Casar to move on Fun Fun Fun Fest resolution

City Council Member Greg Casar announced during a work session on Tuesday that he intends to move forward with a resolution on Thursday’s Council agenda related to this year’s Fun Fun Fun Fest. It would direct city staff to enter into negotiations to allow festival organizers Transmission Events to temporarily use a limited part of a designated off-leash dog park at the newly renovated Vic Mathias Shores, formerly known as Auditorium Shores, while leaving a portion of the area open to the public for trail and water access. “I really did try, on this resolution, to hone in on one very specific issue … to relieve some of the issues that we have to deal with, with bigger policy problems,” Casar said. Some of the larger issues that Council discussed were parkland use for major events, parking issues near large events and making sure that multiple large events aren’t scheduled on the same weekend in the same vicinity – as is the case for the Nov. 6-8 time slot. “It seems like the easiest solution, just for this year, for this one occasion where we really do have a moving target, is to grant that level of flexibility,” Casar continued. “I hope that Council on Thursday, really, we can hone in (on) the very specifics of this year.” Parks and Recreation Department staff and Transmission Events staff have been in communication about the festival since March. The resolution would also direct staff to “determine the feasibility of entering into a multiyear agreement with Transmission Events that will consider the acreage needs of the festival at Auditorium Shores for future use.” Though a previous version of the resolution directed staff to explore a multiyear agreement for the future, that is no longer the case in the current resolution.