SPECIAL MEETING

July 8, 1998

The Town Council of the Town of Easton met today at 7:05 P.M. The meeting was called to order by the President with the following members present: Mr. Ford and Mr. Heinmuller. Also attending the meeting were the Mayor, Town Attorney, and Chief of Police George Harvey, Captain Spencer and Sgt. Greg Wright.

The Council discussed the background and the desire to better prepare for the future.

Everyone in the room introduced themselves and their affiliation.

The Chief briefed on activities on prior Sunday afternoon when the incident occurred.

Mrs. Clem arrived and joined the meeting at 7:12 P.M.

The Mayor suggested getting scheduling down and control the demand on police resources.

The Chief discussed the Town’s provision of resources at large events and offered suggestions concerning proof of community support for the activity. He discussed the Waterfowl Festival requirements.

Ms. Marian Blake stated that the problem was after the parade/event and that more police are needed for the Town. Ms. Blake also suggested some streets be blocked.

The Chief discussed perceptions as well as reality as concerns various issues including the initial impact following the police involved shooting.

Col. Chase, Ret., questioned how you could control the outside people from coming in. Discussion followed on this point.

The Town Attorney discussed the permit system currently in place.

Mr. Heinmuller discussed event type permits and suggested that the organization be responsible for their internal security. Mr. Heinmuller stated that the particular parade that the Elks are involved with is a great parade, especially for the kids.

The President of the Council stated that he would like the conversation to stick to generic points to benefit everybody versus Elks’ specific issues.

Mr. Charles Hines questioned statistics being specific to the Elks and stated that basic maintenance is necessary for the activity.

Mr. Ford stated that once the matter became potentially volatile, it was handled very well. The Chief stated that he felt that most people in the room were saying the same thing. Police Department’s intent is to enjoy with the rest of the people.

Mr. James Merida discussed expanding the permit process so all will know what is going on. The Chief discussed this including the addition of the suggestion that affordable sanitation units be required at various ratios. The Chief stated that the Police Department does not want to be on the outside of these activities.

Mr. Merida discussed his perception of what occurred at the Academy of the Arts and why at some times events get out of hand.

Ms. Marian Blake stated that a lot of it relates back to liquor availability at those events. Mr. Bill Banks suggested having events earlier so that there were more daylight hours so there would be a time factor for those events to cease.

Mr. Otis Sampson discussed the Elks scheduling and his observation of what occurred. Mr. Sampson stated that this is a wake up call and offered support for enhanced patrol and/or walkie-talkie type reporting by people with T-shirts or some other method to identify particular people as event officials. He stated that this was a good event and discussed the calls received and the need to work together.

Ms. Marian Blake liked the idea of blocking certain streets. She discussed the history of Sunday and generally.

Mrs. Clem discussed the attractiveness of a "uniform concept" by the organization. Mr. Sampson suggested a police escort for parades.

The Town Attorney discussed the growth of Easton and the lack of resources elsewhere for people to be involved in various activities.

Ms. Marian Blake discussed the growth in Easton and suggested the need for a bigger police department. Chief Harvey discussed the auxiliary force concept.

Ms. Carlene Phoenix discussed efforts to control by organization the things that occur at their events.

The President of the Council offered copies of the minutes to anyone who would like them.

The Town Attorney suggested that all organizations let the Police Department know what events they are having.

Mr. Kenny Camper discussed the attendance at the Dover event and how rapidly people disburse once the parade has ended. He felt this had a lot to do with controlling cars and parking in the vicinity of the event.

Ms. Joan Banks stated that they have to close their business since their parking lot is taken over during an event like this.

Mr. Heinmuller stated that he thought three things came out of the meeting. The first was an action item that a checklist needs to be developed. The second is a methodology to schedule events. The third would be a consensus that there should be people from the organization and the Town who are highly recognizable through appropriate uniforms/t-shirts or something along that line.

The President of the Council expressed appreciation to everyone for coming and for the open conversation. He welcomed anyone who would like copies of the minutes.

The Mayor reiterated that this meeting is to not look at one event but to look at aspects affecting the whole Town.

There being no further discussion, the President of the Council declared the meeting adjourned at 8:08 P.M.

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Town Clerk