The 17th annual Magic City Blues Festival is planned for August 3 through August 5, 2018 and the Billings Clinic Classic is planned for August 25, 2018.  Chapter 17, BMCC, limits the amount of noise that any activity may create, with lower limits after 8:00 p.m.  The Code allows staff to issue noise waivers for special events or circumstances.  The event organizers both applied for a noise waiver under 17-106, BMCC, requesting midnight event stop time (8/3/18, 8/4/18, and 8/25/18).  Staff approved a stop time of 11:00 p.m., which is the usual downtown, weekend time limit that was established by the special events committee in consideration of the downtown hotels and residents.  Events requesting a noise waiver beyond that time must appeal to City Council.  Because these are annual events, staff requests that the approval or denial of the requests be for a period of two years.  These annual events have been held for several years and have not received an inordinate number of noise complaints so staff is recommending approval.

City Council may:

• Approve one or both of the waiver requests, or;
• Disapprove one or both of the waiver requests.

There are no financial impacts from this action.

Staff recommends that the City Council approve noise waivers for Magic City Blues and Billings Clinic Classic with event end times of midnight for the 2018 and 2019 events.