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>> Northport stories and living will be monthly. >> A schedule will be available on social media and our website. Hello everyone, Devon Pulis here, aquatics manager. Welcome to my crib. We have fun here at the crib. Programs
included. Become a pass member. Play all year long. Hayer at the crib. We do have rules. We take all payments here at the crib. Apple Pay, Mastercard, [music] Visa, cash. You pay right here to enjoy the crib. Enter through the gate. Child proof.
Most adult proof shade. What's that? Our newly installed sun shade available for rent all season long. Here at my crib, you don't have to worry about a place to find a seat. We've added more [music] chairs than ever here
at the crib. If you're coming to enjoy the cribs and you got little ones, we got [music] the perfect area for them. Our Pelican playground, newly painted, fresh floor, fresh palm tree. It's looking clean. Looking for [music] a place to work your
upper body? Take a shot here at our stingray shuffle. Looking to relax? I got you covered here with Good morning. Today is Monday, February 2nd, 2026. It's 10:00 a.m. We're in the city chambers and I call the city commission
workshop meeting to order. Commissioners present are Commissioner Duval, Commissioner Stokes, Mayor Em, Vice Mayor Langden, and Commissioner Pro. There is a quorum present for this meeting. Also present are city manager Fletcher, city attorney Fuino, uh deputy
city clerk Powell, board specialist Linder, uh police chief Garrison, and deputy fire chief Lane. I'm going to call on Miss Linder if she would lead us in the pledge today. I pledge algiance to the flag of the
United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. >> Thank you. City clerk public comment. We do have a
couple. Joseph Ciso. >> Yes. [clears throat] Good morning. >> Morning. >> I believe some of you already know me from my previous uh comments to the commission and I'm here about the warm mineral
springs. Have a few suggestions and a few observations. the way the commentary is structured. The first we comment, then the commission comments. And I'd like to respond to something Barbara Langden said last July about most residents of
Northport don't know anything about War Mineral Springs and don't care about it. And so why should you support it? I pay school tax. My oldest child is 30. My youngest child rather is 37 years old. Lives in a different city.
I pay for other parks to be maintained and it doesn't seem very fair to me or very kind that the same attention wouldn't be given to the warm mineral springs. There are hundreds of people who moved here from around the country to build their
retirement around those springs and they bought houses to rent and they do their shopping and they pay their taxes and it seems like the whole pricing structure which I know is not under
consideration right this moment but the city is not full of rich people a lot of fixed incomes and raising the prices which are already kind of high frankly is not going to attract more
patronage. [snorts] Accordingly, uh me and other people who brainstorm this issue think that the annual pass >> [snorts] >> ought to be restored as a visitor's
pass. 360 passes and therefore we could bring guests and every time a guest comes one pass gets knocked off and so people first of all it put a lot of money in the bank in the first place. Second of all people would
be buying more often if they brought guests and the the the 360 days went down to whatever it is lower. I think it'd be useful Let me say it like this. The present administration
on the federal level has needlessly antagonized our closest allies, Europeans and Canadians. And Florida is projected to suffer a $6 billion shortfall during this season
because not only haven't they come, but they won't be coming back if they find someplace else that's that's more inviting and more accommodating and the Caribbean and Mexico and uh what was that country next to Spain? My
memory isn't everything it should. >> Thank you, sir. >> Thank you, sir. Time's up. >> Thank >> morning. Thanks for the opportunity to allow me to speak. Uh, you know, I also feel as though the pricing structure changes that were made
for this current budget and in the future are a little exorbitant for the people on fixed incomes and for the north residents who are paying all kinds of other taxes. I'd like to see the commission consider additional discounts for senior citizens, which was bypassed the last
time we had this round. Uh, I'd like to see more improvements at the park that are visible improvements. I don't know where our money is going, but it's pretty hard to see where it's being spent. And I think a lot of people, from what I hear at the lake, are all complaining where where's the increased
prices money going to improve our our time here? Um, you know, I don't see any improvements to chairs. They took away all the bamboo and let put grass, nothing to replace it. We just don't see a lot of improvements or the money being spent wisely. So, I beg the commission
to take into consideration pricing, how the money is being spent, and how to attract people, not turn them away by raising the prices. Thank you. >> That is all, Mr. Mayor. >> Thank you, sir. All right. Moving on to
general business discussion and possible direction regarding the fee structure for Warmmental Springs located at 12200 San Bondo Avenue, Northport, Florida 34287. City Manager, this is your item. >> Thank you, Mr. Mayor. We have a
