2025 R32 – Major Planned Events Advocacy
- Year: 2025
- AVICC Number: R32
- UBCM Number: NR53
- Comox Valley RD
Whereas local governments, particularly in rural and remote areas, face significant logistical and resource challenges when major planned events occur within or near their jurisdiction, even when these events are outside of local government jurisdictional control and/or enforcement areas;
And whereas such events often require substantial public safety planning and emergency response efforts, yet local governments typically lack the authority to require or enforce event organizers to submit comprehensive emergency response plans, leaving local governments to bear the burden of increased public safety demands and resource strain as a result of these events without the ability to mitigate or control the associated costs:
Therefore be it resolved that UBCM request the provincial government to establish province-wide regulations to address gaps in Local Government Act bylaws and event permitting powers, ensuring local governments can recover costs for public safety and emergency services related to major planned events beyond their control, and that adequate support, coordination, and reimbursement be provided for resources used in the management and planning of these events.
- Year: 2025
- AVICC Number: R32
- Sponsor: Comox Valley RD
- Resolution Type: Provincial
- Category: Community Safety
- AVICC Decision: Endorsed
- AVICC Action: Forwarded to UBCM
- AVICC Response link
- UBCM Number: NR53
- UBCM Decision: Endorsed
- Provincial Response:Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs The Province of British Columbia has published two key documents to bring event organizers and impacted jurisdictions into dialogue when planning major events: the British Columbia Major Planned Events Guidelines 2014 and Public Health Guidelines: Major Planned Events 2017. Developed in collaboration with health and emergency responders, First Nations, municipalities and regional districts, universities, government ministries and agencies, and event organizations, these complementary documents are intended to support planning that acknowledges the impacts on local government services and enable dialogue between event organizers and the public services that they may be relying on around risk, cost, and ability to support events. Municipalities have responsibility for many aspects of public space, as well as key services like fire and police response, waste collection, and road closures, making it easier to consistently see and describe their authorities in this area. Regional districts may be less certain about their authorities in rural areas because their jurisdiction for public spaces does not include roads and service area geographies are locally specific. Through their responsibilities as local authorities under provincial emergency management legislation, however, regional districts can collaborate with neighbouring jurisdictions and the province to establish protocols for major planned events. Where service and emergency response organizations are well aligned, any first step by event organizers can lead to communication with the regional district to understand the service capacity, community impacts and costs to be borne by the organizer of a major planned event. Local governments, including in rural and remote areas, will want to balance their requirements with the positive economic and social impact of hosting events that bring the community and their region together.
- UBCM Response link
The AVICC acknowledges that we are grateful to live, work, and play on the traditional territories of theCoast Salish, Nuu-Chah-Nulth and Kwak-Waka’wakw Peoples