Input sought on Friday the 13th motorcycle rally
Open mic night at Norfolk council Dec. 10
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The public is invited next week to have its say on recent changes to the Friday the 13th motorcycle rally in Port Dover.
“The meeting is meant to give the public a chance to provide comments on what works and what could be improved about the event, which during warm weather months can see upwards of 100,000 attendees,” Norfolk County said in a news release Monday.
Norfolk council will throw the floor open to comments at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 10.
This is the same day Norfolk council is scheduled to hear development applications and zoning change requests as part of its monthly public hearings proceedings. This portion of the meeting is scheduled to get underway at 3 p.m.
Norfolk council committed to a public hearing on Friday the 13th following the last motorcycle rally in September. The format of the September event featured significant changes in anticipation of a potentially record turnout.
Not all the changes were well-received. Some traditionalists were disappointed that pedestrians and motorcycles were segregated for the first time along a three-block stretch of Main Street.
The Norfolk OPP and Norfolk County adopted the changes in response to the record-breaking rally in July, 2018. The heart of the event downtown was so congested that the risk of motorcycle-pedestrian contact was deemed to be extremely high.
“I walked through there on Friday,” Windham Coun. Chris Van Paassen said at the Sept. 17 meeting of Norfolk council. “Not too many people were happy. One of the big draws is looking at the motorcycles. They didn’t come to look at the vendors and the chip wagons.”
Some complained the safety measures drained the energy from the event. At the September meeting of council, Port Dover Coun. Amy Martin suggested that adjustments are pending.
“Was it the best possible outcome?” she said. “No. Will there be changes? I’m sure there will be.”
As well, changes were made to the Sept. 13 rally because first responders in July, 2018 questioned whether they could get to an emergency in downtown Port Dover in a timely manner due to the sheer number of people.
The Dec. 10 meeting occurs three days before the next Friday the 13th in Port Dover. Attendance is expected to be minimal given the early onset of darkness and the winter-like weather experienced at this time of year.
Members of the public who can’t make the Dec. 10 meeting are encouraged to submit their feedback online at the following web address: https://forms.gle/xhy9UsEZXwaDf4VY8 .
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