Chapel Hill Town Manager Cal Horton issued a memorandum for the Town Council's consideration Monday containing seven options for managing the 2002 Halloween celebration. The options ranged all the way from a town-sponsored event to total elimination of the festivities.
The town will weigh each option against a set of criteria including crowd size, resource requirements and cost.
Despite last year's crowd of about half the size of the previous year, the event cost the town $23,000 more. Council member Pat Evans cited "less need for town expenditures" as one of a few reasons why the town is considering revamping the event.
Last year's plan to limit the size of the crowd and the amount of traffic entering the downtown area was successful in those areas but also created other problems. "The business community expressed major concerns, especially restaurants, complaining that their patrons' access was limited due to the road closures," Evans said.
One option proposes that the town could sponsor a festival similar to Apple Chill or Festifall on Halloween night. Another option suggests town sponsorship of an Octoberfest.
If chosen, the events would be set up in the downtown business district of Franklin Street. "We would like Halloween returned to the community," Evans said. "The people in our community have a right to feel that their property is safe and so are they when they walk down the street."
Evans said the council is looking to not only protect its citizens but also the well-being of visitors who come to the town on Halloween evening.
The report does raise concerns that if the town attempted to eliminate the event that it would "likely lead to numerous arrests, injuries and property damage" as a result of public backlash.
One option would use the same management plan used last year, while another would reinstate the plan used before 2001. A similar option would add some traffic and crowd control regulations to the pre-2001 plan. Attempting to relocate the event from the downtown area to Homestead Park, Kenan Stadium and other locations is another of the options the town has developed.
