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CASE Committee Meeting Minutes 11.17.22 FINALCASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2022 HYBRID FORMAT IN PERSON AT AVON TOWN HALL AND VIRTUALLY ON ZOOM CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES, 17 NOVEMBER 2022 PAGE 1 | 4 1. ROLL CALL Present: Committee Chair Lisa Mattis and Committee Members Pedro Campos, Kim Harrold, Thomas Walsh, Doug Jimenez, Ruth Stanley Staff: General Government Manager Ineke de Jong, CASE Manager Danita CASE Manager Dempsey and Town Clerk Miguel Jauregui Casanueva Absent: Committee Member Councilor Lindsay Hardy, Councilor Amy Phillips The meeting was called to order at 12:15 p.m. At that time, Committee Chair Mattis requested an update from CASE Manager CASE Manager Dempsey on discussions at the Council Meeting dated November 15, 2022, as they relate to the special events portion of the Town of Avon 2023 budget. CASE Manager CASE Manager Dempsey summarized discussions by stating that Councilors approved almost all budget increases for special events. They did not support the Heart and Soul Music Festival and they did not approve of the addition of an event productions assistant full-time staff position. She added AvonLIVE! was approved, as well as the increases to talent, light and sound budgets. She stated the temporary art program was extended from 1 to 2 years, as recommended by CASE. She closed her statement by announcing that the Council approved the recommendation of using fireworks in the winter when not used in July. This year the event will take place on January 14, 2023, during MLK Weekend. She added on December 13, the 2023 budget will be approved. 2. PUBLIC COMMENT At 12:28 Committee Chair Mattis asked if there was any public comment. General Government Manager Ineke De Jong stated there were no public comments. 3. MINUTES At 12:30 Committee Chair Mattis motioned to approve the minutes from September 15, 2022. Thomas Walsh made a motion to approve the Minutes which Ruth Stanley seconded. The minutes were approved unanimously. 4. STAFF UPDATE At 12:32, Lisa Mattis continued the conversation around fireworks and asked if they don’t get used in the summer and get moved to winter, what happens in summer? CASE Manager CASE Manager Dempsey answered that the Council may decide to move away from fireworks in Avon because of their environmental impact as they discussed in the CASE work session in October of 2021, but we will have to wait and see if the new Council wants to go this direction. No more questions about Council sessions were raised. CASE Manager CASE Manager Dempsey explained that the purpose for the Committee’s meeting is to engage and discussion with 3rd party producers, which they haven’t since fall of 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic. CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2022 HYBRID FORMAT IN PERSON AT AVON TOWN HALL AND VIRTUALLY ON ZOOM CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES, 17 NOVEMBER 2022 PAGE 2 | 4 Mattis stated what shifted is that the last time this exercise was done, the role of the Committee was different and focused on funding issues more than 3rd party provider review. Campos added before, the Committee was getting too deep into dollars and cents, and it was too much, including deciding bands for events. Stanley concurred and said that was too much. Ultimate Après Avon. - Event Producer Krista Benedetti with Radiate Live Events/Always Mountain Time. Event Producer said she was excited to partner with the Town of Avon and talk about last years’ experience with “Ultimate Après Avon”. She said the event was on the smaller side and worked well. She said going forward, she wants to propose April 1 instead of April 16 as the date to schedule this event, to further its success. This, because less snow on the ground brings more crowds. Walsh asked about the use of local vendors for the event. Benedetti answered that her company does their best to use local businesses for events. She added feedback from local business was that they were too understaffed to participate in the event this year. Harrold asked about adjusting the time frame and if that would impact the location of the event. Benedetti said weather and timing will have an impact on location. She added a certain number of vendors are needed to make the event look adequately sized in the park. CASE Manager Dempsey said the date of the event next year will factor in closing day for Beaver Creek and dates of other events for which Avon will be gathering data. CASE Manager Dempsey said that the event was developed within 5 weeks and turned out well, especially for its first year. This concluded her presentation. Pride in the Park. - Event Producer Madison Partridge thanked the Committee for their support for Pride in the Park and Mountain Pride. This year was the third year of the event and Mountain Pride is