Sussex County is looking to clarify an ordinance that defines what a special event is and could cap the number that certain sites can hold.
The proposed ordinance focuses on events like carnivals, races and rodeos held at sites where they don’t normally take place.
Sussex County would set a cap on the number of events properties could have in a given year without seeking additional zoning approval.
Christian Hudson owns Hudson Fields in Milton, which holds many youth athletic tournaments and some concerts each year. He’s not happy about possible changes.
"It would completely shut down our ability to serve the community," Hudson said. "It would shut us down entirely."
But Sussex County officials say they’re not interested in regulating all events held in the county. County Administrator Todd Lawson says the focus is on noisier events with lots of people and traffic.
"What if there's someone who gets hurt? Or what if there's a need for security or traffic issues?" he said. "Those kind of factors would weigh in on whether the county should be involved or not."
He continued, "We're not trying to have a one-size fits all application here. It's really building in some discretion so the hope is it's an easy process only for the events that would be required to come through a process."
Longstanding events that have historically been held at their sites would not be impacted, Lawson said. He cited the Nanticoke Indian Tribe's annual powwow as an example.
The county deferred a vote on the ordinance last week after several hours of public comments. They’re taking additional comments before holding another meeting on the proposal next month.