presentation that our director of parks and recreation, Sandy Funhiller, will lead us through and then have time for questions. >> Good morning, everyone. Sandy Funh Hiller, parks and recreation director. Um, no presentation um specific to this, but we do have the information that was
brought forward when we did talk about the fees uh when we made the changes. Uh, we also have some information that we could bring up on uh past sales for the last couple fiscal years. Uh but during the July 8th 2025 city commission
regular meeting ordinance number 2020 2025-14 was introduced to amend the code of the city of Northport appendix a city fee schedule and the parks and recreation department presented u a phased plan with proposed adjustments to the
multi-visit pass fees at War Mineral Springs Park and we also created a new rate category for Sarasota County residents. Following discussion, commission unanimously approved a motion to continue the ordinance to a second reading incorporating the proposed War
Mineral Springs fiscal year 2026 rate and discount changes and the new rate categories for the Sarasota County residents. The ordinance was passed on second reading on July 22, 2025. At that time, direction was also provided to bring
back for further consideration the fee schedule for War Mineral Springs and to put together information for the public. In response, parks and recreation staff launched a public outreach campaign to inform patrons and visitors to Warm Middle Springs Park of the upcoming fee
structure changes, including the discontinuation of the annual pass uh which happened on September 30th, 2025. And that was as um in response to the fact that there were no sales for the annual passes. As part of the outreach, patrons were
encouraged to contact staff with questions or concerns, and several in-person meetings were held between our parks and recreation staff and individual patrons to discuss their concerns, clarify changes, and gather their input. As a result um partially of
that outreach campaign campaign, we did sell a total of eight annual resident passes during the month of September. Um as a reminder, the changes that were implemented October 1st included a reduction of the discount applied to the
30 visit pass going from 66.67% to 50%. addition of a new discounted rate category for Sarasota County residents and then removal of the annual pass category. Um we did have a handful of patrons that took the opportunity to
come talk to staff. Um concerns that they brought forward uh were about limited financial flexibility and an increased sensitivity to changes in pricing and fees for seniors on fixed income. Um, they wanted an emphasis on keeping fees affordable for the core population
of patrons that only come for the water. There was interest in tailored discounts beyond the existing past discounts to recognize military service and age base needs. There were suggestions for incentives such as reduced rates,
weekday only usage or charge a premium of two passes two pass visits for weekend entry. Um, some patrons were unaware of the annual pass um and others found it unaffordable. There was a suggestion to extend the
pass validity longer than the current 180day limit uh to support international visitors and there was interest in seasonal promotions um such as buy 1 get one offers. Um, at this time, staff continues to support the recommendations
that we made back on July 8th, 2025, along with the phased rate plan that was presented. Um, if there's interest in modifying the fee structure currently in place, we did provide several alternative options. Option one was to reactivate the annual pass at the fisc
year 25 rates while maintaining the current multivas multipass structure and pricing. Option two was to reactivate the annual pass with an updated pricing and additional eligibility tiers to that annual pass for um city resident
Sarasota County resident senior veteran. Option three was incorporate improved flexibility and promotional incentives to current multi-visit pass structure and pricing based on discussion um and direction today. staff would need to develop any
new fee structures for review and consideration and subsequently prepare an amended ordinance um for the city city fee schedule. Um like I said, we have a copy of that plan if you want to um reference that. We also have our sales data for the passes for the first
um quarter of 26 as well as back to 24 and 25. Um we can pull those up to reference if you'd like. With that, I can answer questions. >> Okay. Anybody? Commissioner Deval, please. [snorts] Thank you, Mayor
Director. Uh I was looking at the the data sheet and from fiscal year 24 to fiscal year 25 I noticed that the 30 visit nonresident
passes that were sold for each quarter of 2025. The number significantly increased from 2024. Can you possibly explain to me, you know, any reason why we had that big
increase? >> Sure. I I'll let our aquatics manager, Devon Pulos, address that. >> For the record, Devon Pulos, aquatics manager. So, [clears throat] in uh fiscal year 25, the residency changed. So, the surrounding area around the Springs is actually unincorporated
Sarasota County. So, that's why the non-resident passes increased. >> Okay. Thank you for that. Um, also before the meeting started, uh, piece of paper was put in front of each of us. I presume I got one. Um, it's
from a Mr. Jud Jud Roth. Um, and he had sent us an email. I brought that with me also. and you know basically asking for discounts for the most loyal customers.
Um I looked up Mr. Roth's address and it's not in the city of Northport and the property is not Homestead.
