Jul 28, 2005 By Steve Ferris 4 min read

A weekend-long potluck festival in May at William D. Pritts’s Church of Universal Love and Music in Bullskin Township ran out of luck Wednesday. The Fayette County Zoning Hearing Board upheld two zoning ordinance violation citations – one for holding the “Pa Potluck Festival” on May 13-15 – against Pritts at an appeal hearing.

The motion to sustain the citations included a recommendation for the Office of Planning, Zoning and Community Development to seek an injunction from Common Pleas Court to close the church.

Pritts was cited for operating a commercial recreational facility on his property, which is zoned for agricultural use.

The second citation was for having a mobile home on his property without a permit.

Zoning enforcement officer Lloyd “Buddy” Eicher testified that he learned that Pritts planned to host the festival from the church’s Web site and from his neighbors in Bear Rocks.

“I had numerous calls from the Bear Rocks vicinity,” Eicher said.

Under questioning from Planning, Zoning and Community Development office solicitor Sheryl Heid, Eicher said he called a number listed on the Web site and a woman who answered told him admission for four people would cost $240.

He said he also received calls about a second mobile home that was placed on the property. He said Pritts has a permit for one trailer, but not the second one.

Under cross-examination from Pritts’s attorney David Lint, Eicher said the Web site asks for a $200 donation to become a church member for the 2005 season.

He said he believes membership includes admission to festivals.

Pritts testified that he instructed a man who worked the gate to the property during the festival to ask people who show up for a $60 donation and to let them in free if they couldn’t afford to pay.

He said $13,000 was collected at the gate, but he paid the 13 bands that played during the festival a total of approximately $20,000.

There were about nine food, craft and clothing vendors, and they were asked for a $60 donation and for 10 percent of the sales if they made any, but he said he collected only $200 from the vendors.

Bands played until 1:15 a.m. on May 13 and 14, and about 400 people attended, he said, adding that that about 100 people camped overnight.

Pritts said the second trailer is used as a dressing room for the bands, a first aid station and for watching movies on Friday nights, but nobody lives there and the toilet was removed.

He said vendors and guests have to use a hydrant with a hose attached to wash their hands.

His next-door neighbor, Phyllis Geshinsky of Bear Rocks Road said she heard music from the festival insider her home.

“It was very loud,” Geshinsky said.

She said the bands might have stopped playing at 1:15 a.m., but music from stereos, fireworks and “people carrying on” lasted until 2 or 3 a.m.

John W. Hendricks, who said he was a church volunteer, said the church has other activities aside from concerts. He said there was a trip to Idlewild Park, a fishing trip, a trip to the arts festival in Pittsburgh and they picked up litter from roadsides.

“These people are doing a wonderful thing. There’s wonderful things going on there,” Hendricks said.

Richard McCloud he attended two festivals and never donated to get in.

“I don’t think anybody should be able to tell anybody else what to do with their property,” McCloud said, adding that Pritts is not obligated to reduce the music volume.

“That music is vexing to me,” said Doris Johns, who lives near Pritts. “I don’t like it being forced on me.”

She said she can’t afford air conditioning and sleeps with her windows open, but the music makes it difficult to sleep.