TO:
Honorable Mayor Powell and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
David N. Carmany, City Manager
FROM:
Richard Gill, Director of Parks & Recreation
Eve Irvine, Chief of Police
Andrew Harrod, Police Lieutenant
Mark Leyman, Recreation Services Manager
SUBJECT:Title
Report on the 2012 International Surf Festival's Charlie Saikley Six-Man Beach Volleyball Tournament; Discussion of Moving Next Year's Event to Wednesday July 31 and Thursday August 1, 2013; Authorize the City Manager to Negotiate and Execute a New Sponsorship Agreement with Beachsport for the 2013 Event
RECEIVE AND FILE, DISCUSS AND PROVIDE DIRECTION
Body
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council:
a) Receive and file the report on the 2012 International Surf Festival's Charlie Saikley Six-Man Beach Volleyball Tournament;
b) Approve the 2013 event for Wednesday, July 31st and Thursday, August 1st; and
c) Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute a new sponsorship agreement with Beachsport for 2013 event.
FISCAL IMPLICATION:
The 2012 International Surf Festival's (ISF) Charlie Saikley Six-Man generated net revenue of $1,910 for the City. The total operational costs were $96,951, and the total revenue for the event was $98,861 ($48,861 in team registrations and $50,000 from the tournament sponsor, Beachsport).
BACKGROUND:
The 2012 ISF Charlie Saikley Six-Man Beach Volleyball Tournament was held on Tuesday, July 31 and Wednesday, August 1. City Council approved changes to the event last winter to address problems that occurred in previous years (large crowds, public intoxication, and destruction of private property). These changes included holding the tournament mid-week (Tuesday and Wednesday) and enacting a Short-Term Vacation Rental Ordinance (No. 2160). The changes, coupled with strict enforcement of no alcohol at the beach and a ban on amplified sound permits, were successful in achieving a safe and orderly 2012 event.
DISCUSSION:
Recap of 2012 Event
Overall, staff believes the 2012 Six-Man Beach Volleyball Tournament was a success in stopping the problems that occurred in recent years. There were no signs of large corporate or private parties, no drunken crowds in the street, and no signs of public urination or private property damage. Staff believes that the mid-week event coupled with the short term rental ordinance were the two reasons that the event was successful in curtailing the problems.
Attendance this year for both the spectators and number of players teams dropped significantly. Contemporary Services Corporation (CSC) private security, hired by the City for crowd control, estimated the spectator crowd at 3,000-5,000 throughout the first day of competition compared to 60,000 last year.
Of concern to staff was the drop in team entries which were 60 compared to 120 last year, and 200 in previous years. Staff believes the number of teams dropped considerably because of the mid-week dates (requiring some to take time off from work to participate) and the high entry fee which was based on the previous year's cost estimates. Staff will base next year's entry fee on the new 2013 cost projections and sponsorship levels agreed upon by Beachsport (see Sponsorship for more information). There were a number of teams that struggled to pay the $1,000 entry fee. Many teams that registered months ahead of time were unable to field a team and therefore staff issued approximately 30 refunds. There were also a number of teams that merged two teams into one, and many of the teams which had 20 players in the past, ended up with approximately 10-12 players per team.
Staff (Police Department, CSC private security, Fire Department and Parks and Recreation) monitored the beach and the downtown areas throughout the event and into the evening. This year, the crowds of spectators and players on the beach were significantly less dense; crowds in the downtown area and beach were less than a typical summer weekend. There were no long lines at any of the restaurants, bars, coffee shops, or grocery stores as in years past. There were no reports of property damage, trespassing, public intoxication, or public urination as in years past.
Police personnel were a visible presence in the downtown and beach areas, with several officers walking the downtown area and contacting the businesses, checking in, and addressing issues or problems.
The number of parties in the downtown and beach area were greatly reduced this year to a few small parties along the Strand. In years past, numerous homes were rented out, each with hundreds of people that gathered, overflowing on walkstreets and the Strand. Staff believes that the implementation of the short term rental ordinance helped stop the problematic house parties this year.
