Solvang votes to recover event costs
The
City of Solvang will begin recovering manpower costs incurred by the city for a
number of events, but will also exempt a number of other events from cost
recovery measures as those events provide a major boost to the city and its
businesses.
The
item was discussed at the July 14 city council meeting with directions to staff
at that time to bring the item back to the council at the July 28 meeting with
recommendations on which of the city’s events could be considered
“community-wide” and worthy of exemption from the cost recovery process.
In
a report by Public Works Director Tully Clifford, the type of costs that are
not on the table were those relating to the special event application fees, vendor
fees, or fees associated with functions undertaken by the sheriff’s department. Clifford added that the fees under consideration
are those that are associated with city staff undertaking activities to
facilitate special events. The main activity is the placement and removal of
traffic control devices such as barricades.
Clifford noted that a large portion of fees charged could be mitigated
if organizations that sponsored the events were to provide sufficient volunteers
to man the barricades and provide crowd and traffic control.
The
list of exempted events are to be: The Tour of California Bicycle Race, Danish
Days, Earth Day, Memorial Day Event, Rotary Club Independence Day Parade, and
the Winterfest event.
Other
events, including other bicycle events, the Datsun
Roadster Show, the Farmers’ Market, Fiero West Car
Show, Ranchos Visitadores parade, Solvang Jazz
Festival, Taste of Solvang, Theaterfest, West Coast
Greyhounds, Wheel’s ’n Windmills Car Show, and the Wine Country Half Marathon
will be charged fees for city services.
In
other discussion, the council discussed proposed rehabilitation to First Street
between Mission Drive and Copenhagen Drive. Council members listened to a
presentation by the public works director describing the basic plan of repaving
and eliminating the curbing at the street area next to Solvang Park.
A
conceptual drawing was provided to the council that described one possible
alternative to the area that would make it a pedestrian-only area. Council
members had reservations about going forward with the preliminary enablement of
that plan, preferring instead the less expensive and already planned option of
a paving overlay and rehabilitation of the sidewalks that have been in need of
repair.
The
council voted 4-1 (Jackson dissenting) to go forward with the basic fix to the
First Street area.