The Seattle Nightlife and Music Association (SNMA) is a coalition of music, night club, and bar interests formed to educate elected officials, civic and community leaders, and the media on the serious issues facing the music and nightlife industry in Seattle.

• Provide our customers a safe and vibrant nightlife.
• Protect music venue, bar, and club owner's rights.
• Respond to proposals which impact our industry.
• Support our local communities.
• Promote responsible music venue, bar, and club management.

Wednesday, February 13, 2008
2 PM
Spitfire -- www.spitfireseattle.com
2219 Fourth Avenue

SeattleNMA will be holding our annual reorganization meeting at Spitfire on February 13, 2008 at 2pm. The purpose of the meeting is to expand the SNMA board and adopt our 2008 work plan.

Over the first year and a half of our existence, we have been engaged in a number of battles at the state and local level. While we were successful in defeating the Mayor’s proposal to create new a licensing scheme, there are still many other issues confronting the nightlife industry. These include a new noise ordinance, new safety plan requirements, and new admission tax rules.

SeattleNMA is seeking to expand its active membership and undertake a more proactive outreach and involvement effort for 2008. While we spent 2007 fighting against new regulations, we would like to take a more proactive stance in 2008 and create a best practices program, begin work on a 2009 State legislative agenda to deal with sprinklers and liquor license issues, and positively engage the city as they put together there new Nightlife Advisory Board.

Please put this important meeting on your schedule.

Agenda

1. Introductions
2. Presentation of new Nightlife Advisory Board – Newell Aldrich – Legislative Aide to City Councilmember Nick Licata
3. SeattleNMA Board Appointments
4. SeattleNMA 2008 Initiatives and Work Plan
5. Membership Building


permalink  |  related link  |   Council Approves Creation of Nightlife Advisory Board
The City Council formally approved the creation of a Nightlife Advisory Board this past week. The purpose of the board is to advise the City Council regarding policy issues related to the City's promotion, development and sustainability of the nightlife industry in Seattle. The board will consist of 9-members; 3 representing the nightlife industry, 3 representing neighborhoods, 1 representing law enforcement, 1 representing the liquor board, and a representative with an acoustical engineering background.

The Board is expected to be formed in January and members will be appointed by the City Council. To date we have no information on how the Council will select appointees.

More information on the Advisory Board can be found here: http://seattlenma.org/downloads/nightli ... _board.pdf.

Council to Consider New Noise Ordinance on Monday, December 17
The City Council is scheduled to consider an ordinance which would direct the Director of the Department of Planning and Development to promulgate new rules establishing a measurable standard for "amplified noise that is plainly audible to a person of normal hearing when measured inside a receiving dwelling unit." This would apply to amplified noise created between the hours of 10 PM and 7 AM. The rules are scheduled to be finalized by June, 2008. The rules are required to be developed in collaboration with the Nightlife Advisory Board. Please review the legislation and consider how it may impact you and provide us and the city council your comments. Here's the link: http://seattlenma.org/downloads/noise_ordinance.pdf.

The Council meeting begins at 2 PM and public comment will be taken at the beginning of the meeting. The meeting will be held in Council Chambers at City Hall – 600 Fourth Avenue – Second Floor. Be sure to get there early to sign up for public testimony.

Discount for 2008 Dues expires at the end of December
Please send in your 2008 membership dues by the end of the month in order to receive you 10% discount. With the formation of the Advisory Board, new Noise regulations, potential changes to state liquor laws and other new regulations – SeattleNMA needs your support to maintain our involvement and advocacy. Without a healthy membership, SeattleNMA is limited in our abilities to serve you.

You can download a membership form here: http://seattlenma.org/SNMA_Membership_Form.pdf.
permalink  |  related link  |   The city is moving forward on a number of nightlife related legislation and rules. A quick summary of them is below and we are working on our detailed analysis. Should you have specific questions or comments, please email rachel@seattlenma.org.

