Pa. adopts new rules for using Pittsburgh's Point State Park for large events

New rules at Pittsburgh’s Point State Park call for large events at the park to be held at least five days apart and limit events to no more than seven days.

The rules prompted the Three Rivers Arts Festival, a 10-day event that traditionally has been held at Point State Park, to relocate to Pittsburgh’s Cultural District this year.

Wesley Robinson, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, said it requires a lot of time and effort to get the park back into shape after large events. Workers need to clean restrooms, pick up garbage and often clean graffiti after events, Robinson said.

Related:

• Three Rivers Arts Festival exits the Point for Pittsburgh Cultural District

The new rules are “just a matter of making sure the park is able to be at its best for all users,” Robinson said. “If you were to have events in your backyard for several weekends in the summer, your backyard would be worse for wear. It’s not supposed to have people standing on the grass for long periods of time and trampling over areas of it. What ends up happening is the park is worse for wear.”

Steven Adams | Tribune-Review

Point State Park in 2015.

This will be the first summer with the new rules in effect, Robinson said. Officials began crafting the rules last fall, after a summer season that featured major events such as the Three Rivers Arts Festival and celebrations commemorating Juneteenth and the Fourth of July.

Robinson said the limitations weren’t targeting the Three Rivers Arts Festival or any particular event. He said the rules likely wouldn’t impact many other major events there this summer because they don’t last as long as the arts festival.

“We appreciate the relationship with the Arts Festival over the years,” Robinson said. “It’s just a matter of making sure that all park users have the best experience when they go to the park.”