By Donald Wittkowski
Organizers of special events held in parks or on other public property in Sea Isle City will be required to meet new regulations designed to improve safety and security.
The regulations are contained in an ordinance introduced by City Council at its July 24 meeting. The measure is scheduled for a public hearing and final vote when Council meets on Aug. 14.
One of the major requirements in the ordinance is that organizers will have to submit an application for a city permit at least 180 days prior to holding their event. They will also be required to supply a litany of background information about themselves and the event in the application.
The city will have the right to deny a permit. An applicant could appeal to the mayor within five days of being denied for a final decision on the permit, the ordinance says.
City Solicitor Paul Baldini explained that the 180-day requirement will give Sea Isle’s Department of Community Services plenty of time to review the permit to determine if stepped-up security would be needed for the event. It would be particularly important for large events having at least 1,000 people, he noted.
“This ordinance is really designed to capture bigger events and comply with the new requirements,” Baldini said.
Events of 1,000 people or more will be scrutinized by Sea Isle’s police chief and would also have to comply with any recommendations from the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, the ordinance says.
Excursion Park, the centerpiece location for Sea Isle’s concerts, festivals and other family-friendly entertainment, is a popular setting for large public events.
Baldini said a classic example of how Sea Isle already collaborates with the organizers of a large event is the city’s Polar Bear Plunge, an annual attraction that draws tens of thousands of visitors to town in February for a weekend of partying, dining and shopping – topped off by a chilly dip in the ocean.
“So, this will happen with other events now,” Baldini said of the new regulations.
Depending on the event, temporary or permanent security measures could be put in place to improve public safety, Baldini noted. He mentioned the possibility of installing bollards, metal posts that protect people from ramming attacks by a vehicle.
Cars and trucks have been used in a series of deadly terror attacks in the United States, Canada and Europe. Eight people were killed and a dozen injured when a suspected terrorist rammed a rented pickup truck into pedestrians and bikers in New York City last year.
“Sea Isle doesn’t want it to be us,” Baldini said, alluding to the New York attack.
Baldini said Sea Isle has not been the target of any threats. The new regulations are in line with security protocol established for special events by the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security and Preparedness, he added.
The State Police have already proved invaluable in helping Sea Isle and other small towns in New Jersey plan for big events, Baldini said.
Sea Isle’s new ordinance will allow the city to have the organizers reimburse it for additional costs that are needed for “maintaining the general health, safety and welfare of attendees or participants in the special event or the community in general,” according to the language.
With its new ordinance, Sea Isle is joining with other towns in New Jersey that are just starting to tighten their security and safety requirements for special events.
“We’re on the cutting edge of this,” Baldini said.
Sea Isle is modeling its ordinance on similar safety requirements put in place by Ventnor, a shore town in Atlantic County, he said.
