Vacaville council to consider concerts, fireworks show

Vacaville City Council

• What: 2013 Creekwalk Concert series and fireworks show.
• When: 7 p.m. Tuesday.
• Where: Vacaville City Council chamber, 650 Merchant St.
• Info: 449-5100.

VACAVILLE — Vacaville will be looking for sponsors to foot the cost of this July’s fireworks festival in Andrews Park, and if they don’t find them, the idea of charging admission to the event is on the table.

Vacaville Community Services Director Kerry Walker on Tuesday will ask the City Council to renew offering the Creekwalk Concert series for 2013 as well as approve putting together a campaign to get sponsors to pay for the Fourth of July fireworks show.

The council was warned that unless sponsorships are not found to defray the approximately $24,000 cost of the fireworks show, the city should consider imposing an admission fee or find other methods to defray the cost, Walker wrote.

Last year, the loss of redevelopment funds put every community event that got the money on the chopping block.

The Creekwalk Concert series continued because the city approved charging people $2 admission to what was once a free community event, reduced vendor costs and got a sponsorship from the Downtown Vacaville Business Improvement District. The July 4, 2012, fireworks show took place only because the fireworks provider messed up the 2011 show and offered to do the 2012 one for free to make up for 2011.

This year, Walker recommends that the 2013 Creekwalk Concert series keep the admission fees and run for 11 weeks, despite a request from the downtown business improvement district to offer a 13-week series. It didn’t help that the district stated it could not come forward with sponsorship funding this year.

Walker nixed the idea of a 13-week series, saying in her report to the council that reduced staff and limited funding made it difficult to do. She also wrote that the series had more problems once school was back in session, and that was one of the main reasons why it was shortened.

City Council members will also vote to renew the city’s agreement with the downtown business improvement district and whether it should supply the district with city funding to fill in revenue the district lost in 2012.

downtown business improvement district Executive Director Bob Vollmer did not state in a letter to the council how much of a grant he wants, but pointed out that the district lost $100,000 in revenues in 2012 that included a $45,000 loss from the elimination of city redevelopment agency funding.

City financial support for the downtown district had shrunk since 2006 from 52,250 to $45,000 in 2011. The district got no money in 2012. In response to the loss, the district spent its $60,000 reserve and got one-time financial help from supporters to make fiscal ends meet.

Vacaville Director of Housing Services Cynthia Johnston recommends that the council approve the 2013 agreement with the downtown district and consider some form of a grant for the district as part of its 2013-14 budget process.

Reach Ian Thompson at 427-6976 or ithompson@dailyrepublic.net. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ithompsondr.

Ian Thompson

Ian Thompson has worked for the Daily Republic longer than he cares to remember. A native of Oregon and a graduate of the University of Oregon, he pines for the motherland still. He covers Vacaville and Travis Air Force Base for the Daily Republic. He is an avid military history buff, wargamer and loves the great outdoors.

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