It's not complicated.
The City of Shreveport owns the Red River District (RRD).
To have an event at RRD, a permit must be obtained from SPAR.
Either an event has a SPAR permit or it does not. If no permit has been obtained, then the event is NOT authorized to be conducted in the RRD.
The event last Friday night in the RRD to celebrate Booker T. Washington (BTW) High School Homecoming did NOT have a SPAR permit.. The promoter(s) failed to provide liability insurance which is a requirement for a SPAR permit.
The event the weekend before for the Huntington High School Homecoming did NOT have a permit. The promoter(s) did not even bother to TRY to get a SPAR permit.
The Byrd High School celebration earlier this year WAS permitted. The promoters provided security at their own cost and provided liability insurance. SPAR did power wash the district before the event and removed the homeless people there as part of SPAR protocol for events authorized in the RRD with a SPAR permit.
Phil Price, the manager of G-Spot Daiquiris in the RRD, spoke to the City Council yesterday at the work session. He stated that Byrd High School received special treatment from SPAR that was not provided for Huntington or BTW. He implied race was a factor in cleaning up the RRD before Byrd’s event.
Evidently Price has no understanding of the SPAR permit process or if he does, he does not believe a SPAR permit should be required. Of course, the G-Spot benefited greatly from the Byrd, Huntington and BTW events and he said he welcomed big events in the RRD. Price also made comments regarding the incident outside G-Spot that resulted in a young lady being injured, stating the incident was all her fault.
The G-Sport is owned by Chelette Holden. She also owns the Haze on Texas Street. Violence occurred outside of both of these establishments Friday evening/early Saturday a.m. Price’s comments to the Council were obviously intended to be CYA for Holden and himself.
The reality is that the City of Shreveport does NOT have an effective enforcement tool to prevent unauthorized gatherings in the RRD. Without obtaining a SPAR permit ,promoters of events do NOT have to provide security or liability insurance. The Huntington and BTW gatherings evidence that events can be scheduled and held without SPAR permits and without
ANY penalty.
This pattern of conduct is a recipe for disaster and it should be aggressively addressed by the Mayor and the City Council. Without appropriate security and large alcohol consuming crowds, it's only a matter of time until more serious injuries occur in the RRD. And some citizens wonder why the RRD has not been successful?