Council to Move Forward on Nightlife Advisory Board
The Seattle City Council is reviewing a revised version of a Nightlife Advisory Board Resolution. The new version can be viewed here: http://seattlenma.org/downloads/adv_bd_reso.pdf. The Council will be discussing this proposal on Monday, November 26 and action is tentatively slated for December 3rd. The resolution establishes a 9 member board with the following features:

- 2 year effort to be re-evaluated when the enabling legislation sunsets
- focuses on review of council's legislative actions and the Mayor's new enforcement efforts - how are they working?
- giving the body some broad duties to come up with new ideas, other ideas to improving neighborhood and nightlife environment - but also monitoring to see if the environment is changing over time.
- membership - nightlife reps, neighborhood reps, law enforcement and liquor control board, and at large (9 members)
- staffed by facilitator retained by the Council - will develop a comprehensive work plan for the group.
- Council will get an annual report in December
- Executive has verbally agreed to cooperate with the board's requests for data, information related to enforcement/outreach activities.

Please take a moment to review the proposal and provide comments or suggestions.

New Noise Ordinance to be Reviewed
The Council will also be considering a new noise ordinance on December 6th, at Councilmember Clark’s meeting of the Economic Development and Neighborhood Committee. While a draft version can be viewed here (http://www.seattle.gov/council/attachme ... se_ord.pdf), the council is still working on a final draft. It may or may not be adopted before the end of the year. We are working on detailed comments and would appreciate your thoughts.

New Admission Tax Rules
The Department of Executive Administration has been working on new rules for the collection of admission tax by nightclubs. Here is a link to the proposal: http://seattlenma.org/downloads/adm_tx_rule.pdf.

The Department of Executive Administration has scheduled a public hearing on the proposed rule changes for 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., on Monday, December 10, 2007. The hearing will be held in a conference room on the 40th floor of the Seattle Municipal Tower, Suite 4080, located at 700 Fifth Avenue. All interested persons are invited to present data, views, or arguments, with regard to the proposed rules, orally at the hearing, or in writing at or before the hearing.

Again, please do not hesitate to email your thoughts, comments and suggestions to rachel@seattlenma.org.
permalink  |  related link  |   The Seattle City Council is expected to vote on a proposed licensing scheme for nightlife establishments Monday afternoon. Public Comment will be taken on the proposal beginning at 2 PM in the Council Chambers at City Hall. If you would like to provide comment, please arrive early in order to sign up.

Several weeks ago the councils Neighborhood and Economic Development passed the ordinance out of committee. Councilmembers Clark and Drago voted in support. Councilmember McIver opposed.

On Wednesday, Councilmembers Conlin and Licata circulated a draft ordinance with a number of amendments. Their proposal can be viewed at: http://seattlenma.org/downloads/licata:conlin_amendment. While the draft is an improvement of what was passed out of committee, there are still a number of elements that need further work. While we believe a license is not the best approach to address conflicts between nightlife establishments and residents, we nonetheless continue to provide comments on ways to improve the proposal.

Our key concern is the amount of unchecked authority this ordinance gives to the Mayor to shut down a business. After last weekend's events where bar employees were arrested during the middle of their shifts our concerns have only grown. A strong Nightlife Commission which can help businesses and review problems is key to protecting businesses and resolving conflicts.

Please take some time to review this latest proposed ordinance and provide comments to us and members of the City Council. Below you will find the contact information for the city council.

Seattle City Council:
Nick.licata@seattle.gov 684-8803
Sally.clark@seattle.gov 684-8802 **
Richard.conlin@seattle.gov 684-8805
David.della@seattle.gov 684-8806**
Jan.drago@seattle.gov 684-8801
Jean.godden@seattle.gov 684-8807**
Richard.mciver@seattle.gov 684-8800
Tom.rasmussen@seattle.gov 684-8808**
Peter.steinbrueck@seattle.gov 684-8804**

** indicates these members are up for reelection this year. Peter Steinbrueck is not seeking reelection and this will be an open seat.
permalink  |  related link  |   Council to vote on nightlife rules on Monday, August 13th
Mayor’s license proposal still alive

Voice your opinion to the City Council!

