Planner II Bob Halpin said Robson has scheduled a meeting for Monday with the heads of key county departments, who were asked to turn in an assessment of the hemp festival by Friday, including potential traffic or law enforcement problems, and how festival organizers might offset them in exchange for a festival permit.
Organizer Donna Will, a medical marijuana patient who has advocated against the county's recently implemented medical marijuana regulations, has said she is determined to hold her three-day festival over Memorial Day weekend on Riverside Avenue whether the county issues her a permit or not.
At one time threatening a peaceful protest if the county denies her permit, Will recently said would get around the permit, which kicks in at 500 people or more, by holding smaller, simultaneous festivals capped at 499 people each a strategy some officials said would still be in violation of the ordinance.
Her initial estimates put attendance around 1,800 people, per day.
The lack of a permit has not stopped Will from advertising her event at whee2010.com, preparing parking spaces for 1,000 cars or booking bands and vendors.
She has also enlisted the backing of Steve Hager, Creative Director for High Times magazine, who founded the original World Hemp Expo Extravaganja.
Shutting down the festival would be impractical, Undersheriff Dennis Garton said Saturday. Jailing everyone who shows up would be impossible, so the police strategy is likely to emphasize protecting the surrounding neighborhood.
Sheriff Clay Parker, meanwhile, has scaled back his initial recommendation for 24-hour-a-day law enforcement presence at the event, asking instead for a 10-hour-a-day presence.
Will had announced her intentions months in advance, making repeated announcements at Board of Supervisors meetings.
But when talks with the Tehama District Fairground fell through and she opted to hold her event on Riverside Avenue, she stumbled across a 1970 festival ordinance the county could have used to deny her a permit, but one officials said could be considered unconstitutional by modern standards.
An updated ordinance, which bars officials from stopping an event based on its message alone, was passed by the board in April, and a requirement which would have set the festival back by 90 days was waived.
Source: Red Bluff Daily News
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