now an official non-profit. Her organization now operates year-round. They realized that the Saturday only event is not ideal for Pride, so they expanded to offer a week-long lineup of events up and down the valley to serve 1,500 people. Pride in the Park on Saturday had 1,200 people attend, 40 vendors, 26 sponsors, along with many volunteers and speakers. There were activities for everyone, and a focus was made to be inclusive to all communities. Free for families. Food trucks were very successful. They raised $33,000 for Mountain Pride thanks to the event. It was a huge win for a new organization. Demographics were not only centered on LGBTQ+ but also for their allies. The age range was very broad. Online impact had a lot of traction and generated $12,000 that went back to local businesses. She added she is excited for next year’s event and wants to continue to grow the event with more attendants, more sponsorships, and more fundraisers. They want a headliner for 2023 that is queer. This concluded her presentation. Doug Jimenez asked about valley wide events. Partridge answered that there were drag shows in Vintage in Vail, events in Edwards at Hovey and Harrison, and that since it is a week-long event, many events take place. Jimenez celebrated that they are now a foundation. Partridge said they expect to grow through grants and fundraising to become a sustainable 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Partridge added that the Town of Avon and Danita CASE Manager Dempsey have given tremendous support for the event. The Committee said Avon is happy and grateful to be involved and support this event. Partridge added that the grant from Avon will have a significant impact on improving the event. Harrold congratulated Maddison for the increase in attendance. Doug Jimenez asked about plans for the future of the organization. Partridge said it is to make the event grow so that more people get together in the LGBTQ community to celebrate pride. Vail Lacrosse Tournament. - Event Producer Mark Foster, who joined the meeting on behalf of Colorado Lacrosse LLC spoke about the Lacrosse Tournament in Avon. He detailed that an economic study was made before COVID to evidence to CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2022 HYBRID FORMAT IN PERSON AT AVON TOWN HALL AND VIRTUALLY ON ZOOM CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES, 17 NOVEMBER 2022 PAGE 3 | 4 Avon how much value their tournament brings in 2.5 days to the Valley and Avon. He added growth is stable and has averaged 95 teams each year. He stated they are sold out for 2023. He thanked Avon for the support of their event. Committee members brought up the fact that the local concert series should be promoted at the tournament vs. “just coming to the fields”. Foster said the economic study showed that their tournament brings approximately $800,000 to the Valley. Doug Jimenez asked what their biggest challenges are. Foster said flights into Denver and the drive into Eagle County; as well as lodging in the Valley in summer which has become more and more busy. He also said staffing is hard for their organization. Danita CASE Manager Dempsey asked how participants feel about single use plastics. She added Avon has been laxer than they should be with their group. She asked if the group would improve on sustainable water container issues. Foster said it’s hard to track. He said water monsters are great and suggested looking at better locations for them. Thomas Walsh asked if there’s a ceremony for the winner because he thinks there might be a way to bring the ceremony to an Avon concert stage to bring tourney families into participating in concerts. Foster said it’s tough to do but that they’ll explore it. Doug Jimenez asked if this is the only event of this event producer and Foster said yes, it is. This concluded his presentation. Avon Arts Celebration. - Event Producer Darren Skanson with Avon Arts Celebration by Colorado Art Events/CMM Events started out by saying that Avon is a great partner for their Festival. He said that it was just the second year and that he expects things to get much better for the third year. Lisa Mattis asked the optimal number of artists and Skanson said the more the better. After conversation around the terrific value of the event and promoting art, Kim Hannold asked how artists are selected. Skanson said that coloradoartshows.com is his main avenue because it speaks to Colorado artists. This concluded his presentation. Dancing in the Park. - Event Producer Cameron Morgan and Sarah Frank, VP of Marketing at the Vail Valley Foundation and Dance Festival, began their presentation by explaining that Frank is overseeing marketing for the Dance Festival and Morgan is now the Dance Festival Director. Lisa Mattis stated that Avon loves this festival. She added that the audience is growing every year. Frank stated the event is trying to appeal to a larger