Um, and the point I'm getting at here is whatever we do with pricing here, I think we have to give a little better discount, if you will, to people that live in the city of Northport and pay
taxes here. Uh, there's a lot of people that do live around the area, but it's unincorporated Sarasota County. Um, and a lot of them are, you know, quote unquote, we use the term snowbirds a lot
here in Florida. Um, and I just want to try to ensure that we're being very mindful of the people that do pay taxes in the city. >> Absolutely. Uh, we have the first um the
highest discounted category is to Northport residents. Then it goes to the Sarasota County residents, which is what we did to to include that area. Um, and then it is to non-residents. >> Okay. Thank you.
>> Commissioner Commissioner Dval, you done? >> I'm done. Yes. >> Uh, Vice Mayor, >> uh, thank you, mayor. What's the maximum capacity for Warm Mineral Springs? I forget. How many bodies can we jam into
the spring? >> It I I'm gonna let um Devon respond to that, but it's not about how many bodies we can jam in. It's more about how we can maintain safety there in the water with the lifeguards. So, >> yes. >> Yes. So, aquatics manager Devon Pulis
for the record. Um so yes uh we typically um when we get around the 600 number is when we start limiting um um as director funeller said there uh there's safety uh lifeguards making sure we can maintain uh control out at the springs um from there not saying we've
not seen numbers you know that doesn't include the people sitting on the grass area things like that but that's number in the water. >> Thank you for that. Um what kind of impact have we seen in the reduction in
international visitors to the springs? Do we have an estimate of that? >> So um you know we love our data over here. Um and uh with this for um October through December of um last fiscal year
we saw 30,075 people through the doors at War Mineral Springs. Um the same time this fiscal year we're at 36,201. >> Okay. >> So um the the numbers have gone up.
>> Where are the numbers coming from? >> Is that so the increase where where are those folks coming from? County, city? We we don't we don't track um specific addresses, but we could tell you a
resident to non-resident percent. >> Yeah. So, uh the resident to non-resident percent uh that we're seeing currently right now, we have 59% are uh non-residents, 8% are Sarasota County, 30% are residents. Um and and
that extra 3% comes from charter buses under the age of five, rain checks. >> Right. Right. And what's the time frame? Yeah, I saw those numbers. What's the time frame for collecting those percentages? Just since we put in >> uh this the current ones I just gave you
were for the current fiscal year that we're in. >> So October through December. So, fiscal year 20 six. Okay. Thank you. >> Commissioner Petro. >> Uh thank you. Uh just a quick question
since you took some uh feedback from the residents and the people who talked to you about the discounted tier. Um uh have you looked into or do you have any recommendation what would would it be for like a senior citizen and the age
cut off like 65 is 10% off 70 is 35 whatever just making up those. >> Yeah. >> But uh have you thought about this? U >> uh we have that in one of the options. Uh if you want to look at the senior and veteran discounts, we would recommend only doing that on the annual pass
because right now the multi- vvisit passes are having are receiving a steep discount. So if you add a senior or veteran discount on top of that, um it would not make much sense to the admission fee. So we think you can do it
to the annual pass. Um but we would need to do those calculations to make sure everything aligns. So if a senior comes and visits once a month, I wouldn't be logical for that person to get an annual pass. But
>> no, they they would get a multi-visit pass and already those are deeply discounted at 50% off the standard admission rate. [clears throat] >> That's all. Oh yeah,
>> vice mayor. >> No, >> I've seen you up there. >> Look, now >> now have you had any interest in the annual pass since we've taken it away. You said we had no sales before, but >> yeah. So, when we did the outreach
campaign to talk about um how it was changing and the fact that it was going to go away, um we did have eight annual passes that were sold in September uh of 2025. Um so, uh many of them said we didn't know that it was still available.
Um so, we would recommend bringing that back. We can do that with the um annual fee ordinance that we do as part of budget. Um or we could do that earlier um to have it in place in September. I think the question would be do we want
to bring it back at the fiscal year 25 rates or do do we want to calculate that based on the phased plan that we put together and presented to you? >> Right. I got you on that. Um what else was I going to say?
