The proposed Downtown Zone, stretching from Blair to Park streets, would not include Capitol Square, the 100 blocks of streets touching the Square, or the 200 block of Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard. The new policies also would not cover city-sponsored events including Ride the Drive, Shake the Lake, Safety Saturday, the Fire Chief’s Parade or Freakfest.

But the policies would cover more than a dozen other big events, including Crazylegs, Maxwell Street Days, Paddle & Portage, Ironman Wisconsin and the UW Homecoming Parade, and would affect future proposed events.

The proposed amendment would allow the Street Use Staff Commission to create rules for street closures in the Downtown Zone and to consider impacts on traffic patterns, Metro Transit service, and on businesses, residents and others.

The amendment would also let the commission consider the overall number of permitted events or activities happening in the city when weighing an application for a street-use event.

Currently, the commission can consider traffic impacts, the ability to provide police and other emergency services, and the impact on residents, but the ordinance doesn’t explicitly mention public transit, the overall impact on city services, or the overlap of events on the course of a weekend.