PONCHATOULA — A proposed ordinance that would have restricted the number of people allowed to gather at Ponchatoula parks during the Strawberry Festival was removed from at a recent Ponchatoula City Council agenda.
City Councilman Melvin Toomer expressed concern that the ordinance unfairly targeted parks and areas where the Black community has historically gathered during the annual festival.
Ponchatoula Police Chief Bry Layrisson requested that council members remove the agenda item Monday night, opting instead to enforce an existing ordinance.
Layrisson explained that the original proposal did not specify a limit on the number of people allowed to gather and was never intended to single out any particular group. However, he believed withdrawing it was in the city’s best interest. The ordinance, he said, was designed to help law enforcement manage the estimated 200,000 visitors expected during the festival weekend.
“The original intent was to try to minimize significant crowds coming from out of town. It was never intended to restrict our local residents from using our parks,” Layrisson said. “We’ve had gatherings of over 500 people in the past, mainly out-of-town individuals, and we’re just trying to control that the best we can with the limited resources that we have.”
For the 2017 Strawberry Festival, Layrisson’s department had 35 police officers and 10 volunteer officers. This year, he expects to have only 25 officers and, at most, one or two volunteers.
Despite these staffing challenges, Layrisson noted that state police, the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office, and other law enforcement agencies from across the state and North Shore would assist with festival security.
Instead of the proposed ordinance, law enforcement will enforce an existing rule requiring groups of 50 or more people to obtain a special events permit.
“We already have an ordinance in effect that any crowd of 50 or more at a public park has to request a special events permit through the police department,” Layrisson explained.
City Councilman Melvin Toomer said he was glad the ordinance was pulled, arguing that it lacked legal standing in the first place.
“We’re protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution and the right of people to peaceably assemble, and he couldn’t stop that,” Toomer said. “Plus, that’s a public park, it’s not private.”
Increased security measures
Following the New Year’s Day terrorist attack on Bourbon Street, Layrisson said security at this year’s festival would be heightened, with barricades placed at busy intersections and surveillance drones monitoring the event.
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“We’ll be bringing in steel barricades that we’ve never had before to prevent vehicles from being able to get through certain intersections, Layrisson said. “We’ll be blocking off many intersections that, in the past, just had aluminum barricades. We’ll be blocking those off with police vehicles, fire vehicles, and command buses.
“There’s going to be a lot more physical security this year. Hopefully, there’ll be an officer on every block that you come across because their presence is what keeps us safe.”
The Strawberry Festival is scheduled for April 11-13 and will celebrate its 53rd year at Ponchatoula Memorial Park.
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