Festival district idea advances

Saturday, March 5, 2011

A festival district could very well be coming to Jefferson City and much sooner than some may have anticipated.

Read additional details in our newspaper or e-Edition. Newspaper subscribers: Click on an e-Edition article and log in using your current account information at no extra charge. For e-edition help, e-mail circ@newstribune.com. Click here to purchase the full version of archived articles.

Less than three months after the ad hoc committee on the Revitalization of Old Town made the suggestion for a festival district, an ordinance making it a reality is close to review by the City Council.

A festival district would allow a group to seek a permit for a specific date and within the downtown district, and it would allow alcohol to be consumed on public streets and sidewalks in that zone. Approval or rejection of the permit would be at the discretion of city staff.

City attorney Nathan Nickolaus presented a revised bill to create a festival district at the Public Safety Committee meeting Friday afternoon. There were several differences between the document Nickolaus presented and the rough draft the committee reviewed during last month’s meeting.