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CASE Committee Meeting Minutes 2021.09.23CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 AVON TOWN HALL, 100 MIKAELA WAY, AVON CO CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES, 23 SEPTEMBER 2021 PAGE 1 | 3 1. ROLL CALL Present- Committee Members: Committee Chair Lisa Mattis and Committee Members Justin Chesney and Kathy Ryan Town Council: Mayor Pro Tem Amy Phillips and Council Member Lindsay Hardy Town Staff: Cultural, Arts and Special Events Manager Danita Dempsey and General Government Manager Ineke de Jong. Late Arrival- Committee Member Thomas Walsh joined at 12:48 p.m. Absent- Committee Members Pedro Campos, Ruth Stanley and Chris Cofelice. Town Manager Eric Heil and General Government Intern Emily Myler. General Government Manager Ineke de Jong asked the record to reflect the meeting was called to order at 12:35 p.m. 2. OPENING COMMENTS The Committee Members began with feedback on their favorite event of the 2021 season: A. Pride in the Park. B. The Brew’au. C. SunsetLIVE! D. Summer’s End. E. Dancing in the Park. F. Salute to the USA. G. The Community Picnic. H. AvonLIVE! The Committee also commented that SunsetLIVE! and Summer’s End both seemed to be a massive hit this summer and decided to recommend Council reconsider dog policy at events. 3. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES Committee Chair Mattis asked for a vote to approve the minutes from May 20, 2021. The vote passed unanimously. 4. PUBLIC COMMENT No public comments were made 5. STAFF UPDATE CASE Manager Dempsey presented the 2021 Event Season Recap PowerPoint which outlined events and art between Memorial Day and Labor Day including general budget, personnel and volunteer hours and attendance. She asked the Committee to consider what kind of musical talent the Town should book next year to align with the AvonLIVE! brand. The Committee commented/inquired: A. Is there an estimate of attendance for Pop Up Music? B. Are Bob’s Place and Ticino’s embracing Pop Up Music? C. Why did SunsetLIVE! end on Labor Day Weekend if the weather in September is so lovely? D. Maybe after Labor Day, SunsetLIVE! could be moved earlier in the day. E. If it the event moves too early, some people may be working and unable to make it. Locals may not care as much about the cool weather. CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 AVON TOWN HALL, 100 MIKAELA WAY, AVON CO CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES, 23 SEPTEMBER 2021 PAGE 2 | 3 F. It’s nice to have a variety of types of music and the Town should add more strings music in particular to SunsetLIVE! G. How would we grow SunsetLIVE! and what does that mean, or do we even need to grow it? H. Stage production looked like it was done really well. I. Sound testing started too early and went too long, it was disruptive for those living nearby. J. Since Lakeside Cinema had low attendance, should the Town consider keeping it for next year? K. Council should begin talking about moving away or evolving from fireworks at events and especially distancing Salute to the USA from reliance on fireworks. L. How much does it cost to do a drone light show? M. Even though the Summer’s End concert had lower attendance than hoped, it was still successful for the inaugural launch of a whole new event and being on a Monday night. CASE Manager Dempsey said there isn’t a way to count attendance at Pop Up Music, but she did hear from multiple people that they enjoyed being able to experience some ambient music walking by or spending time on the Main Street Mall. She would not recommend extending the season past Labor Day due to weather and staffing. She thought Lakeside Cinema has high community value and will grow through word of mouth. She agreed that fireworks are likely going to become unsustainable in the next few years, but she hasn’t looked into drone shows yet. The Town could potentially money by limiting the number of free drinks for VIP guests at Salute to the USA. 6. CURRENT ACTIVITY/PLANNING CASE Manager Dempsey continued with some questions and updates on the upcoming season: A. Is there more value in a fireworks event in January or another Labor Day Weekend concert next year? B. The AvonLIVE! budget has been expanded to pay for more recognizable talent and better sound/light equipment. C. Should the Circus come back to Harry A. Nottingham Park, and if not, where else can it go? D. Should the Town host one or two Dancing in the Park events? E. Out of the three art festivals, which ones should come back? F. The Art Expo on Main Street Mall is having trouble getting attendees. Where else could the event be placed? G. Gross concession revenues were generally higher than projected, but the costs are very high. However, bar operations were polished and went very well. The Committee commented/interrupted: A. Does the Town have fireworks they have to use up? B. Winter fireworks could be a great event and people have been asking about it. C. Does Avon want to roll out a new winter signature event? D. A winter fireworks event would be lovely, but maybe not this upcoming year. E. Is there value in investing in purchasing high quality sound equipment? F. Does the Circus need to go on soft ground? G. What about the old rodeo ground or the lower athletic field? H. The Circus should be funded over increasing the AvonLIVE! budget. CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2021 AVON TOWN HALL, 100 MIKAELA WAY, AVON CO CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES, 23 SEPTEMBER 2021 PAGE 3 | 3 I. Dancing in the Park always feels too short, even though the performances are excellent. Can we add a clause in the contract with penalties if the show runs short again in 2022? J. One Dancing in the Park is great, two is too expensive. K. If The Town can’t find a date to host the Festival of the Arts, it’s okay to lose that show. L. The Town should not host the Colorado Events Art Festival producer again, although it would be nice to have art at Summer’s End again. M. The Harry A. Nottingham Park south side could be a great place to host the Art Expo in the future. In the meantime, the Westin is a good spot. N. The Town doesn’t need to push activation in every spot in Town. The Art Expo should go where the people already are. O. The Monday concert on Labor Day Weekend was impactful. P. This was a learning/pilot year for alcohol sales and it was great to gather information. The Town does not have a revenue problem, but an expense issue that can be improved. Q. If the cost of putting on the bar is so high, it might be beneficial to go to BYOB at some events a few years and try to push for a permanent concession stand at the Park. CASE Manager Dempsey said the fireworks for Salute to the USA were cancelled early enough and that the Town’s contract stated pay when the performance is complete. She does still have a contract with the fireworks provider, but it would be less expensive to break the contract than to put on the fireworks event in January, especially when other expenses like fencing are added in. She said she can’t really think about growth right now, since her department is already working at capacity. The Town does own some speakers that can support smaller events like SunsetLIVE! but not AvonLIVE!. That kind of equipment is incredibly expensive, but it may be worth discussing. The Circus tent does need to go on soft ground, but it kills the grass wherever it sits, causing frustration for Public Works. The Rodeo Grounds are not Town owned property and too expensive to rent from the owners. The lower field would still have grass problems but may work since it is less high-profile and close to parking. Dancing in the Park ran much shorter than their agreed upon time. The Art Expo might fit well at the Westin Plaza, even though the Town doesn’t own that property. She agreed that a concession stand would reduce costs for ice, water, labor and more. Committee Chair Lisa Mattis took a lap around the room and the committee consensus was that a winter fireworks event would be lovely, but maybe in 2023. And that the Circus should be invited back but should be moved to the lower athletic field. 5. CLOSING COMMENTS CASE Manager Dempsey went over the budget process including the CASE Committee/Town Council special meeting on October 12. Committee Chair Mattis suggested the CASE Committee provide a list of discussion items at the special meeting. 6. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 2:22 p.m. Respectfully submitted by: Emily Myler General Government Intern