Bike Week and Biketoberfest possible rule changes have sparked anger

Yahoo

19-02-2025

DAYTONA BEACH — Many of the 100 or so people who attended a public meeting Monday night to discuss possible Bike Week and Biketoberfest rule changes showed up agitated and didn't leave in a much better mood.
Raising fees businesses pay during the two annual biker events, allowing people to park in residential areas during the rallies, permitting tattoo artists to set up temporary operations during the biker parties – none of it was making the meeting attendees happy.
"The fees are going to kill me," said George St. Pierre, the longtime owner of Jungle George's souvenir shop on the east end of Main Street near the ocean. "I don't make a ton of money on that corner."
Nothing was decided at the meeting held inside the Peabody Auditorium theater. The gathering was held to share rule change ideas that local residents and business owners had suggested after the city government had asked for suggestions at the end of last year.
The City Commission will hold a meeting soon to discuss proposed changes to what property owners can and can't do during Bike Week and Biketoberfest, but they won't vote at that meeting. They probably won't make any final decisions until at least April or May.
The earliest new parameters could be in place would be for Biketoberfest in October. Any changes would not be in effect for this year's Bike Week, which begins Feb. 28.
Several proposed changes angered Main Street business owners and beachside residents throughout the nearly two-hour meeting that was slated to last only one hour.
Some were also irritated that they only found out about the meeting at the last minute, and just by happenstance in a few cases. They accused city officials of not advertising the meeting well enough and early enough.
The city had the meeting listed on its weekly notices over a week ago, but some who didn't see that suspected the city was trying to hide the meeting from the public.
Robert Ellis, who owns Victory Tattoo on Main Street, said if more people had heard about the meeting, the Peabody theater would have been full Monday night.
The proposal to allow parking within a one-mile radius of Main Street during Bike Week and Biketoberfest sparked some of the strongest pushback from residents. Beachside resident John Nicholson said no one would walk from University Boulevard or Silver Beach Avenue to get to Main Street.
Inessa Hansen, owner of One Sexy Biker Chick on Main Street, questioned if the expansion of parking into residential areas during the events was intended to get rid of parking on Main Street. Hansen said the idea to expand parking so many blocks in all directions "is ridiculous," and would lead to more motorcycle thefts if the bikes move away from the Main Street corridor where police are concentrated.
Tracey Remark has lived north of Seabreeze Boulevard for 33 years, and she remembers when biker event attendees were allowed to park in residential areas. When people came back for their motorcycles and cars at the end of the night, they were often drunk and loud, she said.
Getting a police officer to respond during the event can take about two hours, Remark said.
Ellis, who has run his Main Street tattoo shop for eight years, doesn't believe there is a beachside parking problem.
"Why are we even talking about parking?" asked Ellis, who's chairman of the city's Beachside Redevelopment Board. "We have the Ocean Center lot, and if needed we could get a dedicated parking garage."
The county government controls the Ocean Center parking lot.
Rose Askew, a project manager with the city's Economic and Strategic Opportunities Department, led Monday night's meeting from a podium on the Peabody stage. Askew said the expanded parking into residential areas is an idea to address complaints about the lack of parking.
Askew also heard complaints from established local tattoo businesses, whose owners said tattoo artists from out of town who do shoddy work will steal their business and ruin Daytona Beach's reputation for quality tattoos if those visiting artists are allowed to set up only during Bike Week and Biketoberfest.
Losing that special event revenue would really hurt businesses, the Daytona owners said.
"You're going to have businesses shut down," Ellis said. "It's a slap in the face of businesses that are here year-round. Our brick-and-mortar businesses have worked hard to build a community."
The idea to raise fees for the first time in years also didn't go over well. Other proposed changes Askew listed were allowing indoor itinerant vendors, and allowing businesses to expand their outdoor Bike Week and Biketoberfest activities from 500 square feet to 900 square feet.
Another idea is to allow businesses to expand the types of products they sell during the events.
Askew said the city is trying to have the same rules across all Bike Week and Biketoberfest venues so something allowed in one area isn't prohibited in another.
Askew invited anyone with comments on the biker event rules to email her at [e-mail].
You can reach Eileen at [e-mail]
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Bike Week and Biketoberfest possible rule changes spark anger