Title
High Times Productions & Mateel Community Center, Inc.
Reggae on the River 2019 - 2022 Concert Events
Conditional Use Permit & Special Permit Modification and Review of 2018 post-event Annual Report
Application Number PLN-2019-15401
Assessor’s Parcel Number(s): (APN’s) 033-271-005, 033-271-007-000
Cooks Valley area
A modification to an approved Special Event Use Permit authorizing annual operation of the Reggae on the River Music Festival, a three-day event held each year from Friday through Sunday during the first weekend of August. Pursuant to annual requirements of the permit, the Planning Commission will also be reviewing the 2018 Post-Event Monitoring Report, which was prepared by the applicant and circulated to various agencies in January. The applicant proposes to continue conducting the event consistent with festival attendance levels authorized for previous years, which limit daily attendance to a maximum of 9,000 persons (6,500 ticket holders and 2,500 staff, performers and others). In 2018, the Mateel Community Center signed a contract with High Times Productions, who have assumed primary responsibility for management and operation of the event, beginning with last year’s festival. Authorization of the following permit modifications is currently requested: 1. Parking of up to 2,500 vehicles at the County Line Ranch (formerly Dimmick), instead of using previously authorized off-site parking areas at Benbow and Richardson Grove RV Park and Campground; 2. Erection of a stage and Late Night Music Area at Center Beach operating from midnight to 4am during each night of the festival; and 3. Establishment and operation of a cannabis vending and consumption area (Cannabis Village), pursuant to section 314-55.4.10.4 of Humboldt County Code, which authorizes Temporary Special Events of this sort. Sales and consumption of Alcohol or Tobacco will be prohibited within the Cannabis Village and access to this area would be restricted to persons 21 years of age or older. A Special Permit authorizes annual placement of a temporary flat-car bridge across the South Fork of the Eel River, to provide for access to the festival grounds by vehicles and pedestrians. Potable Water for the festival is primarily provided from an on-site well which is pumped (prior to May 15th) into a series of tanks totaling 100,000 gallons, where it is treated and stored. Supplemental potable water is also available from nearby community services districts. Stored water from a 780,000 gallon rainwater catchment pond is primarily used for irrigation of grass in the concert bowl, road compaction, and dust abatement. Sewage disposal for the events is provided by portable toilets and an on-site greywater system. The same traffic control measures are proposed along Highway 101 as in previous years.
Recommendation
A) Adopt the Addendum to the Supplemental Environmental Impact Report, make all of the required findings, based on evidence in the staff report and public testimony, and approve the modification to the conditional use permit and special permit as described in the Agenda Item Transmittal subject to the recommended conditions by adopting Resolution of Approval A in the staff report, and
B) Make all of the required findings, based on evidence in the staff report and public testimony, and approve the Annual Report for the 2018 event and set the attendance level for the 2019 event at 9,000 total attendees subject to the recommended conditions by adopting the attached Resolution of Approval B.