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Dunedin Keeps Full Event Fee Waiver

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By Mark  Schantz | The Suncoast News

Published: September 8, 2007

DUNEDIN, Fla. - DUNEDIN, Fla. - What a difference a few weeks makes.

Last month the City Commission was leaning toward making the nonprofit groups that sponsor some of Dunedin's signature events, such as Art Harvest, pay a bit more of some of the related costs.

Thursday night, however, commissioners had a change of heart.

In the end, they decided trying to reduce the city's costs associated with these events in the manner staff was proposing would do more harm than good.

Prior to Thursday's night reversal, commissioners asked staff to come up with a plan to reduce certain event-related costs the city has been waiving.

What the staff came up with was reducing the percentage of these fees the city agrees to forgo from 100 percent to 90 percent on an across-the-board basis. These costs primarily involve rental fees and the event-related work city employees do on regular time.

The city still bills organizers for things like staff overtime hours associated with the events, electricity charges and supplies costs.

For example, the Junior League of Dunedin/Clearwater, which puts on Art Harvest, is billed almost $9,000 for city staff overtime hours and other direct costs. The group also pays the cost of sheriff deputies to police the event.

The event attracts artists from all over the country and raises money for many local charities.

In a report to commissioners, Leisure Services Department staff calculated regular staff time and materials to put on the event impacts the city budget to the tune of $12,600.

Charges include striping the park for parking, placing barricades and having a park worker go to the shed, remove an electronic traffic sign and set it on the road.

The $12,600 is the sort of fee the city has been fully waiving and will continue to do so following Thursday night's commission meeting.

Last month, commissioners decided that since city departments have been asked to cut spending because of property tax rate reductions ordered by the state Legislature, the city may no longer be able to totally waive those fees. Even nonprofit groups must share the burden of city budget cutbacks, commissioners asserted at the time.

In response, staff recommended reducing the amount of total event-related fee waivers by 10 percent.

If the commission had gone along with this idea, the Junior League, for example, would have had to pay the city an additional $1,260 for Art Harvest.

Thursday night, however, Mayor Bob Hackworth noted cultural events such as Art Harvest attracts thousands of visitors to the city each November and have a big positive economic impact worth much more than the city's cost of doing business.

Felicia Leonard, a spokeswoman for the Junior League, said the economic benefit to the city from her event, which attracts about 40,000 spectators, brings an estimated $928,000 to the city.

Events such as Diabetes Challenge benefit worthy causes such as medical treatment and research and reducing the fee waiver would also reduce the revenue stream to groups served by these events, the mayor said.

"We are cutting our nose off to spite our face," Hackworth said.

Commissioner Julie Scales said she would hate to see these groups pack up and go somewhere else. She suggested the city work with these groups to trim event costs.

Peg Cummings, interim leisure services director, said the city is working with each group on cost reductions.

Thursday night commissioners granted full fee waivers to Art harvest and Diabetes Challenge.

They told staff to evaluate whether other events should receive the full fee waiver on the case-by-case basis.

Commissioners also asked that staff come up with suggestions on how to reduce the cost incurred by each group and the city.

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