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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 8.1 StPatricks15thCelebEval (2) ~ lI, CITY CLERK File # D~0j~-~[Q] . AGENDA STATEMENT CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: April 21 , 1998 SUBJECT: Evaluation of 15th Annual St. Patrick's Day Celebration EXIllBITS ATTACHED: None RECOMMENDATION: OV~ 1) Provide recommendations on the various components of the celebration for implementation next year 2) Appoint a representative(s) from the City COlU1cil to serve on the St. Patrick's Day Liaison Committee FINANCIAL STATEMENT: None DESCRIPTION: The 15th Annual St. Patrick's Day Celebration was held the weekend of March 13-15, 1998. A summary of the activities that were conducted is shown below. GREENAND~TEGALA . The Dublin Sister City Association's annual Green and White Gala was held on Friday, March 13, at the Best Western Monarch Hotel in Dublin with 96 in attendance. The evening began with Irish Happy Hour and was followed by dinner and Irish entertainment. The Dublin Citizen of the Y ear Award and the Order of the Shamrock were presented during the evening's festivities. CO~TYPANCAKEBREAKFAST The Alameda COlU1ty Firefighters hosted a pancake breakfast for the community on Saturday, March 14, from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at Firehouse #1 on Donohue Drive. Over 800 breakfasts were served and the proceeds from the breakfast benefited the Alicia Ann Rouche Bum Foundation. PARADE The Dublin Lion's Club annual St. Patrick's Day Parade was held on Saturday, March 14, beginning at 9:30 a.m. The Lion's Club reports that there were 64 entries in the parade and Staff estimates that there were seven bands and eight floats. Five of the seven bands that participated received stipends in the amount of $400 which were funded by the City. The ability to offer these stipends greatly increased the participation by local bands. The parade route was the same as last year. Parade entrants assembled on Amador Plaza Road and proceeded south to Dublin Boulevard, east to YilJ.!ig~_Parkway,_l1orth_to_Amador- Valley Boulevard, and_______ weSt to- Re-gio-rial--Street~- -- Aithou~ -youth-~oups were encouraged to ride in vehicles as opposed to walking, there were still a large number of groups walking in-the parade which contributed to gaps along . the parade route. ------~------------------------------------------------------------ COPIES TO: St Patrick's Day Liaison Committee ITEM NO. 8.1 G:\stpats\421 ccmtg.doc A reviewing stand consisting of a 4' x 12' stage and public address system was set up on Amador Valley -Ii> Boulevard in front of the_Dublin Library. Parks and Community Services Commissioner Jeff Chapman had intended to do "color commentary" on the parade entrants, however, due to some unforeseen glitches with the public address system, this was not as effective as it could have been. Additionally. Channel 30. reported to a different location to film the parade and this too resulted in some confusion the morning 0 the parade. GAELIC FOOTBALLEXEUBITION New this year was a Gaelic Football Exhibition sponsored by St. Brennan's Gaelic Football Team. The exhibition was held Saturday, March 14, beginning at 6:00 p.m. at the Dublin Sports Grounds. There were approximately 50 spectators in attendance at the exhibition. Next year, St. Brennan's would like to expand the exhibition and perhaps host a tournament for six to eight teams. FESTIVAL The St. Patrick's Day Festival was held on March 14 and 15, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Regional Street in downtown Dublin. In addition to Regional Street, the Automatic Rain and Almond Plaza parking lots were also used: the Automatic Rain parking lot featured the food and beverage booths as well as the main stage of entertainment; the Almond Plaza Parking lot featured the community stage of entertainment, children's activities and non-profit information and fundraising booths. Art and craft vendors, fine art vendors and commercial vendors lined Regional Street. A breakdown of the vendors is shown below: Art and Craft Vendors Fine Art Vendors Commercial Vendors Restaurant Vendors Dessert Vendors Non-Profit Fundraising Booths Non-Profit Information Boots Children's Attractions TOTAL VENDORS 85 18 57 7 3 6 19 9 204 . Local service organizations provided 426 volunteer hours at the festival and it is estimated the these organizations netted $4,768 from the festival. It is estimated that there were 24,000 people in attendance at the festival over the two days. Food and !1i!l'erage __ As noted previously, the food and beverage venue was located in the Automatic Rairl parking lot. Seating for diniiIg was available and the main stage