Where we're at now with our fees, does staff feel that they are adequate at this time moving forward if we were to re reactivate that annual pass? you know, for maintenance and coverage and everything that we're doing out there. >> Yeah, I we we still support the plan
that we brought forward and we would look at um making changes for fiscal year uh 27 coming up according to that plan. Um, of course, we would run all the numbers again. Um, right now our projected fund balance uh for September
30th of 26 is almost 1.7 million. Um, so we are um able to take um the money that's invested there, put it into that account um which is going to help us with the building renovations that we're doing um which right now uh we just
reviewed the 50% construction plans so we are getting very close to um being able to pull the trigger on that. >> Any timeline on how soon? >> We're hoping um end of March we should have a a GMP for that and be able to
bring that forward. >> Yeah. I just like, you know, letting the citizens know that we are working on it and then we are moving forward and it should be coming very shortly. So I appreciate that information. >> I remembered my question. >> Oh, you did. [laughter]
>> Thank you. One of my questions was exactly that. When were we going to start seeing the improvements? So I'm happy. >> Not soon enough. >> Not soon [clears throat] enough, but it's coming. Um, now the city took over control of the springs from the county
in 2014, [clears throat] >> correct? >> How many price increases have we had since 2014? >> We didn't have any price increases until this past year. >> Thank you. >> And
I don't see anything else. Do we have any public comment? No public comment, Mr. Mayor. >> Thank you. I'll look for consensus. >> I'll give it a shot. >> Go right ahead. you would like um
I'd like a consensus to direct city manager to reactivate the annual PRA pass at fiscal year 2025 rates while maintaining the current multi-visit pass structure and pricing
um and bring back an ordinance for commission review. All right, we have a consensus on the floor to direct the city manager to reactivate the annual pass at fiscal year 2025 rates while maintaining current multi-visit pass structure and
pricing and bring back an ordinance for commissioner view. Commissioner Duval, >> I agree. >> Commissioner Stokes. I'm a yes. I'm a yes. Vice Mayor, >> yes. >> Okay. And that passes unanimously.
>> Thank you. Thank you very much. Moving on to our next item, discussion and possible direction regarding changes to the citywide sponsorship policy. City manager, this is your item. >> Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Uh we still have our director of park recreation
services, director Sandy Funeller, here to lead us to the conversation. >> Thank you. >> Double dipper. [laughter] Uh, the citywide sponsorship policy was adopted as an administrative policy under resolution 2019 R-05 during the
May 2nd, 2019 city commission special meeting. Um, while sponsorships were accepted prior to this, um, sponsorship procurement methods varied across departments and there was not a consistent structure for managing,
approving, and tracking applications for sponsorships. Uh since this policy was adopted, the city's been fortunate to have a positive response from businesses and organizations at all sponsorship levels, as well as recurring presenting sponsors, including Quality TV, American
Irrigation, Sunost Credit Union, Achieve Credit Union, and Resurrection Pools. For reference, presenting sponsor opportunities are currently offered uh for the Freedom Festival, Trick-or- Treat at City Hall, Poinsetta Parade, and Poinsetta Festival.
Uh the the policy serves three main purposes. To establish a formal structure that can be applied citywide to create mutually beneficial relationships with businesses, organizations, nonprofits whose services, products, and messages align with the mission and values of the city
of Northport and to maximize community resources. The overall objective of the sponsorship program is to provide a non-public forum for sponsorship opportunities and additional sources of financial inind can enhance the city's ability to to
deliver events, activities, programs, and public spaces. Uh, as noted in the staff summary, the policy has not been updated since its adoption seven years ago. Yet, our special events have grown in both scale and impact. In response,
staff are proposing revisions to the existing tier structure as well as updates to the policy language. Uh to review in more detail, I'm going to ask Kim Lensky, our community partnership and engagement manager, uh to come up and take you through that.
Good morning, [snorts] Kim Msky, community partnership and engagement manager. One of the main driving factors for the policy change is to allow our sponsorship structure to scale alongside the growth of our events. Since the sponsorship policy was adopted in 2019,
the city of Northport has grown at a rate of 31%. In 2019, we had 73,652 residents and today we have 96,31. As the community has grown, participation in city- hosted events has expanded as well. This increase is
reflected in signature events such as Poinsetta Parade and Festival, which drew 5,200 attendees in 2019 and welcomed more than 12,200 attendees this past year. Sponsorship should have a clear intentional benefit showing how
investments connect to the event experience along with consistent pricing logic and ensures fairness and transparency. Because our events vary in size and resources, this flexibility allows staff to create additional pathways that
direct that directly enhance event programs, [snorts] public spaces, and events. This approach also helps ensure our offering remains relevant, competitive, and continue to align with the city's mission and vision.
This slide is really about creating a shared understanding and making sure that we're all speaking the same language when we're talking about these terms. Sponsorship is defined as an individual, business, or nonprofit providing financial or inind sponsor or support.