audience. Thomas Walsh asked if there’s a way to make this Dance Festival more Avon specific and less a copy of Vail’s event at the Amphitheater. Frank said it depends on the definition of what feels like Avon, but they will do their best. Danita CASE Manager Dempsey thanked Morgan and Frank for their efforts in adapting the Dance Festival to Avon’s needs. This concluded their presentation. Vail Valley Brew ’Au. - Event Producers Carolyn Hassel and Adam Bey with Vail Valley Brew ‘Au joined the meeting. Hassel said her company was formed in 2004 and it was recently purchased by a new owner, Adam Bey. Bey said he is experienced in the brewing industry and owns a brewery. They summarized that the event began in 2018 and includes different activities for families, including a lantern lighting event. Bey added that simultaneously to their event, there was a wine festival in Vail which reduced attendance at the Brew ‘Au. He added that date selection is important to increase attendance at their event. Hassel said she’d like to see dogs be able to join the event. Thomas Walsh asked if it was in a fenced off area. Hassel said yes because alcohol is being served. Brooke Skjonsby with Vail Valley Charitable Foundation, joined virtually to say that she wants live art for the event. Bey said he expects this to become a known and branded event, by concept, location, and date. Danita CASE Manager Dempsey asked about art activation and art events and wanted to know how the event would balance it with the brewing beer aspect which is the primary focus of the event. Skjonsby responded that there are a lot of influences from Hawaii in the event and asking artists to follow that theme is feasible and CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 2022 HYBRID FORMAT IN PERSON AT AVON TOWN HALL AND VIRTUALLY ON ZOOM CASE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES, 17 NOVEMBER 2022 PAGE 4 | 4 appropriate. Danita CASE Manager Dempsey expressed to the group that leaning into the Hawaiian theme might dilute the primary brand. This concluded their presentation. XTERRA USA Championship. - Event Producer Steve Andrus with XTERRA USA Championship joined virtually and displayed the 2022 video highlights uploaded to YouTube. Danita CASE Manager Dempsey asked Andrus to explain what’s coming at XTERRA in 2023. Andrus said they are adding a trail marathon as part of the XTERRA trail world championship marathon series. He said adding part of that to this event will bring trail runners to Avon who want to qualify for the world championship. He said it was how they plan to make XTERRA a global brand. Additionally, he said there will be a World Cup, global initiative, for elite athletes competing for a $100,000 purse, only if you participate in an event in each continent. Lisa Mattis asked what XTERRA needs from the Town. Andrus said he is just thankful for the partnership with the Town. He said for next year, additional funding for offsetting costs would be welcome but isn’t a necessity. He added that they are looking for lodging sponsors to also offset costs. He stated he would like to explore how to create more dynamic relationships with local businesses in Avon. This concluded his presentation. Man of the Cliff. - Event Producer Amanda Williams and Cheyenne Richardson with Man of the Cliff event said they’re happy to come back to their event after the 2-year hiatus. They said from an operations standpoint, there were no new activities. They said the only new addition was axe throwing, but that they were cautious post-pandemic of making too many changes to the event. She added they are planning to activate more activities for next year’s event. CASE Manager Dempsey asked who “Peculiar” is and what that sponsor looks like for them. Williams said their biggest supporter was Bonfire Brewing but has since ceased to exist. She added she is part owner of the Peculiar Brewing Company, so it worked out well for them to come into the event as sponsors. There were no questions for them from the group and Ruth Stanley said she looks forward to it every year. Lisa Mattis added they rock, and she thinks it’s a fantastic event for Avon. Thomas Walsh said this event seems to be figuring out what it is and added he worries there are two different brew events at the Town. CASE Manager Dempsey answered that Man of the Cliff event has a lumberjack focus and that the beer component is because attendants drink lots of beer which is what keeps the event afloat. This concluded their presentation. 5. CLOSING COMMENTS Those present ended interviews with event producers by analyzing this Committee meeting’s format and content. They agreed that the new format is helpful and the mix of events, 3 of them with a focus on physical activity, are a welcome mix for the Town. 6. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 3:47 p.m. Respectfully submitted by: Miguel Jauregui Casanueva Town Clerk