Despite more public opposition, the Normal Town Council on Monday unanimously passed a revised ordinance prohibiting nuisance gatherings and regulating park property.
The council in October postponed a vote on the ordinance after dozens of residents attended a meeting to air disagreements with the measure. Similar numbers attended Monday’s meeting to express their feelings that the ordinance language, while improved, was not satisfactory.
“Unfortunately, the new version being presented to the council this evening continues to miss the mark,” said Karla Bailey-Smith, speaking on behalf of the Central Illinois chapter of the ACLU.
“The new version continues to contemplate oppressive measures to address a small number of incidents. Moreover, all of the behaviors contemplated in the draft, from public consumption of alcohol and cannabis to the destruction of public or private property, already are covered by existing ordinances,” said Bailey-Smith.
The new proposal will move up nightly closing time for town parks from 11 p.m. to 9 p.m. Fines will start at $1,000 per party participant and could go as high as $5,000.
The town drafted the ordinance after a series of pop-up parties in Normal in the fall, including one where a person was shot to death at an unsanctioned gathering.
There were several changes to the ordinance from the October meeting. The minimum number of people gathering in a public space falling under the ordinance increased from three to 10. Language also is present to distinguish nuisance gatherings as a whole from individual participants.
Another change was removing a reference to music, which was previously in the ordinance before many people from Bloomington-Normal’s live music scene expressed concerns that it could negatively affect their events.
“I understand that you want to protect this community, just like myself and everyone else who has shown up to voice their opposition to this ordinance,” said Joseph Bloom, a member of the Young Democratic Socialists of America. “By proposing this as a solution to the problem you have deemed pop-up parties to be, you are ignoring the true issues at hand, while simultaneously giving our community direct evidence that you will not listen to their concerns.”
“I don't want perfect to be the enemy of the good,” said council member Karyn Smith. “I'd like to have something that can be used to first act as a deterrent, but secondly to provide a tool that will allow Normal to assure the citizens that when there are large gatherings, there is a way to prevent it from getting out of hand.”
Smart Cities
The council meeting also featured a presentation on Smart Cities technology that is designed to make for more efficient operations for a municipality.
“When we first started talking in 2019 about Smart Cities, we were being proactive,” said Vasudha Gadhiraju, the town's director of innovation and tech. “Today, we don't have a choice.”
Gadhiraju added the reason their hand is forced is because of the rise of generative artificial intelligence technology.
An example of changes being made in Normal is with a Smart City Hall. Rather than using paper to document employee onboarding, the town now saves files electronically. The change helps Normal reach sustainability goals, and reduce administrative errors. Another change is the Department of Parks and Recreation will be assessing all assets for aspects such as cleanliness or safety.
To determine progress in Normal’s Smart City journey, staff set five levels of goals. Normal was projected to be at level three, where its Smart City aspects were purposeful and repeatable. By 2025. Gadhiraju said she is “confident” they will have reached that goal.
“So this is a Smart City maturity journey that we have embraced internally, that has been an accepted tool for internal auditing for communities,” she said.