Sponsorship is a mutually agreed exchange of value, financial or inind where a sponsor receives specific recognition or marketing benefits for a defined term. Sponsorship opportunity is a city organized event activity program or
space offered for sponsorship. Income donation or cash on cash goods, materials or services supporting city initiatives including volunteer hours. Today staff is presenting five sponsorship levels which include event
presenting, event feature, event tiered, amenity, public space or facility and inind. The intent behind the proposed sponsorship levels is to create a flexible structure that matches the diversity of our events, programs and
public spaces. Defined levels will provide clarity around recognition, exclusivity, and contribution ranges while still allowing customization where it makes sense. Changes include the introduction of a
feature sponsorship and expansion of the amenity sponsorship to allow businesses to invest in a specific element of an event or public space, creating a more targeted opportunity for the sponsor. As mentioned, our signature events have
grown significantly in attendance and the scope since the policy was adopted in 2019. The updates proposed for the presenting sponsorship would allow our sponsorship structure to scale alongside that growth so opportunities remain appropriate and
manageable as events evolve. for the presenting sponsorship level. One sponsor per event, transitioning the poinsetta parade and festival to a singular spons presenting sponsor for both events. Continue to provide a prominent name placement, high
visibility recognition, and exposure. We continue to um have a first right of renewal commitment. However, requesting this be reduced from 274 days to 120 days as we have found that the sponsors find it challenging to meet this
commitment so far in advance and cannot meet this deadline. This still gives the team enough time to fulfill the sponsorship should we need to. Currently, presenting sponsors have a flat contribution of $2,000. The staff
is suggesting a contribution range of $4,000 to $10,000 based on the event scale aligning with the percentage of direct costs of the event as well as the value of benefit delivered to the sponsor. The feature sponsor is a new proposed
level. It is tied to a specific element or amenity within the event, allowing businesses to support something highly visible and meaningful while receiving focused exclusive recognition. The sponsorship would be limited to one
per spons or one per feature or amenity. There would be an exclusive recognition for the specific feature or amenity within the event. So, for an example, a kids zone signage could say this is uh kids zone is sponsored by and the sponsor's name.
Sponsors would have the first right of renewal with a commitment of at least the proposed 120 days prior to the following year's event. And it suggested that the contribution range of 2,000 to $6,000 be set, aligning with the percentage of the cost associated with
the specific feature or amenities for the event. The existing tiered sponsorship levels continue to provide value as they allow businesses of varying sizes and budgets to support city events while receiving consistent and appropriate recognition.
Currently, we have three tiers. Gold at $1,000, silver at $500, and bronze at $250. This will continue however generalizing the name so that they can be personalized according to event themes which you'll see in a later example
as well. It is a proposed it is proposed that the tier one and two levels remain the same and increase the tier three contribution from $250 to $350. We would continue to define recognition benefits that scale up based on contributions and currently there are no
limits on the number of sponsors per level. Staff is proposing that we cap on the number of sponsors per tier to maintain value of the sponsorship which would ensure equitable visibility for each sponsor. Amenity sponsorship support a specific
facility space and public facing feature allowing sponsors to contribute directly to spaces the community uses every day. These connect the sponsors investment directly with the tangible community asset offering consistent locationbased visibility. This is currently limited to
one sponsor per amenity and staff proposed to keep this the same. While the amenity sponsors are currently available at the Northport Aquatic Center for amenities such as scoreboard and water slides, staff is proposing that this be extended to include spaces
such as teen lounge, splash pad, and other public spaces. The recognition associated with the specific amenity through static signage and promotional mentions with high visibility to patron on a daily basis would remain. However, staff is proposing a seasonal time frame
or a prime visibility window based on the amenity or location as opposed to a one-year term. The current contribution is a flat $5,000, which would be reduced to a flat contribution of $2,500 to align with the
time frame and to keep the sponsorship affordable. In kind donations would remain the same, except them them accepting them if they're a necessary component of the event, activity, or program. Volunteer hours would still be considered as an inind donation.
This is an example of what a sponsorship marketing kit could look like. Under the updated policy, it would clearly define the event, provide a brief event overview, and define the sponsorship level, contribution, and deliverables. Information would be listed on the
city's website literature, and would be updated annually to ensure transparency of both deliverables and the contribution. It's suggested that each contribution level be calculated based on two variables, a percentage of cost recovery and the value of the benefit they're
receiving. This is an example of how the tiers would look under the customized event. Here we're showing the Freedom Festival with the tiers being named All-American, Heartland, and Homeland instead of the generic gold, silver, and bronze.
Provisions detailed within the policy include the sponsorship application, which would be produced annually to reflect responsibilities of the cities of the city and the sponsor. clarification of payment and first right of renewal timeline so the city can responsibly plan and execute the
sponsorships in a timely manner. A clear understanding that editorial control remains with the city and to be sure all messaging on city property is appropriate, consistent, and aligns with our standards. And finally defining prohibited content as you see it here.