Last Thursday, the City Council’s Neighborhoods and Economic Development committee passed a reasonable package of new nightlife rules which creates an advisory board, requires nightlife businesses to develop security plans, and adds additional enforcement staffing for the city. This package can be viewed at http://www.seattle.gov/council/issues/nighlife_ord.htm.

However, a last minute push by Councilmembers Jan Drago and David Della has put the mayor’s license proposal back on the table. The new proposal can be viewed here (http://seattlenma.org/downloads/prpsd_ntlf_lic_ord.pdf). This new license, combined with the new rules the committee has already passed, makes this new package as extreme – if not more – than what the mayor proposed. In addition, the council is working on a new noise ordinance which has yet to be made public, but is expected to be voted on next Thursday, August 16. The council is now contemplating even more regulation than the Mayor proposed!

Here is what we need you to do:
Contact the members of the city council and tell them you support the package that the committee has approved and we don’t need a license. They should just vote on what they have in front of them NOW and move on. Please contact the City Council today! Councilmembers email addresses and phone numbers are listed below.

*Attend the Monday, August 13th 2 PM City Council meeting and testify. You will have only two minutes, and they limit the total time allotted for public comment so sign up early!
* Attend the Thursday, August 16th, 6 PM meeting of council’s Neighborhoods and Economic Development Committee at the Highpoint Community Center – 6920 34th Ave SW. Testimony will be taken at the beginning of the meeting.
* Forward this to your friends and colleagues asking them to voice their support of nightlife in Seattle.

Neighborhood activists and the Mayor have been pounding on City Councilmembers these last few months. Our voice needs to be heard! Contact the councilmembers today!

Seattle City Council:
Nick.licata@seattle.gov 684-8803
Sally.clark@seattle.gov 684-8802 **
Richard.conlin@seattle.gov 684-8805
David.della@seattle.gov 684-8806**
Jan.drago@seattle.gov 684-8801
Jean.godden@seattle.gov 684-8807**
Richard.mciver@seattle.gov 684-8800
Tom.rasmussen@seattle.gov 684-8808**
Peter.steinbrueck@seattle.gov 684-8804**

** indicates these members are up for reelection this year. Peter Steinbrueck is not seeking reelection and this will be an open seat.

permalink  |  related link  |   Mayor Names Problem Clubs – uses erroneous data
Mayor’s Nickels continued his all out assault for a new nightclub license this week when he released a list of the most “problematic” clubs on Tuesday. The list, compiled from the city’s still untested LiquorStat database purports that several clubs in the downtown core have dozens of liquor violations. However, the Mayor’s data is disputed by the Washington State Liquor Control Board who have chided the city for using it. The SeattleP-I and The Seattle Times have stories here http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/324 ... ife18.html and here http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.c ... nightclubs.

New Proposal from Clark could be voted on next week – details still unknown
City Councilmember Sally Clark, who’s Economic Development and Neighborhoods Committee (EDN) has been reviewing the Mayor’s Nightlife License proposal for over six months has stated she hopes her committee will begin voting on a package of new nightlife regulations at her July 27th committee meeting. While broad outlines of a new package have been released, no details of the actual legislation have yet been made public. It is unclear whether Clark will continue to push for the mayor’s licensing proposal, but the Mayor’s office and community activists continue to push for it’s inclusion and have mounted an aggressive public relations effort as they attempt to move their licensing agenda forward.

Here is a link (http://seattlenma.org/downloads/Nightli ... 070507.pdf) to the briefing memo that was released at the last EDN meeting, which gives you a flavor of what new regulations the council is considering. Key elements of the package appear to include significant changes to the existing noise code; creation of a nightlife advisory board with limited authority; safety plan requirements; increased enforcement and regulatory staff; and granting enhanced authority to the Seattle Police Chief and City Attorney under the city’s nuisance laws. In addition, the package requests the Mayor study and propose even more nightlife regulations.

