Rockville Fire Protection fee draws heat from vendors

The tents have been removed and the vendors have left town, but questions remain surrounding a fire protection fee charged during this year's Parke County Covered Bridge Fest. 

According to Rockville Fire Chief Jim Veach, several vendors called into question a fire protection fee that was charged this year, claiming they didn't know anything about the fee, which was approved in July and had to go into place following an Indiana law that made it a requirement for vendors carrying a transient merchant license is set up on city property. 

In a letter to merchants, Veach stated the purpose of the fee was to enhance safety during the festival. The letter stated the fire department would inspect fire extinguishers, gas cylinders, flames under tents, generators, and extension cords, and verify that fees were paid. Vendors could have paid the $25 fee in multiple ways; if a vendor was caught not paying, their booth would be shut down until the fee was paid. 

At a recent Rockville Town Board meeting, Veach said not everything went according to plan. 

Veach told the board that 19 vendors did not initially pay the fee and that vendors became agitated, threatening to speak with an attorney or attend a meeting to voice concerns. In addition, Veach said Rockville Clerk-Treasurer Brandy Asher and her staff were subjected to comments from vendors. 

"They said they were not told anything about it," Veach told the board. 

Asher shared the timeline surrounding the ordinance with The Parke County Post, stating it was first presented to the board in June and approved on July 6. From there, PCI was notified, the fee was advertised in the local newspaper, and it went into effect 30 days after publication. In addition, it was posted on social media. 

"Everyone was notified with plenty of time to inform the vendors of the requirement," Asher said. 

Both Veach and Asher stated that communicating the fee to the vendors was someone else's responsibility. 

"I don't think it was directly any one person's responsibility to notify vendors, as we did what we needed to legally. It is in the hands of PCI to communicate with vendors as we do not have that relation nor contacts with vendors," Asher told The Parke County Post.