Thank you. With that, we're here to answer any questions. Commissioners, questions. [snorts] Commissioner Dval. >> Thank you, Mayor. I had a question about uh underneath
the idea of public spaces. Would not a fence around a ballpark be considered a public space? I think it's it's going to be considered whatever we put into the policy. Um so if we identify those when we say we
would have um annually um something available that shows what those are, that's what we would offer. Um we would not be looking at a a fence for something like that. We would be looking at the splash pad where someone wants to
put a sign up um for a seasonal amount of time as being a feature or as being an amenity sponsor of that location. We've had interest in the teen lounge at the Morgan Center where someone wants to um sponsor that for a period of time. Um
so we would be looking at at I guess more of a structure than a than a fence. >> Okay. Well, all right. So let me just ask in addition to this like um
you know at say at the mortgage center you know any of the any of the fields that have fences around them do we allow and rent or sell space for signs you know for advertisers? We we don't we
allow the leagues that are there um to put up banners as long as they are facing inward to the field. Um I believe still by city code you cannot have banners that are facing outward towards the street.
So yes, we could take that over and and make that a city function of selling the banners, but right now that is a major fundraising um effort for our youth leagues. Okay. Thank you,
>> Commissioner Proed. >> Thank you, Mayor. A quick question about presenting sponsor. So, the flood fee from 2000 is going to be scaled up to 4,000 to 10,000 based on event scale. How would you
determine the scale of event? How do you justify this jump from two to four? A range of four to $10,000. >> Sure. So, what we're looking at, and I I'll let Kim speak to it too, um is really right now what is the industry
standard. We're looking at how many people are coming to the event. Um for example, she had shown that um when we first started this policy, we only had 5,500 attendees at an event, which is now at 12,200 attendees. Um it's also
the cost of the event. Um we know that we are looking at some um uh issues financially um especially with the general fund and special events do come out of the general fund. Um so we be we would be looking to offset those costs a little bit more with a a percentage of
the direct event cost. Um not the total cost of event just the direct costs. Um and then also talking about the exposure that that uh uh business or individual is getting. um there's a value to everything that we're providing them, the marketing that is going out. Um and
[clears throat] um Kim can speak to that a little bit more. >> So based on some research that I've done on events with similar size and attendees, the sponsorships ranged within the ranges that we're presenting here. So like director had said using
that um sort of formula to align using the ranges of the percentage of cost plus the direct marketing value that we're providing using an average CMP um rate. I'm seeing that we're delivering roughly $12,000 in marketing
deliverables. So our alignment of our current sponsorship value to where we're asking through that range is vast. So we're looking to kind of bring that in. >> So [clears throat] not only to cover direct cost but my question also is will
this be uh reduce the demand if we raise that much? That's my that's my concern is if we raise it that much will have will we have less demand less people trying to get that? >> I can't answer that question um because
it's going to be based on um who we approach. I think it would change our strategic approach to who we're asking for the sponsorships, but in this policy that we're moving forward, um the sponsorships alignment, the the range
isn't going to jump them significantly unless we're talking about a freedom festival. That's where we're seeing the biggest gaps in our our current policy. >> And uh next question, amenity sponsor.
Uh we are doing from Oh, you're recommending from flood from 5,000 to 2500 as what is the logic behind that? >> Yeah, it's the price point. So when I'm
out asking um sponsors to look at these amenities in comparison, we're just overpriced. >> Okay. So demand is not as much as correct want it to be. Okay. and the feature sponsor. That's the new thing you are proposing.
>> Yeah. So, what we see when we're going out to address sponsor potentials, um they're looking for very specific items to tie their dollars to. So, that will give them a very clear vision of what they're purchasing and tying their sponsorship dollars to.
>> So, going to amend sponsor public space. >> Mhm. [clears throat] >> Um it's 2500. Do you think we can lower that to attract more people or if this is justified? What if we do thousand and get >> if that was the commission's wish? >> Yeah. >> But I don't know.
>> I think it's all tied. I think we have a good formula here basing it on the impressions if you will or the amount of people seen at each of these locations and the time window that we had spoken about. I think it's a fair value. Have
you had any feedback from u potential or actual sponsors that this would be a justified price of 2500 or >> we didn't speak directly about cost. >> Okay. Well, somehow you know that 5,000 is too much. >> Yes.
