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Title: Burning Man pushes back on upgraded amenities for officials
Source:
RGJ
URL Source: http://www.rgj.com/story/news/2015/ ... compound-burning-man/29318493/
Published: Jun 27, 2015
Author: Uncredited
Post Date: 2015-06-27 16:21:20 by cranky
Keywords: None
Views: 612
Comments: 1
U.S. Bureau of Land Management officials are asking Burning Man organizers to provide "excessive" comforts such as flushing toilets, washers and dryers, and vanity mirrors in a compound for high-level government officials staying in Black Rock City. A Burning Man spokesman estimated the compound would cost the event more than $1 million, bringing its 2015 permit fees to about $5 million. The renderings of the compound obtained by the RGJ also show various accommodations set aside for VIP visitors but don't indicate who the visiting dignitaries will be. The request, unprecedented in Burning Man's history, has turned into a point of contention as organizers negotiate with the agency for their annual permit to stage the event in the Black Rock Desert. No permit has been issued for this year's event, which runs Aug. 30 to Sept. 7. Typically permits are issued in early August. Burning Man has refused to comply with the BLM's request, which the federal agency submitted on June 1, according to Burning Man spokesman Jim Graham. The proposed Blue Pit compound will be an exclusive set-up reserved for BLM officials and VIP guests. "We want to work this out. We're getting close to the event, but we feel that there are more common-sense and cost-effective solutions," Graham said. Burning Man declined to comment on whether its refusal to comply with BLM's requests would interfere with the permit's approval. The BLM has said it needs the elaborate encampment to support staff at the event. The agency is raising concerns about safety after a woman was run over and killed by a vehicle last year, and says the additional staff will attend to assess security conditions. Among the amenities included in the request are flushing toilets to be cleaned daily by Burning Man staff, a laundry with washers and dryers, on-demand hot water, air conditioning, vanity mirrors, refrigerators and couches. The event, known for its emphasis on self-reliance in harsh conditions, provides only basic amenities such as nonflushable portable toilets, for ticketed attendees. BLM officials contend that their staff can no longer stay in the "primitive" accommodations available in Gerlach, which is about 20 minutes from the event location. "We're very concerned about where we put people that are part of our staff and that are part of the support and permitting," said BLM Winnemucca District Manager Gene Seidlitz. "It's safe to say that if you were working 14 to 16 hours a day in white-out conditions on the hot playa, you don't want them to be unrested. Safety, security and health is paramount. That, I will not forgo." Details of the request were included in an email exchange obtained by the RGJ between a Burning Man official and Bob Abbey, the former BLM director who is now a consultant for Burning Man organizers. "Having been a career BLM employee, I expect agency employees to behave competently and professionally in their interactions with the public," Abbey said in his email. "I don't see these traits being applied in their dealings with (Black Rock City)." Abbey went on to say that BLM won't "change their strategy of threatening your permit until you agree to everything they are demanding including the latest BS proposal for providing VIP facilities for law enforcement and (Department of Interior) officials." BLM Special Agent Dan Love of Salt Lake City was cited multiple times as the person behind many of the BLM requests, according to the emails. He did not return requests for comment. Love also led the BLM operation against Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy that ended in a standoff with Bundy's armed supporters. The VIP encampment, called the Blue Pit, is a new request this year. It is in addition to the more bare-bones accommodations for the employees who will be staying at the BLM's headquarters, which houses up to 150 working staff during the main event. The headquarters also are expected to have trailers with flushable toilets and sinks, though no showers or washers and dryers are requested. The headquarters will be located at the end of the 12-mile playa entry road, 12 miles north of Gerlach. The Blue Pit compound is about two miles past the playa on County Road 34 near an old gravel pit. While one map names some of the government officials who will be staying at the compound, it does not name the dozen or so "VIPs." The RGJ has filed a Freedom of Information Act request for the schedules of federal officials who could be at the event. In years past, visiting government officials have stayed in Gerlach or at BLM's barracks nearby. Most of the VIPs will be state and federal BLM officials who are concerned with the safety and security of Burning Man based on a BLM assessment of the 2014 event, Seidlitz said. 
Who are the VIPs?
"It does have the interest of the Department of Interior.'
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#1. To: cranky (#0)
Burning toilets?
"It does have the interest of the Department of Interior."
Of course...
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