Controversial Saxonburg event ordinance abolished for 2023
SAXONBURG — After three tense months of public outcry, packed town halls and social media uproar, the issue of Saxonburg’s controversial proposed events ordinance has been put aside — for now.
At its monthly meeting Tuesday, Aug. 15, borough council officially voted to abolish a proposed ordinance which business owners feared would have put their livelihoods in jeopardy. Tuesday’s action made official the decision that was made at last month’s meeting, a marathon that lasted four hours and resulted in much back-and-forth between citizens and borough officials.
At last month’s meeting, the ordinance wasn’t initially on the agenda and no plans were made to discuss it, but a steady stream of public comment about the ordinance — nearly all of it negative — changed those plans.
At the suggestion of council member Carol Neubert, a motion was added to that meeting’s agenda to abolish the ordinance, which passed. Due to Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act, the council was required to ratify the abolition at the following month’s meeting, as the agenda item was added after the fact.
With the issue already decided last month, Tuesday’s meeting drew only a small fraction of the crowds that showed up for the previous three meetings. This time, only two citizens signed up for public comment, much to the visible relief of council president Aaron Piper.
Doug Sprankle — owner of Sprankle’s Neighborhood Market and organizer of the popular Sprankle’s Oktoberfest event — has been perhaps the most outspoken business owner regarding the proposed ordinance.
“I think the community showed that they again don’t want an ordinance that oppresses events,” Sprankle said Tuesday. “They want to have the possibility to be free to have events.”
Residents raised particular concern with a section of the ordinance which required event organizers to obtain a special event permit no less than four months prior to the planned start of the event. Sprankle and others argued that this would be logistically impractical and would make it impossible to run their events.
“I feel that there’s a fear of the unknown,” Sprankle said. “I feel that the lack of control will always be a fear factor in this, and that they feel that if they don’t have oversight, then the people organizing it won’t do the right thing.”
Similar event ordinances were placed before borough council in 2021 and 2022, and both of those met similar results. Sprankle is not convinced that Tuesday’s decision will mean an end to what he calls the annual “ordinance season.”
“I’d put big money on (this happening again),” Sprankle said. “I think every year, until Oktoberfest is no longer in the community, they’re going to push this ordinance.”