>> Because it was any complaint >> they would go towards a different amenity or a sponsorship. >> Okay. >> Okay. I guess yeah, we can try 25. What are your thoughts directly? >> Uh, well, we set it at 5,000. Uh, I believe we had maybe one or two since we
did that. Um, we had a scoreboard uh sponsor at the aquatic center when we first opened. I I think people are just feeling like that's too much money. Um, but if we're thinking to reduce it, but also reduce that time frame that they're
out there to really the season that that makes most sense. and at the aquatic center would be not right now. Um, we're talking about uh pretty much the spring uh through the fall. So, they're getting the most exposure, the most people through those doors um to see that
whatever signage is there recognizing them as a sponsor. >> And another question is I take that many businesses don't even know that we provide these marketing services. How do you market your marketability for them
that they can advertise themselves? >> How do I get So, I attend certain um community events. I do a lot of community outreach. I attend um if I'm a guest at like a BNI or um our chamber event. So, I try to be sort of the feet
on the street and be our city ambassador to let them know that we have these services available. >> We also do a we also do a um email. Um we have a a 30 6090 uh time frame that we do with um cold outreach to
businesses. We have a business list. Um so we're either following up by email, phone call, or going out to those um networking events and businesses to talk about what we do and what we have to offer. >> Does the city of CH uh chamber um
commerce chamber, I'm sorry. Do they provide this service of advertisement of on the behalf of the city if you will like do they advertise that there's a possibility for the businesses to market themselves?
>> Um they do help. Um so we sort of act as each other's ambassadors. They'll promote what we have to offer and I'll promote what they have to offer. Just wanted to know that there's an option for the commerce to kind of put it out so people can see like a
>> Yes, I utilize their tools. So, if I want a social post, I'll um tap into them and they'll help push that messaging out. I utilize their chat uh chamber chatter box to help push the messaging out >> or maybe a flyer, a piece of paper.
>> They have some rules that they follow, but um they're pretty good to me. >> Okay. That's it. Thank you, >> Vice Mayor. >> Yeah, I I had similar questions about our marketing outreach for sponsorships.
Um, [clears throat] do we make a deliberate effort to market to companies not located here, but who do business here? >> We do. Yeah. Um, I work closely with the business economic team for here and then
we do our own prospecting outside of the Northport area. >> Okay, good. Do we have a specific goal for our signature events or do we have a dollar goal that we're measuring our success against or are we trying to
achieve a certain, you know, percentage of direct cost offset? How do how do we know when our efforts are being successful? >> I look at what we've done in the past and I'm always trying to achieve more than that. Um, but usually it's a
combination of need and uh cost recovery. So I use those percentages to sort of set a goal for myself in particular as to achieve for each event. and and that goal is documented in budget.
>> Um because we do have to budget for the revenue coming in. Um so so that really is the goal as a whole for sponsorships. There's a dollar amount that we say we're trying to reach for the year. Um so that's in an annual budget.
>> So just a a rough estimate for a program like the poinsetta parade or the poinsetta festival. Do we have a sense of at what percent of the direct cost of doing that event we're able to offset?
>> Um, currently it's roughly 10%. >> That's it. >> Well, since since you brought up the poinsetta parade and the festival, currently we have two separate sponsors. >> One for the parade and one for the festival. Now on the slides there, are
you I can't remember which one, but are you going to combine them to a single sponsor? >> That is our intention. >> And and my question is is also if we currently have two, who's the one that's going to have the first right of
renewal? >> So we would look to um give that first right of renewal to Quality TV. they've been a presenting sponsor um the longest um even before this policy went in place. I believe they were one of our our first sponsors um when I started
here. Um and they that was in u I believe 2013 is when they signed on um so it was prior to the policy but um that's how we would approach it because they they do have that historical connection there. Um and then we would offer the other sponsor a different opportunity.
