A controversial slip ‘n’ slide event that was sold out and scheduled to take place in downtown Los Angeles has been postponed after city officials denied the event’s permit request, Slide the City officials reported on social media Friday.
Slide the City, an event traveling across the United States and Canada, was supposed to setup a 1,000-foot “soapy vinyl” waterslide near East Temple Street and North Los Angeles Street (map) on Sunday, Sept. 28, according to the event’s website.
The announcement prompted a petition on thepetitionsite.com that stated, “it is extremely irresponsible for any city in California to allow an event like one featuring a giant water slide to take place for the sake of money and fun while the state as a whole has been suffering from this drought.”
The petition garnered nearly 11,000 signatures, its stated goal, as of Friday.
The slide was expected to use 15,000 to 20,000 gallons of water that would be recycled and properly disposed of, Slide the City President T.R. Gourley told laist.com, a website that covers L.A.-area news and events.
“While we are conscious of the drought going on, we are also conscious of people who have lived in a drought for their entire lives,” Gourley told laist.com in August.
The water would be treated with chemicals and recycled by being reused throughout the day, Slide the City stated on Facebook the same month.
It was unclear if the event permit was denied because of the ongoing drought, Slide the City stated on Facebook Friday.
“Whether this is a direct result of the drought or something else, we want to assure all of our participants and vendors that we have gone through every appropriate permitting step required,” the post stated.
Slide the City officials worked with city officials for over two months, and “jumped through many additional hoops” in an effort to obtain the permit, according to the post.
Interested participants were encouraged to “stick with us as we continue to work through issues with the city in order to hold the event in the near future,” the post stated.
Anyone who purchased a ticket to the Sept. 28 event and wanted a refund was told to contact welovela@slidethecity.com.
Tickets cost $15 to $35 depending on the number of rides purchased. The cost of VIP tickets was unclear.
At least four other Slide the City events were expected to take place in California at unknown dates in Orange County, San Diego, San Francisco and San Jose, according to the event website.