SeattleNMA has stated we support the creation of a Nightlife Commission with responsibility for monitoring nightlife issues and providing early intervention assistance to preventing nightlife problems. A balanced board consisting of neighborhood interests, nightlife representatives, law enforcement and other key stakeholders could respond to citizen complaints and work with neighborhoods and nightlife businesses.

SeattleNMA continues to strongly advocate for more police to patrol the city’s nightlife districts. More police at night in the right areas is the most effective way to deal with rowdy behavior and prevent violent incidents on the streets. In addition, nightlife business need to be able to contract for off duty police, particularly if they are to be subject to new security plan requirements.

Any new or additional regulations should be worked in collaboration with the new Nightlife Commission so that all stakeholders have a voice in the process. We strongly support forming the board now so these other issues can be worked.

The next meeting of the council committee will be Friday July 27, 9:30 AM, second floor City Council Chambers. We anticipate being able to provide you any proposed legislation prior to that meeting so you will be able to let the councilmember know what you think.


Time to renew SeattleNMA memberships – many accomplishments, but nightlife still under siege
SeattleNMA has been working hard for the last year to represent the nightlife industry interests to the City and the State. When we formed in July of last year, the Mayor was ready to steamroll through the city council the most onerous set of nightlife regulations in the country. Backed by the police and well organized neighborhood coalitions, our industry was under heavy assault. Because we were able to form quickly, we soon were able to establish ourselves as a key player in the process and have effectively killed the mayor’s package and are actively working with the city council on a more reasonable approach.

At the state level we were successful in providing relief to over 200 nightclubs in Washington state by giving them additional time to install new sprinkler systems. While we were not able to obtain the tax credits we were seeking, we did get fair hearings and requests to come back and try again the next session. If it wasn’t for SeattleNMA the sprinkler relieve bill would never have happened.

SeattleNMA also successfully led the charge to kill a Washington State Liquor Board proposal to ban all ages shows. This proposal was a major concern of the local music community. If it were not for our intervention, this proposal would have moved forward.

SeattleNMA is membership funded organization. Dues are based on your business size and are extremely affordable. We need you to renew you membership, or for those who have yet to pay dues, to send in a check today so we can continue our efforts to protect Seattle’s nightlife.

SeattleNMA wants to ensure that whatever legislation is passed by the city is implemented fairly. SeattleNMA wants to continue to work with the WSLCB to modernized our state liquor laws. SeattleNMA wants to expand the number of businesses involved and develop a set of member services that can help your business make or save money.

To help us achieve this, please renew you membership today. Membership forms can be downloaded at http://www.seattlenma.org/SMNA_membership_form.pdf.
permalink  |  related link  |   Last Monday’s packed hearing on the Mayor’s Nightlife proposal seems to have gotten the attention of a few councilmembers, causing them to slow down the process and consider significant modifications to the proposal unveiled by Councilmember Clark the previous week. Prior to Monday’s hearing, the committee was scheduled to release an actual legislative package last Thursday and was planning on taking final action on June 21. However, we were informed at Thursday’s committee meeting that other councilmembers were beginning to become more engaged on the issue, and more time is needed to work on the details.

SeattleNMA has consistently said we don’t need a new license. Rather let’s better enforce existing laws (noise, litter), create a Nightlife Commission, and provide more police resources to the entertainment districts of the city on weekend nights. Hopefully a majority of the Council will consider this approach.
permalink  |  related link  |   Thanks to everyone who showed up Monday at the City Council hearing on the Mayor's nightlife legislation. We had a great turnout and there were many thoughtful comments directed at the City Council. The testimony from our industry has already had an impact on the direction of the legislation, with Councilmember Clark indicating she believes the 50-foot rule should be dropped. Check out her blog at: http://www.seattle.gov/council/clark/blog/ for her reflections on Monday's hearing.

