A proposal making its way through the Denver City Council would establish the Office of Special Events as a city agency, allowing the office to permit and collect application fees for special events.

The proposal was approved by the council business committee Wednesday and will be considered by the full council in the coming weeks.

The Office of Special Events handles the coordination and approval of around 700 events, photo shoots and film productions on public property annually in Denver. As it is now, the office can’t issue special event permits, office member Katy Strascina said.

Currently, the city asks event planners to apply and meet the requirements for special event permits, but they don’t have the enforcement capability of the permits, Strascina.

“The special event profile for Denver is growing. Events are getting more complex, exciting, interesting, more people are attending,” Strascina said. “The industry standard is to have a special event permit and that is something we believe we are ready to create and enforce.”

By making the office a city agency, it would be granted the power to issue and enforce special event permits. With those permits would come a new event application fee.

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The application fee would be between $25 and $250 based on event attendance. Strascina said average event applications would cost around $75. The fees would pay for processing costs and limit applications submitted for events that don’t happen, saving time and resources, Strascina said.

The fee would double if applicants submit applications or permit requirements late, within 60 days of the event.

If the proposal is passed, the fee would not go into effect until September 2022 for events being held in 2023, allowing time to notify Denver residents about the new charges and plan for budget impacts, Strascina said.

During the public feedback process, event organizers were opposed to the fees; however, the majority of them value the centralized city process and want the office’s support, Strascina said.

Some council members also expressed concern about the fees Wednesday.

“The organizations that are holding events in my district are often cash strapped,” Councilwoman Jamie Torres said. “This isn’t a rock-and-roll marathon happening in District 3, it’s usually a church or a nonprofit that’s trying to do something.”

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Strascina said application fee waivers and discounts would be made available for qualifying events as determined by the Office of Social Equity and Innovation and the City Attorney’s Office.

The specific qualifications were not available Wednesday; however, officials said they would prioritize events “driven by the community for the community.”

In addition, events held on private property would not require the application and can still receive assistance from the Office of Special Events, Strascina said.

Strascina said allowing the office to issue special event permits would increase the safety of events, in addition to improve city workflow, close accountability gaps and make the office’s business model more sustainable.

“There are 22 city agencies that have requirements for special events,” Strascina said. “Our permit will ensure that every event has worked with every agency that they need to work with, and their requirements have been met. Therefore, we’ll have a safer event.”

The proposal was unanimously passed by the business committee. It will be presented to the full council for two final votes on Aug. 16 and Aug. 23. If passed, the new permit would go into effect on Sept. 1.