Staff Reports
A planned non-denominational revival on Easter Weekend will be relocated across the street to the grass lot next to Cumberland Presbyterian for part of the event so the Easter Bunny can arrive following confusion on the proper procedure for reserving Lion’s Club Park.
David Hansen, local business owner and event organizer, told the Jefferson City Council he contacted Jefferson Tourism Board employee Zach Baldwin at the first of March to ask what needed to be done to reserve the park for the event.
“I’d like to get some clarification on a couple of reserved placards I received from the City for putting on an event at Lion’s Club Park on April 8. It’s called The Gathering on the Grass,” Hansen said. “It’s a revival where we’re going to be reading the Bible out of John in its entirety. Every 15 minutes we’re going to take a break and sing a praise and worship song. It’s going to take several hours. There’s going to be free food and local preachers are going to setup tables to be available for counseling or to talk about anything. The three churches up on the park, the Presbyterian, the Episcopal and the Methodist are all opening their doors for this event.”
Hansen said he received the placards on March 6 and, “proceeded with getting the word out.”
He said he was told an event application was not needed to hold the event at Lion’s Park by Baldwin.
Sharon Goolsby, representing First Baptist Church, which is sponsoring the event, submitted an event application to the City on March 8 or 9, according to City Secretary Melissa Boyd. It was placed on Tuesday night’s agenda for approval.
“This Easter egg hunt began probably about 2000 when there was a very active ministerial alliance,” Goolsby said. “We never closed the park. We divided the park into sections. At some point prior to COVID the egg-hunt stopped. I called the city and got the application and filled it out and turned it in. I was completely unaware of the other event… It’s not going to work have a bunch of adults mixed in with our kids. When you have a citywide event and are expecting a lot of people to be there, is the city not going to require [an event permit]? I turned in an application because I thought that’s what I thought I was supposed to do.”
Jefferson Mayor Rob Baker commented on the confusion.
“To the best of my knowledge, it’s a city park and we don’t reserve the entire park for any event that’s there,” Baker said. “We don’t close the park for other events as such and asked if y’all could work something out. I was told that couldn’t be done but I don’t know the details on that.”
Goolsby said she was just trying to comply with the requirements for a city-wide event.
Baker reminded Goolsby about fully complying with the requirements for the application, “If we want to go by the rules, it would have needed to be submitted nine months ago.”
According to the application cover letter, events happening between April 1 and June 30 must be submitted by December 1.
Council members discussed various options to accommodate both events at the park, suggesting both events shorten their times.
Hansen said he was willing to adjust his event to start at 1 p.m. Goolsby was reluctant to alter the egg hunt due to logistics in food and bounce houses but said if they, “needed to move it, they’d move it.”
Baker countered.
“It’s hard to tell one event not to have their event when one has a permit,” he said. “It’s a pretty big park with open areas.”
Alderman Richard Turner also commented.
“When you turn in a special event application and it says Lions Club Park, it’s pretty inclusive,” Turner said. “We have an event application in front of us for the easter egg hunt but not for the other.”
Turner also said Baldwin, “has no authority to reserve an event” and Council needs to address the issue.
Baker said the issues surrounding events in Jefferson are part of a planned Town Hall meeting, and this type of issue needs to be added to that meeting. A date for the Town Hall has not been set.
Baker asked council for a motion with the caveat the event go from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Turner moved to accept the application as submitted and Alderman Jim Finstrom seconded. Council approved the application 4-2 with aldermen April Taylor Johnson and Robin Moore voting against “as written.”
Moore and Johnson were in favor of a compromise on times.
“Thank y’all for working together,” Johnson said.