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Home My WebLink AboutCAO 16-12 Cirr co s Report to ='� r Executive Committee PICKERING Report Number: CAO 16-12 Date: October 9, 2012 From: Paul Bigioni Director, Corporate Services & City Solicitor Subject: Liquor Licence Act— Special Occasion Permit - Events that are deemed as Events of "Municipal Significance" - File: S-4000 Recommendation: 1. That Council delegate authority to the City Clerk to consider requests and, if appropriate, to deem events as "events of municipal significance" under the Liquor Licence Act (Ontario), as amended; and 2. That the attached Procedure entitled "Special Occasion Permits — Public Events of Municipal Significance" be adopted. Executive Summary: On June 1, 2011, the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) streamlined three former categories of Special Occasion Permits (Fundraisers, Significant Events and Community Events) into a single "Public Event" category. The Public Event category allows the permit holder to conduct an event where members of the public are invited and where alcohol may be sold for profit. Under the new guidelines, an applicant who applies for a Special Occasion Permit for a Public Event and requires municipal designation must obtain a letter from the municipality as part of the application process. A municipal designation may take the form of a resolution of Council or a letter from Council's authorized designate. At present, the City Clerk issues all letters to the AGCO for Special Occasion Permits for events of municipal significance in the City of Pickering. With the new guidelines in place, a resolution of Council designating the City Clerk as the authority to deem an event as municipally significant is required. Also, the possibility of future requests for events of municipal significance could increase, so staff recommend that the attached Procedure regarding events of municipal significance be approved. This will avoid the need for Council approval of each and every such Special Occasion Permit application. Financial Implications: No financial implications. 83 Report CAO 16-12 October 9, 2012 Page 2 Discussion: With the new category for Special Occasion Permits, Ontario municipalities have seen additional requests from applicants to deem their events as events of municipal significance. The City of Pickering has about 6 events each year that are typically designated as events of municipal significance. In preparation for any new requests, the City should adopt a Procedure and should also officially appoint the City Clerk as Council's designate for approving such events. Municipal Designation Under the AGCO guidelines, in order for certain types of public events to take place a designation by the municipality must be made stating that the event is of"municipal significance". • A registered charity, non-profit association or organization for the advancement of charitable, educational, religious or community objects may take out a Public Event Special Occasion Permit, and no municipal designation is required. Businesses and organizations that are not registered charities may also be issued a Public Event Special Occasion Permit, however in such cases, the event must first be designated by the municipality as one of "municipal significance" or it must be designated by the Registrar of Alcohol and Gaming as one of provincial, national or international significance. A municipal designation may take the form of a resolution of Council or a letter from Council's authorized designate, on municipal letterhead and stating that the municipality deems the event as one that is significant for the community. It should be noted that a municipality is not under any obligation to provide a designation to an applicant for a Public Event Special Occasion Permit. In order to be consistent with the approval process for municipally significant events, it is important that the City have set criteria in place. A Procedure describing guidelines to deem an event "significant" has been developed (Attachment 1). If this report and the recommendations it contains are adopted, the decision by the Clerk would be made in accordance with this Procedure. Attachments: 1. Special Occasion Permits — Public Events of Municipal Significance Procedure • 84 Report CAO 16-12 October 9, 2012 Page 3 Prepared By: Approved/Endorsed By: 92 , Debbie Shields Paul Bigio City Clerk Director, ••rp. ate Services & City Solicitor DS:ks Recommended for the consideration of Pickering City Council a /SO::/- -- �f 251 Z012 Tony Prevedel, P.Eng. �J Chief Administrative Officer 85 Report CAO 16-12 October 9, 2012 Page 4 • C1tt` o� S A�"1"ACHt I €�la; .,� �u REPQRT CAQ �6_,%ity Procedure. 141; � PICKERING Procedure Title: Procedure Number: Special Occasion Permits — Public Events of Municipal ADM *** Significance Reference: Date Originated: Date Revised: Liquor Licence Act August 23, 2012 Month, Date, Year Approval: Chief Administrative Officer Point of.Contact: City Clerk Procedure Objective To set guidelines for deeming events to be of municipal significance for the purpose of applying for an Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) Special Occasion Permit (SOP). As of June 1, 2011 there have been changes to Regulation 389/91 under the Liquor Licence Act pertaining to the Special Occasion Permit program. •A new type of special occasion — "Public Event" — replaces three types of special occasions. (Fundraisers, Significant Event, Community Event) for which a Special Occasion Permit may be issued. A Public Event is one which is conducted by a registered charity or not for profit entity or an event of municipal, provincial, national or international significance. In order to be eligible for a Special Occasion Permit, Public Events which are not conducted by a registered charity or not for profit entity must be designated as an event of municipal significance by the municipality in which the event is to take place. 01 Procedures 01.01 Applicants, who wish to request that the City of Pickering deem their event. to be of municipal significance must submit a written letter to the City Clerk with the following information: • Organization's name • Address • Contact person • Date of the event • Reason why the Organization believes their event should be deemed "significant". • 86 Report CAO 16-12 October 9, 2012 Page 5 01.02 Applications must be submitted 45 days prior to the date of the event if estimated attendance at the event is fewer than 5,000 people per day, and 75 days prior to the event if estimated attendance at the event is 5,000 or more people per day. These timelines allow the City sufficient time to circulate the request to the appropriate departments and for the applicant to meet AGCO timelines. 01.03 All submissions for requesting the Municipality to approve an event as "municipally significant" must follow all of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission guidelines and any additional guidelines established by the Municipality. 01.04 In case of changes made to permit areas or to the event after the permit is issued (such as a change in location, a change in date, event type, etc.), the permit holder must notify the Municipality and the AGCO immediately and apply for a new permit. 02 Event Designation 02.01 What is a Public Event A Public Event Special Occasion Permit as defined in the Alcohol and Gaming Commission guidelines can be issued: • To a registered charity under the Income Tax Act (Canada); • To a non-profit organization or association organized to promote charitable, educational, religious or community objects; • For an event of provincial, national or international significance; or • For an event designated by a municipal council as an event of municipal significance. 02.02 An event of municipal significance requires a municipal resolution or a letter from a delegated municipal official designating the event as municipally significant. 02.03 The City of Pickering Council or its delegate may designate the following events as "significant" in order for applicants to apply for an AGCO Special Occasion Permit: • Events that benefit the entire community and have a significant community profile; 87 Report CAO 16-12 October 9, 2012 Page 6 • A community celebration of special importance that will benefit the entire community; or. • Events where the public gather to participate in athletic, social, religious, cultural, recreational, educational programs or one with other community objectives. 02.04 Tradeshows and other commercial events will not be designated as "significant" events, and these proponents are encouraged to partner with a non-profit charitable organization or third party in order to obtain a Special Occasion Permit. 03 General 03.01 Where events are held on Municipal Property, organizations must follow all AGCO regulations and any additional requirements which may be imposed as conditions of the municipally approved permit. 03.02 A municipality is not under any obligation to provide a designation to an applicant for a Public Event Special Occasion Permit. 03.03 While a particular event may receive a designation from a municipality, the AGCO Registrar ultimately decides if the necessary criteria have been met in order for a permit to be issued. 03.04 Council has delegated to the City Clerk the authority to designate an event as "significant". 88