Who should pay for a Raleigh neighborhood's Halloween popularity
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Raleigh's beloved Halloween house at the corner of Oakwood Avenue and East Street. Photo: Mary Helen Moore/Axios
Every year, Raleigh's Oakwood neighborhood becomes the nexus of the city's Halloween celebrations, attracting thousands of children to trick-or-treat.
- They come, in part, because Oakwood is one of the city's most walkable neighborhoods, with Victorian homes and a historic cemetery. But also because residents like Jesse Jones go to great lengths to decorate their homes for the occasion.
Why it matters: Now Jones feels he and his Halloween-famous home at the corner of Oakwood Avenue and East Street are being unfairly punished for the neighborhood's popularity.
- Jones, a local defense attorney, said he gave out around 6,000 pieces of candy last year.
Driving the news: Because his house is such a magnet, the city is asking that Jones gets a special event permit to close down the road, insurance coverage for the event as well as two off-duty police officers with workman's comp insurance. It's likely to cost him several thousand dollars, he said.
- He's been working for weeks to get the permit, which comes with a long list of requirements, as well as with his accountant and the police department's accountant to get it all worked out.
- "I have never seen a government [create] the red tape I have been put through just because I decorate my house," Jones told Axios. "That's all I do."
Zoom in: Jones is frustrated, he said, because he believes the large crowds of people would be coming to Oakwood with or without his house being decorated. In previous years, the city has been fine with neighbors getting $50 neighborhood block party permits, rather than a $350 special event permit.
- He added that the Raleigh Police Department should send on-duty cops regardless to address safety and traffic concerns, just as it would on a busy night in Glenwood South.
- If he couldn't pay the fees and close the street, he noted, the crowds would still come and create traffic safety issues.
The other side: The Raleigh Police Department has not yet responded to a request for comment. But Ran Northam, a spokesperson for the city of Raleigh, said the city believes a permit will make the trick-or-treating hot spot as safe as possible.
- A permit is needed because flyers have been distributed advertising the street to the public, he said.
- Northam added that Raleigh committed to working with Jones on the permit and has already dropped requirements like on-site EMS, weather spotters, portable restrooms and a formalized trash plan.
What they're saying: Jones said he remains committed to decorating his house and making it a "magical" experience for children in the area.
- "If you visit our neighborhood on Halloween," he wrote in a letter to the mayor, "you will see a beautiful reflection of Raleigh's diversity — families from all walks of life gathering because they know Oakwood is a safe haven."