08 Dec, 2015

Have Your Say on the Management of Events in the Park Lands

City of Adelaide is inviting the community to have a say on the future management of Events in the Park Lands. Public consultation is open now until 18 December 2015.

The Park Lands Event Management Plan will be a single guiding document for Council, event organisers and the community and will provide clarity around the way Council manages events in the Park Lands as well as Council’s expectations of the event organisers and the community.

Acting Lord Mayor Houssam Abiad is encouraging people to give feedback on how the Council can best manage all events in the Park Lands, large, small and medium sized into the future.

“Council wants to make clear the expectations and requirements of event organisers who want to hold events in the Park Lands, to streamline the event process but we can only do this effectively with input from the community and other stakeholders,” said Houssam.

“We want to hear people’s ideas, and we want to work with people who use the Park Lands, or who have ideas for using the Park Lands in ways that benefit the whole community.

“Many of the ideas we received through the Shape Your Park Lands consultation earlier in the year have provided a good basis from which to develop the plan, and we want to grow the plan from this. Having a clear set of guiding principles will enable us to work with event organisers to put on events that fit within the guidelines.

“Shape your Park Lands responses told us they want to see more vibrancy and activity in the Park Lands in all manner of ways, and events in the Park Lands come in many shapes and sizes from a small wedding to a large event such as Carols by Candlelight or New Year’s Eve.

“The way these events are managed can impact everyone, which is why it is so important that we develop a Park Lands Event Management Plan that considers all stakeholders, including taking the safety and comfort of all visitors into consideration.

“The Plan will serve as a single one-stop-shop for Council, event organisers and the community to provide clarity around how to hold an event in the Park Lands and the requirements to do so.

“There’s no doubt that the Adelaide Park Lands are dear to the hearts of all South Australians so it is important that we get this right, for everyone who uses our beautiful green spaces,” he said.

The Park Lands Event Management Plan will include guidelines for event organisers and an improved set of maps to enable organisers to best match their event with sites available within the Park Lands.

There is a feedback form for event organisers and another for the general public, to provide input and ideas to shape the Plan log on to yoursay.cityofadelaide.com.au and follow the links.

The draft Park Lands Event Management Plan is expected to be release in March 2016.

Rebecca Draysey