If you'd like to watch the video of Monday's City Council hearing on the nightlife legislation, click here to go to the Seattle Channel's website (http://www.seattlechannel.org/videos/vi ... ID=2180712).

Things are moving very quickly right now with regards to this legislation. Please continue to monitor this issue closely. We will continue to provide updates here on the website as well as via email and hope you will continue to track this issue carefully. This is a critical time and we need your help to ensure sucess!

permalink  |  related link  |   Yesterday City Councilmember’s Clark and Drago issued a press release and briefing paper outlining a series of proposals in response to the Mayor’s proposed nightlife regulations. The press release is available at http://seattlenma.org/downloads/clark_release and the briefing paper at http://seattlenma.org/downloads/clark_brief.

The two councilmembers are proposing a series of actions that if, taken together, would be far more egregious than what the mayor originally proposed. These actions include:

Embracing the mayor’s proposal of creating a new nightlife license which would be used to close down clubs at the discretion of the city.

Significantly increases fines for noise violations from $500 up to $6000.

Amends the current nuisance ordinance so the city could more easily close down clubs.

Requests the mayor to consider even more regulations on nightlife establishments.

If this entire package were to be adopted, Seattle would have some of the most stringent nightlife regulations in the country.

It appears that Councilmember Clark is intent on seeking approval of all elements of the package! This would have a devastating impact our music industry!!

Your voice needs to be heard now and loud.

First, email the City Councilmembers today. And then attend the June 4th public hearing on this package. It begins at 5:30 – Get there early to sign up! This hearing is in the City Council Chambers on the 2ndfloor of City Hall, located at 600 - 4th Ave. downtown.

Below are the emails to the councilmembers:

Nick.licata@seattle.gov 684-8803
Sally.clark@seattle.gov 684-8802 **
Richard.conlin@seattle.gov 684-8805
David.della@seattle.gov 684-8806**
Jan.drago@seattle.gov 684-8801
Jean.godden@seattle.gov 684-8807**
Richard.mciver@seattle.gov 684-8800
Tom.rasmussen@seattle.gov 684-8808**
Peter.steinbrueck@seattle.gov 684-8804**

** indicates these members are up for reelection this year. Peter Steinbrueck is not seeking reelection and this will be an open seat.

permalink  |  related link  |   The City Council’s Economic Development and Neighborhoods Committee met last week to again review the Mayor’s Nightlife Premises Ordinance. While the focus of the briefing was on zoning issues related to “drinking establishments” in the NC zones, there were a few encouraging surprises. Councilmember Jan Drago, a long supporter of Seattle nightlife, shared with the committee her views on the Mayor’s proposal. First, she does not believe a new regulatory license is the best approach to deal with issues of concern raised by residents. Rather, she stated amending and better enforcing current noise and nuisance laws would be a more effective approach. She is also advocating establishment a civil noise enforcement unit which would be on the streets at the time they are most needed to enforce the noise ordinance. While we have yet to see the details of her proposals – and there could be significant issues of concern - we are nonetheless encouraged that the council appears to be moving in a much different direction than what the Mayor proposed. As soon as the amendments are made available for circulation we will post them.

Key dates for Council review – Please add to your schedules!

May 17, 6 PM - Economic Development and Neighborhoods Committee meeting to review proposed amendments. Location to be determined.

June 4 6PM - Public Hearing on Mayor’s proposed ordinance and council amendments. Council Chambers. We need a HUGE turnout for this meeting.

June 7 9:30 AM - Economic Development and Neighborhoods Committee. Review and possible vote on amendments.
permalink  |  related link  |  
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© 2006 Seattle Nightlife and Music Association | 311 1st Avenue S, Suite 318, Seattle, WA 98104 | 206.624.7022 | rachel@seattleNMA.org