TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Talyn Mirzakhanian, City Manager
FROM:
Mark Leyman, Parks and Recreation Director
Linda Robb, Senior Management Analyst
SUBJECT:Title
Consideration of Approving Fee Waivers Associated with Legacy Special Events for Fiscal Years 2026-2030 (Partially Budgeted) (Parks and Recreation Director Leyman).
(Estimated Time: 30 Mins.)
APPROVE
Body
_________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council approve the fee waivers associated with legacy special events for fiscal years 2026-2030.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
Per prior City Council direction, staff applied fully-burdened rates in determining the true costs associated with each special event request. Fully burdened rates include City overhead as well as direct costs to the City. These are the rates adopted by City Council in the resolution of fees. The funds to provide these services are budgeted annually within each of the affected City departments.
Any related equipment utilized is charged at the prevailing rental fee. Parking rates were calculated at $2.50 or $2.00 per hour depending on location.
The total requested fee waivers is $490,705, including approximately $75,869 in third-party costs contributing to the cost of events. Per the Special Events Policy, organizers are responsible for reimbursing the City for third-party costs unless granted an additional waiver by the City Council.
BACKGROUND:
Prior to 2003, City Council elected to exempt three events from paying City fees for special events. The Holiday Fireworks Festival, Manhattan Beach 10K Run, and the Little League Parade were considered special events of communitywide interest, too valuable to lose and too expensive for the City to implement by itself.
On April 7, 2009, the City Council approved 75% fee waivers for all “legacy” organizations (except the Holiday Fireworks Festival, Manhattan Beach 10K Run, and Little League Opening Day Parade who retained 100% waivers), and approved waiving all fees for legacy special events associated with the Manhattan Beach Unified School District, including the Manhattan Beach Wine Auction.
After six years of revisiting special event fee waivers for legacy events annually, the City Council felt that it was demonstrated that the fee waiver process was an effective way to acknowledge legacy organizations and their positive and beneficial impact on the community and residents. On March 17, 2015, the City Council approved five-year fee waivers for legacy special events to be in effect for fiscal years 2016-2020.
The City Council granted the Hometown Fair a 100% fee waiver instead of a 75% fee waiver on September 17, 2017.
At the July 17, 2018, City Council meeting, a revised Special Events Policy was approved, establishing a tiered approval process and clarifying that the fee waiver covers only City services and fees, making all third party costs the responsibility of the event organizers.
At the June 9, 2020, City Council meeting, the following actions were taken:
1. Fee waivers were approved for fiscal years 2021-2025 with the condition that the City Council revisit the waiver for any event if estimated costs increased by 10% or more.
2. North End Holiday Stroll was approved as a legacy event and was granted a 100% fee waiver for City services.
3. A cap of $10,000 per year was established for third-party expenses for the Holiday Fireworks.
On February 21, 2023, City Council approved legacy status for the Catalina Classic and Tour de Pier, granting a 100% fee waiver for City services for the Tour de Pier.
The Hometown Fair was approved for a $10,000 cap on public safety related expenses with a built-in annual CPI increase, as part of the ten-year agreement approved by City Council on August 1, 2023. The cap for FY 2026 is $10,609.
On August 6, 2024, the City Council approved waiver of third-party safety costs for the 2024 Manhattan Beach 10K. Security costs for the 2024 event totaled $6,028.
DISCUSSION:
Legacy events have been reviewed by all City departments with each department estimating necessary services based on past history and projected needs.
There are eleven legacy events currently receiving fee waivers.
EVENT Estimated FY2026 Fee Waiver
1. American Martyrs 5K (75%) $17,693
2. Little League Parade (100%) $ 522
3. Grand View Gator Run 5K (100%) $10,893
4. Tour de Pier (100%) $21,519
5. MBEF Wine Auction (100%) $12,014
6. Grand Prix Bike Race (75%) $16,506
7. Hometown Fair (100%) $117,221
8. MB 10K (100%) $90,781
9. American Martyrs Parish Fair (75%) $ 970
10. North Manhattan Beach Holiday Stroll (100%) $ 9,919
11. Holiday Fireworks (100%) $192,667
Total: $490,705
A summary of projected fee waivers along with a detailed breakdown of estimated costs by department are attached. City cost estimates include but are not limited to hardware and staffing costs; administration for event meetings and pre- and post-event inspection; use of City equipment, such as water barricades, sawhorses, and message boards; GIS mapping and cost of developing a traffic control plan.
Special events costs, especially those associated with public safety, continue to grow as event attendance expands. The level of security personnel is determined by the Police Department. In some cases, security costs may be reduced or eliminated by utilizing volunteers, but many of the event organizers have expressed difficulty in securing volunteers for this purpose.
As outlined in the Special Events Policy, third-party costs are the responsibility of event organizers. Final billing is based upon actual resources used during the event.
Staff is seeking direction on:
1. Continuing to offer the caps for public safety expenses to the MB10K and Holiday Fireworks and,
2. If the City Council would like to retain the 10% trigger for additional fee waiver review by City Council for fiscal years 2026-2030, or provide alternate direction to return for review if the event operator requests additional City Services in order to change or expand an event.
CONCLUSION:
Staff recommends that the City Council approve the fee waivers associated with legacy special events for fiscal years 2026-2030.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW:
The City has reviewed the proposed activity for compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and has determined that there is no possibility that the activity may have a significant effect on the environment; therefore, pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) of the State CEQA Guidelines the activity is not subject to CEQA. Thus, no environmental review is necessary.
LEGAL REVIEW:
The City Attorney has reviewed this report and determined that no additional legal analysis is necessary.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Fee Waiver Summary
2. Event Costs by Department
3. Special Events Policy
4. PowerPoint Presentation