TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Mark Danaj, City Manager
FROM:
Mark Leyman, Parks and Recreation Director
Linda Robb, Management Analyst
SUBJECT:Title
Request by City Councilmember Montgomery to Discuss the Hometown Fair Special Event Fee Waiver (Parks and Recreation Director Leyman).
DISCUSS AND PROVIDE DIRECTION
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Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the City Council discuss and provide direction for a request by City Councilmember Montgomery to discuss the Hometown Fair special event fee waiver.
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FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
The City Council currently provides a 75% fee waiver for the Hometown Fair (Attachment 1). The estimated event costs for the event are $58,285, with a fee waiver of $43,714. If a 100% fee waiver is approved, the budget impact will be an additional $14,571.
BACKGROUND:
The City Council approved the Special Event Fee Waivers at the March 17, 2015 City Council meeting (Attachment 2), which were approved for a five-year term, ending in 2020.
At the March 17, 2015 meeting, staff recommended that the City Council approve 100% fee waivers for the Manhattan Beach 10K Run, the Holiday Fireworks Festival, Little League Opening Day Parade, the Manhattan Beach Education Foundation (Wine Auction) and events associated with the Manhattan Beach Unified School District. A 75% fee waiver was recommended for all other “legacy” organization events including the Manhattan Beach Hometown Fair, American Martyrs Parish Fair, American Martyrs 5K, Manhattan Beach Grand Prix Bike Race and the Richstone Pier-to-Pier Walk.
DISCUSSION:
At the September 5, 2017 City Council meeting, Councilmember Montgomery requested that staff bring the Hometown Fair fee waiver for City Council discussion to consider providing a 100% fee waiver.
The Manhattan Beach Hometown Fair has been in existence for 45 years. This is a co-sponsored City event, with involvement from all City departments. The City works in collaboration with the Hometown Fair Board, which includes 20 volunteer board members. The event is held the first weekend in October and includes a parade, 3 stages where over 30 local groups perform, a venue for amateur artists to display their work, more than 100 food and game booths run by non-profit organizations, blocks of arts and craft exhibitors, a whole area of free entertainment for kids, and over a hundred volunteers. Proceeds from the event benefit local non-profit organizations.
The Hometown Fair Board President sent a letter requesting a 100% fee waiver, asking to restore the 100% fee waiver that was in place prior to 2009 (Attachment 3). The board has shared that the costs to operate the event continue to escalate and they are concerned that one year of bad weather may eliminate financial reserves. Further, the board asks that they receive the 100% fee waiver similar to the MB 10K Run, Fireworks and MBEF, as they provide a similar community benefit, and contribute to local non-profit organizations.
A five-year history of charges is attached (Attachment 4) which shows a breakdown of Department costs ranging from $11,066 to $23,671. These fees do not include direct expenses such as electrical and CSC Security.
Attachments:
1. Special Event Fee Waiver Financials
2. Special Event Fee Waiver Staff Report
3. Hometown Fair Fee Waiver Request Letter
4. Five-Year Financial Summary for the Hometown Fair