>> No, and I appreciate that. But I just wanted to get that on the record for clarity. So >> yeah, and that's feedback that we heard from our our sponsor, Quality TV, is that um they would like it to be one sponsor for the event. Um there were always two events. Um way back they were
two different events. We put them on the same day and then the advertising then made sense so as not to confuse everybody that yes, they were happening on the same day. So the advertising was together, but they truly are two different events. Um, but if we look at
it with that feedback to say it's a bigger event, over 12,000 people are coming now. >> Sure. No, and it's a great event, don't get me wrong. I just want to, you know, give credit where credit works, you know, and and Mike has been a very big sponsor for many years and and I just
wanted to make sure that we were going that route. So, thank you. Uh, Commissioner Petro. >> Uh, thank you, Mayor. Uh, question regarding annual budget um target amount since you brought it up. How much was it budgeted for as a revenue and how much
did we um got in as an actual revenue for the past two years for example? If you can break it by >> 198 >> I believe my total budget was 198 and I brought in 18850
>> in in cash contributions. When you talk about inind, we're closer to between 30 and 40,000 um in in kind contributions throughout the year to the events. >> Vice Mayor, >> yeah, just quickly um I want to thank
you. I really like having a clear structure so we can make sure we're [clears throat] giving everyone equal opportunity and we're we're sort of working with folks consistently. So, I really applaud you for tackling um this
this uh specific policy. Um and I like your creation of new categories. I was sort of thinking naming rights, but I guess that would be what did you call it? Not assets, but >> we we would if you if if commission's
desire was to look at a naming right policy, that would be a whole different animal and we would come back with a separate um discussion on that because that would involve um a contractual agreement, right? >> Um for that >> and for a period of time. I mean the two
facilities I have in mind are Woman or Springs um and the aquatic center. You know to give someone naming rights for the year and right right now having a naming right of the aquatic center
would not be a great marketing ploy. So you guys can sort of figure out the details of that. But those are two really big amenities. Um, and so a company given an annual naming right to that would get a lot of exposure. Um,
and I I I think what I'm hearing is we we can clearly justify raising some of those sponsorship fees because as we say in direct marketing, the number of eyeballs um seeing those marketing messages has
really dramatically increased over the past five ten years. So, well done. I really like it. >> Thank you. >> I'm done. >> Good. [clears throat] >> Uh, city clerk, public comment.
>> We do have one. Yes. Mike Morales. >> Good morning. Uh so as being the parade sponsor as was already stated for for quite a long time um I just wanted to bring attention some of the things that I'm hearing and uh some of my concerns as a sponsor. So
when I was first uh asked to be the sponsor and it was gone over what those things entailed. Um, I saw it kind of as a long-term thing and and a good representation and something I love uh to do is, you know, give back to the city and it's my favorite time of the year, right? It's a it's a it's a
Christmas time and that's something that we like to do. Um, but exclusivity has its meaning and when you're told that you're going to be the exclusive sponsor of the entire event, then that's what I would expect it to be. And over the
years, that's kind of changed. We took it from the parade and the festival kind of thing, which was one event, to splitting it. And the parade's one thing, and now the festival is another thing. And I understand why that happened, right? More money, right? We want to get more money. We want to sell
more sponsorships. We want to do that. But this is also a time where we're giving back. And if the city too has to put in something to give back to the community to celebrate that time of the year, the parade, I don't think that's a lot to ask. There's a lot of money that we spend things in the city that people
don't use those facilities for. Don't ever see anything back from that. So, I think it's important that you guys look at that, too. And if we're spending $7,000, as Kim said in, you know, a 10% figure roughly, uh, I don't know what those costs were back when I first started. I
asked for it, but that hasn't been available as of yet. I'm sure it will come, but I think that's something we need to look at, too. But when I was told I was going to be the main sponsor, I said there was things that were going to come with it. You were going to get a thousand little snowmen with your name on it to hand out. You were going to get a bunch of wands with your name branded
on it to hand out. Those are all gone. Never came back. Never was told it was going away. Never was told why, but I still paid the same. Now we're looking at changing it again. And we're looking at this like from a business point of view. I think we need to look at it as
what can we get other things to donate if we want to to keep a parade and keep the costs down low. Why are we trying to raise it on the minor sponsors at 250 that are just trying to be part of the parade and on the top sponsors? Why isn't that being spread out over the
entire multi-level sponsorship if need be, which I don't know that it really needs to be because I don't have all the accurate figures to be able to say. So, those are some of the things I I think um we need to look at. Um, and again, it's it's not about just
cost. Cost obviously is is always a big thing, but it's about that time of the year and what we can do for the businesses and get back to them too. Not just to look at it as from a business point of view. Thank you. >> That is all.
>> Thank you. Be looking for consensus. Anybody >> give it a shot? >> All right. Um, I would like a consensus to approve the updates to the citywide sponsorship
policy and tier structure as presented. Um, wait, let me start over. I would like a consensus to approve the updates to the citywide sponsorship policy
considering new or additional ways of enhancing um the value of that top level sponsorship. What's it called?
>> Presenting. >> Presenting sponsor. um and direct the city manager to bring back a resolution for commission review. >> Okay, we have a consensus. City clerk, could you read that back for everybody?
>> To approve updates to the citywide sponsorship policy considering new or additional ways of enhancing the value of the presenting sponsor and direct the city manager to bring back a resolution for commission review. >> Thank you, Commissioner Dval.
I agree. >> Commissioner Stoas, >> yes. >> I'm a yes. Vice Mayor, >> I'm a yes. >> Commissioner Pro, we have a consensus. City clerk, any uh final public comment? >> No, Mr. Mayor.
>> Thank you. >> All right, it's 10:55. I adjourn this workshop. Have a great day.