PORT TOWNSEND — The state Parks and Recreation Commission has incorporated some flexibility into the requirements for Discover Pass use, but the change came too late to save a popular East Jefferson County annual event.
The pass, introduced in July 2010, was modified by the Legislature in March to allow use by more than one vehicle owned by the same motorist.
And a resolution approved Thursday lets event planners and concessionaires negotiate fees to use the park, rather than being charged an arbitrary one based on the number of cars expected.
But organizers of the Brinnon ShrimpFest announced in October that it was taking the year off in 2012, partly because of the state’s levying of nearly $4,000 in parking fees that would wipe out profits for the May event at Dosewallips State Park.
A new measure passed by the commission at a meeting at Fort Worden State Park last Thursday would have allowed the Brinnon organizers to negotiate a use fee based on what they could afford measured against what it costs the park to accommodate the event.
“It is in our own best interest to come to an agreement with the public as long as we don’t lose money on an event,” said Property Management Program Manager Steve Hahn.
“Even if it costs us money in one area, we will go ahead if it has the potential for us to earn money in other areas.”
Under the new regulation, park directors have the ability to negotiate any agreement.
If a compromise cannot be reached, Hahn said he will step in personally to seek a solution.
Rep. Steve Tharinger, D-Sequim, spoke during the public comment period of last Thursday’s meeting to urge the commission to take a longer view with regard to the pass requirement.
“We need to make this pass more customer-friendly,” he said.
“To use the number of Discover Passes you would sell to everyone who comes to a particular event is inappropriate,” he said. “It needs to be cost-based.
“It can also be a loss leader,” Tharinger added.
“You let people into the parks without a pass on certain occasions, and it brings them into the area.
“With the ShrimpFest, it would bring them into the Hood Canal area, it would bring them into Brinnon and they will bring money into the economy.”
Brinnon ShrimpFest organizer Joy Baisch, who was not at the meeting, said later that the absence of the ShrimpFest this year will have an adverse effect on the economy, although she hopes that the smaller “Taste of Brinnon” event planned for Memorial Day will take up the slack.
Baisch said she hoped to negotiate with State Parks to return the ShrimpFest to Dosewallips State Park in 2013.
In 2011, the commission ruled that anyone attending an event booked prior to June 1, 2011, would be exempt from Discover Pass requirements, along with concessionaire staff and customers.
These exemptions have expired and were replaced by the new directive, which allows negotiation of costs.
This negotiation will take place for the upcoming summer events at Fort Worden State Park that are planned by Centrum, including the Fiddle Tunes, Jazz Festival and Acoustic Blues Festival.
Prior to the decision, Centrum Executive Director John MacElwee submitted a written statement that said “Discover Pass requirement (for every attendee) would most certainly have a chilling effect on attendance and would . . . result in less revenue for the park.”
Another component of the new policy deals with concessions that are on park grounds, and allows them to purchase specific parking spots for customers and staff that are exempt from the Discover Pass at a cost of $800 a month.
This also can be negotiated, Hahn said.
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