Police contacted individuals who were openly consuming alcohol away from licensed premises and took proactive action. Arrests attributed to the Charlie Saikley Six-Man were down from 39 in 2011 to 4 in 2012 (3 were related to public intoxication).
Feedback from the Manhattan Beach downtown businesses was both positive and negative. The positive feedback included: no reported incidents, stores did not have to close early, and the focus was on the volleyball event, not on a drunken party. The negative feedback included: disappointment from restaurants due to the decrease in sales from previous years when the event was held on the weekend. The closing of the upper and lower Pier parking lots resulted in minimal parking spaces for attendees of the event and downtown patrons. The lack of available parking also resulted in low attendance at the Farmers Market, and frustrated patrons looking for parking.
Event Financial Information
Cost projections for the 2012 event were estimated at the same levels as the 2011 event. This was due to a lack of historical data for a weekday event; each department provided appropriate staffing levels to ensure safety for a large scale event.
As mentioned above, the event had $1,910 in net revenue from $96,951 in expenditures and $98,861 in revenue. The main reason the event generated net revenue was the cash contribution of $50,000 and sponsorship of 13 teams by Beachsport.
As actual event attendance was significantly lower than anticipated, staffing levels were reduced throughout the first day of the event, which resulted in a cost savings of approximately $60,000 below the 2011 event costs.
2013 Event
Staff has the following recommendations for the 2013 event for City Council consideration.
Move the Event to a Wednesday/Thursday
Even though this year's event was successful in eliminating the problems of recent past years and was breakeven financially, staff recommends a slight change for next year's event. Due to the parking impact on the Farmers Market, staff and the Downtown Business and Professionals Association suggest moving the tournament from Tuesday/Wednesday to Wednesday/Thursday. This should not present a change in impacts on the downtown area as it will still be held mid-week and enable the Farmers Market vendors and patrons ample parking during their regularly scheduled day. The Police Department will be staffing the 2013 Six-Man based on results of the 2012 event as long as there are no changes.
Sponsorship
Sponsorship of the 2012 event was provided by Beachsport, the International Surf Festival's contract fundraising agency. As in previous years, Beachsport provided a $15,000 insurance policy ($2,000,000 in coverage) for the event which covers the City of Manhattan Beach, provided the sound system and set up for the event, contributed a number of in-kind contributions (i.e. pallets of water, granola bars, etc.), and paid the entry fees for thirteen teams. In addition to the above services, Beachsport provided a one-time cash contribution of $50,000 to ensure that the Tournament would not be canceled.
For the 2013 event Beachsport would like to negotiate a new agreement. Beachsport would prefer a Sunday/Monday event either during the ISF or after Labor Day. Beachsport believes that there would be a slight increase in spectators, but that the number of teams would double from 60 to approximately 120 teams. Staff opposes a Sunday/Monday event at this time and is recommending Wednesday/Thursday.
2013 Finances
Staff would like to achieve a net neutral cost for the 2013 event, while maintaining a safe and orderly event. This can be achieved through further reduction in staff costs, an increase in the number of teams registering, and sponsorships to offset the cost of the event. Due to the significant decrease in attendance for a mid-week event, staffing for the 2013 Six-Man Tournament will be further scaled back, as shown in Attachment 1.
The projections for 2013 assume similar sponsorship revenue to 2012. The actual amount will be determined through negotiations. To the extent similar funding is not achieved, a City subsidy may be required to hold the event.
Conclusion:
Staff recommends that the City Council receive and file the report on the 2012 Six Man event; approve the 2013 Charlie Saikley Six-Man Beach Volleyball Tournament for Wednesday, July 31st and Thursday, August 1st event; and authorize the City Manager to negotiate a new sponsorship agreement with Beachsport for 2013 event.
Attachment:
1. Six Man 2012 Operational Costs & 2013 Estimated Cost