Lazaro Aleman
ECB Publishing, Inc.
County officials are expected to act in the coming weeks to lift the ban that they imposed on gatherings of 50 or more people about a year ago to combat the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
County Attorney Scott Shirley recommended the lifting of the ban to the Jefferson County Commission at its last meeting on Thursday evening, April 1.
“My opinion, based on the limited number of new cases being reported on COVID-19, is that it seems justified to lift the restriction, but include a proviso that residents still need to comply with the CDC guidelines,” Shirley said.
According to the last report of the Florida Department of Health, Jefferson County had recorded 1,434 cases of COVID-19 and 27 deaths as of April 9. And it had recorded 13 new cases in the last 21 days, making for a two-percent positivity rate. At that point also, 4,092 local residents had been vaccinated.
Shirley promised to have a draft resolution for commissioners to consider at their next or the following meeting. The resolution, he said, would spell out the reasons for the lifting of the ban.
Compelling the ban’s removal are several factors, including the decreasing number of COVID-19 cases, the accelerating speed of the vaccinations and the mounting pressure that is being brought to bear on commissioners for the lifting of the ban from event organizers, who say that the restriction is proving a financial burden to them.
The ban is specifically tied to the temporary use permit, which is issued for brief periods to organizers of large gatherings such as festivals, concerts, and the like that are typically held in rural, non-commercially zoned areas and that have the potential to disturb neighboring property owners.
The permit is limited to six events per year, prohibits noisemaking between the hours of 10 p.m. and 7 a.m., and requires that the permit bearer keep the noise to a reasonable level so that it doesn’t disturb neighbors.
Enforcement of the noise level, however, has been spotty at best, judging from the complaints that officials not infrequently hear from neighboring property owners.
The problem, Commissioner J. T. Surles said, was one that the board needed to confront head-on.
“We have to stop tiptoeing around this,” he said, referring to noise complaints. “We have to think of the neighbors. It’s something that needs to be said. We need to take a stand and not walk on eggshells. They (event organizers) need to consider the neighbors. If not, they need get a commercial property.”
The Planning Commission, in fact, is schedule to take up the issue next month. It will be the planners’ task to recommend language to the current ordinance that will strengthen its enforcement aspect, including the addition of penalties for violations.
Some of the additional proposals floated at the recent commission meeting included requiring that organizers submit a security plan to the Sheriff’s Office prior to any such event and requiring that these individuals hire deputies to monitor the traffic and for crowd control if attendance exceeds a certain number.
Commissioner Betsy Barfield also wanted assurance that going forth that organizers of such events would be collecting the appropriate taxes, including the sales and tourist development taxes.
“I want to be fair to the property owners and their commercial interest,” Barfield said. “But they need to do what’s right, and their neighbors also deserve quiet.”