The city's new motto, "It's easier from here," appears to be contradicted by a proposed new "Lebanon Public Events Code."

The code, if approved as drafted, will make it considerably more difficult to hold public events of many kinds in Lebanon.

The code also appears in opposition to the idea it's a good thing to have events that draw people to town and to money here.

The notion of minimum standards for events so they "protect the peace, health, safety, and welfare" of people attending events as well as surrounding neighborhoods is a good one.

The problem is how the city proposes to reach that goal. It doesn't help that some sections of the draft code don't make sense, perhaps because of typos - or perhaps not.

To put it bluntly, the proposed code appears designed to prevent events from being held.

The timeline is a big problem.

According to the draft, an event organizer must submit a written application 120 or more days before the event. Yet the city has until 30 days before to make a decision on whether the event may be held.

What is the city doing with the 90 days between?

It is not reasonable that the city requires an application four months ahead and does not have to issue a decision until the event is one month off.

Among other items, the application requires that the names, addresses and other identifying information be provided for ticket takers; musicians; vendors; bouncers; entertainers; managers, owners and producers; and possibly others.

If any of those people change, the city must be notified of the new people within 72 hours of the change.

With this requirement, the code appears to discourage volunteer-run events, which, in Lebanon, is most of them, including the Strawberry Festival and Star-Spangled Celebration.

The code as written does not include examples of the type of events it applies to, though it does provide a broad definition of event.

"Public event" or "public exhibition" is defined as "any activity where the public is permitted, or invited, to attend and where a fee is charged, or a voluntary contribution is paid, or solicited, for the privilege of attending; or any money is raised or items sold to defray the expenses of such exhibitions or events, unless exempted ...."

The draft does list a few kinds of events that are exempt from the requirements.

These are: regular supervised school events on school property; events in a permanent facility designed for the activity and the number of people expected to attend, and approved under the Lebanon Development Code; any government-sponsored event in response to an emergency or to train for an emergency; or any event regulated by Linn County as an outdoor assembly.

It's confusing that the definition of public event includes that a fee is charged or contribution requested, but later the code says that any organizer of an event, "whether or not a charge or contribution is required for admission," must get a permit.

The amount of fees is not part of the code but will be set by the City Council, which revisits all fees annually. The fee is limited "to an amount calculated to reimburse the city for its reasonable, actual and necessary costs" to process the application for a permit.

That reimbursement amount can, at times, be quite high.

Application fees are non-refundable.

The Lebanon Community Foundation, as owner of Cheadle Lake Park, will be one of the groups hardest hit by this proposed ordinance.

That leads to this question: Does the city not want the park and the events (and money) it can bring to Lebanon?

Small volunteer events, such as student groups fundraising with car washes, may be the biggest losers.

Such events seem to meet the definition of an event in the proposed ordinance, but are rarely even thought of 120 days ahead and haven't the personnel needed to do everything the code demands.

This ordinance will come before the City Council soon. We urge the Council to postpone making a decision until both the provisions of the draft code and the impact of it have been fully debated.