedar Park Road was severely restricted. ~ Report CD.A 1-98 - 2 - September 14, 1998 Around 8:00 p.m. there was a sudden thunderstorm and people began to leave the Park very quickly. Park staff responsible for directing traffic quickly lost control of the situation. Staff have met with the Durham Regional Police to discuss what happened and what can be done to prevent this in the future. Both staff and Inspector Smith have spoken to the organizers of the Club Carib, the owner of Cedar Park, Mr. Jukic and representatives from the Liquor Control Board about various matters concerning the event. Staff have learned the following: · No liquor permit was ever issued, although whether or not one was specifically required given the nature of the event is still unclear. The Club actively discourages their members from bringing alcohol and the Park has signs posted prohibiting alcohol in the picnic areas. .. One local resident has reported to the Regional Police that his vehicle suffered minor damage as a result of an incident related to the event. .. The event has grown far larger than anything the Club intended and the Club President has told staff that the Club will be moving their event to another location next year as they feel they have outgrown the facilities at Cedar Park. There is some hope that in doing so the event may even shrink slightly and return to a more manageable size. · The owners of the Park indicated that the events and size of the crowd this year were totally out of character with previous years. There appeared to be two separate groups. The members of the Club arrived with their families around noon and later in the day a second larger and more aggressive group arrived. This year there were people from as far away as Montreal and Windsor. .. The Park was quite upset by what happened, but state that it will not happen again next year. The Park will be constructing a large water slide and pool on the property. This will have an impact on the total available lands for large functions such as the Club's picnic. Mr. Jukic has also indicated that as a result they will be limiting the size of events such as this in future. The Regional Police have expressed a concern that some people may show up next year expecting a party. Club Carib has indicated that they will be advertising locally to advise that the picnic is not taking place at Cedar Park. Inspector Smith has stated that they will be monitoring that particular weekend as a precaution. It is part of Cedar Park's routine operation to host events of this nature. By definition, a "special event" would have to be a one time incident where special precautions must be made. The use is out of character with the regular use of the property. This raises concern over the applicability of the Municipality's Special Events Licensing By-law as it relates to the Cedar Park property. As stated previously this particular event has been held each year for over twenty-five years. The Regional Police have expressed serious reservation about laying charges in this case. - ... . # Report CD-41-98 - 3 - September 14, 1998 RECOMMENDATIONS The intent of the by-law is to ensure that when large special events are held they are done so safely. The Club Carib's President has stated that the Club will not be returning to Cedar Park next year. Given the assurances of both the Club and Mr. Jukic, it is felt that charges would not be justified in this situation. Respectfully submitted: Reviewed by: ~~ W. H. Stockwell Chief Administrative Officer PLB*LC INTERESTED PARTIES Cedar Park 6296 Cedar Park Road RR 1 BOWMANVILLE L 1 C 3K2 Club Carib 600 Wentworth Street East OSHAWA L 1 H 3V9 Attention: Ms. Lydia Francis Inspector Ross Smith, Durham Regional Police Service 16 Division BOWMANVILLE Mr. Tim Coffey C/o Tim's Rent All Ltd. 102 King Street West BOWMANVILLE