[Chat] Mayor seeking community input on Live Entertainment Bill

Joshua Fruhlinger jfruh at jfruh.com
Wed Oct 28 18:07:51 EDT 2009


What areas in Charles Village will this bill affect?

jf

On Oct 28, 2009, at 4:12 PM, SLG2700 at cs.com wrote:

> Dear Neighbors:
>
> The Baltimore Sun at http://www.baltimoresun.com is conducting a  
> Poll of readers on whether Sheila Dixon should sign or veto the Live  
> Entertainment Bill passed by the City Council on 10/26/2009  
> expanding the use of live music in bars and restaurants near certain  
> Residential Areas.  Or you can send your comments to the Mayor c/o  
> Kristy Taylor at Kristy.Taylor at baltimorecity.gov
>
>
> The CVCA Board opposed the Bill on Second Reader back in May because  
> it failed to provide a licensing structure for the use that could be  
> closely monitored by the City. Once again the CVCA Land Use  
> Committee is recommending to the CVCA Board that it send a letter to  
> the Mayor asking her to veto the Bill as passed, even with the  
> companion bills which were introduced to make the bill stronger. If  
> the CVCA Board approves this letter,  and it looks like it will, the  
> letter will be sent to the Mayor on behalf of the CVCA.
>
> Right now the vote online is 73% in favor of the Bill and 23%  
> against. Please add your vote to the mix. Who knows how many non- 
> city residents have been voting.
>
> A summary of the Land Use Committee's proposed letter is as follows:
>
> After careful consideration by its Land Use Committee and Board of  
> Directors, the Charles Village Civic Association ("CVCA") opposes  
> City Council Bill 08-0163, the Live Entertainment Bill. This Bill is  
> a disappointing solution to the initial goal of balancing the desire  
> to expand live entertainment venues in neighborhood business  
> districts with providing sufficient enforcement mechanisms to ensure  
> that these establishments are good neighbors to the nearby  
> residential districts.
>
> Adding live entertainment as a conditional use to B1 and B2 zoning  
> areas is an insufficient attempt at striking the necessary balance  
> between the interests of businesses and their surrounding  
> residential communities. The Bill creates a burden on the  
> communities to make and pursue complaints against unruly  
> establishments instead of providing a licensing system to regularly  
> monitor these establishments. The two companion bills, which were  
> passed by the City Council in an effort to reduce this burden, do  
> not go far enough to protect the community.
>
> Currently in hearings before the BMZA, our community volunteers are  
> forced to spend hours waiting to oppose zoning applications for  
> changes in our neighborhoods that are pushed forward by the  
> applicants with little advance notice to the community. We are very  
> concerned about the possibility that Live Entertainment applications  
> will be added to that hearing list.
>
> CVCA continues to support the creation of a licensing system for  
> live entertainment venues in the City and not the abandonment of the  
> idea. We appreciate the difficulties encountered during the lengthy  
> legislative process. We ask you to veto City Council Bill #08-0163  
> so that the City Council can continue to consider a Live  
> Entertainment licensing system that would enliven Baltimore as a  
> creative and fun place to live and visit while protecting its  
> residents.
>
>
> Here is the article on the subject of Live Entertainment from  
> Tuesday's paper.
>
> --------------------
> City Council approves live-entertainment bill
> --------------------
>
> Bands, singers could perform at trendy bars, restaurants
>
> By Annie Linskey | annie.linskey at baltsun.com
>
> October 27 2009
>
> The Baltimore City Council voted Monday to allow bars and  
> restaurants in some of the city's trendiest neighborhoods to hire  
> bands, singers and other performers, overturning a decades-old  
> prohibition that City Council President Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake  
> says has stifled nightlife in town.
>
> The complete article can be viewed at:
> http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bal-md.ci.live27oct27,0,4607385.story
>
> Sharon L. Guida, Chair, CVCA Land Use Committee
> 2746 Maryland Avenue
> Baltimore, MD 21218
> 410-889-0436 (home)
> 410-467-4409 (work)
> 410-467-4410 (work fax)
> 410-960-1139 (cell)
> SLG2700 at cs.com _______________________________________________
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> Chat at charlesvillage.info
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