Two residents who live near the intersection of Danielle Place and Bicknell Road came to listen to the discussion, which touched on cul-de-sacs, proposed petting zoos and events that last more than three days.

Although no decisions were made, a special event is tentatively defined as "a parade, march, procession, motorcade, footrace, fair, exhibition, ceremony, art show, program, celebration or other public assemblage of people ... involving the complete or partial use or closure of any public highway, street, alley, sidewalk or other public property in the city to normal vehicular or pedestrian traffic"—funeral processions excepted.

Highlights of the proposed regulations include a special event application that has to be filed with the city 30 days prior; approval by the police department, fire department, city building official and planning director; liability insurance paid by the applicant; and possible conditions of approval. A $250 cleaning deposit for each application is also in the proposed regulations.

"The goal of this is to limit the impact on our streets and on our sidewalks," said city attorney Kirsten Powell on May 20. Whether or not the event is actually on a sidewalk or street, what matters is if it affects any public right of way, Powell said.

Council members raised the issue of specific uses; Mayor David Baxter wondered if a block party could be exempt from the regulations, while Councilman Curtis Wright mentioned the Great Race. City Manager Brian Loventhal also asked Powell about a hypothetical situation in which someone wanted to close off a street to hold an antiwar protest.

Powell said, however, the ordinance cannot distinguish or discriminate among uses. But Powell did say, "We can exempt certain groups from the fees if they have a need."

Councilman Mark Brodsky suggested that only events lasting more than 72 consecutive hours should require a permit.

But Vice Mayor Erin Garner disagreed, saying it made no difference to him whether an event was "half an hour or 100 days."

"The most compelling argument to me in favor of this is the child pedestrian safety issue," Garner said. "We go further and further into this and we isolate certain cases more and more."

The council directed city staff to investigate matters such as a time limit and location of the event and re-examine the ordinance at a future meeting. Baxter urged staff to differentiate between events that impact a major thoroughfare and events that cause the closure of a residential street.

According to Powell, the city's idea is to handle events without a permit as a misdemeanor crime; the person responsible for the event can be cited. In cases such as block parties, where there is no single responsible person, the city can cite everyone involved in the planning of the party.