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Parks & Public Spaces
Application from Madison Square Park Conservancy for “Planet Oat Marketing Event,” to be held in Madison Square Park from July 17 through July 22, 2019
At the regularly scheduled monthly Community Board Five meeting on Thursday, July 11, 2019, the following resolution passed with a vote of 36 in favor; 0 opposed; 1 abstaining:
WHEREAS, The Madison Square Park Conservancy (“Applicant”) has submitted a permit application to the Parks Department for “Planet Oat Marketing Event” to be held in the southwest gravel section of Madison Square Park (the “Park”) from July 17, 2019 through July 21, 2019 (the “Event”); and
WHEREAS, Set-up would begin at 7:00 am on July 17, 2019, with a small media event to be held from 8:00 am through 12:00 pm on July 19, 2019; and
WHEREAS, The Event would begin in earnest at 10 AM on July 20 and run from 10:00 am until 5:00 pm on both July 20, 2019 and July 21, 2019, with cleanup and dismantling of the event in all respects to be completed by 2:00 pm on July 22, 2019; and
WHEREAS, The Event is to consist of a 41 foot diameter and 18 foot high white igloo-type tented structure (the “Planet Oat Igloo”) with a separate entrance and exit door, fully enclosed with projector screens and sound equipment, refrigerators, couches, and free samples of Planet Oat milk, banana bread, cookies, and oat milk lattes provided inside; and
WHEREAS, Community Board Five believes that the portion of the structure immediately surrounding the entrance doorway, which is currently proposed to be black, should be white like the rest of the structure in order to better blend the Planet Oat Igloo with the surrounding Park, and that Planet Oat logos should be removed from the entrance doors given the oversaturation of those logos across the remaining tent structure; and
WHEREAS, The Applicant was unable to change the black surface; however, the Applicant
subsequently agreed to remove the Planet Oat logos from the entrance doors in response to
community concerns; and
WHEREAS, The Planet Oat Igloo will be free for members of the public to enter throughout the time
at which it is open in the park, and the Applicant estimates approximately 800 visitors per day; and
WHEREAS, the Planet Oat Marketing Event will be staffed by five to eight Planet Oat employees;
and
WHEREAS, There will be no sound leakage above ambient noise levels outside of the Planet Oat
Igloo, for which the doors will remain closed except when members of the public are entering and
exiting the structure; and
WHEREAS, Signage will be limited to one event sign featuring the Planet Oat logo and event
opening times outside the Planet Oat Igloo as well as up to a few signs directing visitor traffic in the
immediate vicinity of the structure, and that every effort will be made generally to minimize the
impact on the use of the park by the general public while the event is ongoing;
WHEREAS, Applicant has indicated that in return for the private use of public space for this Event, a
substantial contribution to the Park will be made, which is consistent with past practice per its
contractual agreement with the Parks Department, which allows for four annual marketing events, of
which this is the second for 2019; and
WHEREAS, All operational aspects of the event, including sanitation and potential queueing, have
been planned for in a satisfactory manner; and
WHEREAS, Community Board Five believes that the nature and conduct of the event as proposed,
with the exception of the color of the structure immediately surrounding the entrance door is
satisfactory and consistent with its past approvals for the four marketing events held in the Park in
past years; therefore be it
RESOLVED, Community Board Five recommends approval of the application from the Madison
Square Park Conservancy for “Planet Oat Marketing Event,” to be held in the Park from July 17
through July 22, 2019.