of entertainment providing ongoing entertainment throughout the day. Given that this was the first time in several years that beer and wine sales were permitted and not knowing how the expanded festival would be received, consumption of beer and wine was limited to the Automatic Rain parking lot only. The area was roped off and a uniformed police officer was at the ---entrance to-ensure--that alcohol-did not-leave the-area. Dublin-Police Services reports that there were -no-'- adverse incidents related to the consumption of alcohol nor was there a problem with people attempting to leave the area with alcohol. Ifpeople did attempt to l~ave;_theywere told of the policy and, iri m6stcases, __ were understanding of the policy. . Advertising The festival was promoted in several ways. KKIQ was the official radio sponsor for the event and they ran 100 commercials prior to the event and were in attendance at the festival on Saturday and SlU1day. -2- '" ~ Although they had originally indicated that there was to be a live broadcast from the festival on Saturday, this did not materialize. The event was also advertised on KYCY (Young Country) and KFRC the Thursday through Saturday preceding the festival. KFRC was in attendance on Saturday and KYCY was in attendance on Sunday. . The Valley Times was the official newspaper sponsor for the festival and they produced a color pullout - which was iricluded in their newspapers and also mailed to non-subscribers in Dublin (total circulation of 53,000 households). In addition, advertisements were also included in the Valley Times from March 4-9, and in the Contra Costa Newspaper's full market from March 10-14. The Tri-Valley Herald also produced a color pullout section which was distributed to their subscribers. Banners with specific event information were hlU1g on the light poles in downtown in conjlU1ction with the normal St. Patrick's Day banners and banners were also hung in the Dublin/Pleasanton and Castro V alley BART Stations the week before the event. Although Staff had intended to advertise on Wheels buses, this did not come to fruition. Posters were, however, placed throughout the community and over 2500 flyers were distributed to the elementary schools in Dublin. Sponsorships As presented at the last meeting of the City Council, $11,250 in financial sponsorship was received along with a tremendous amount of in-kind sponsorships. Support from the business community for the festival was outstanding. . Parking, Traffic and Shuttle Service Wheels ran a shuttle service from the BART station to the comer of Regional Street and Dublin Boulevard and the round trip cost was $0.60 per person. For those who came by car, most of the parking lots in the general vicinity were used; Staff did not receive complaints from any of the merchants from the adjacent parking lots. 5K FUN RUN The Women's Club of Dublin had originally intended to sponsor a 5K FlU1 Run as part of the festivities at this year's celebration. The run was to have been held on SlU1day morning prior to the start of the festival. However, the Women's Club was not able to fmd a run promoter who would take on the run as there was not sufficient lead time to plan and organize an event of this magnitude. If a 5K FlU1 Run is a priority of the City Council, Staff would recommend that the City take the lead in organizing a run for next year by obtaining the services of a professional run promoter. Local service clubs could provide volunteers to work on race day and these vollU1teers would be paid in the same manner that the festival volunteers are paid. CONTRACT WITH GOODTIMES PROMOTIONS For the first time, the City Council opted to contract with a professional promoter for the overall management of the 1998 St. Patrick's Day Festival. The City contracted with GoodTimes Promotions, Inc., a local Dublin business-; Generally,-the responsibilities of the promoter-were as follows: -- - . Overall event mana~ement to include: . Creation and implementation of advertising campaign . Secure corporate sponsors . Secure entertainment for all stages . Work with City Staff to create layout of event -3- · Work with Police Department to ensure safety of event · Recruit and collect all fees from vendors · Recruit and manage non-profit groups and volunteers . Negotiate all contracts (with City Staff approval) for equipment/service rentals "It-' "... . Complete mana~ement of set-up and breakdown of event to include: . Vendor check-in . Vendor placement . Stage placement . Entertainment management . Children's area management . Supervision of all staff and vollU1teers . Handle any problems or emergencies Although GoodTimes Promotions was responsible for a major portion of the St. Patrick's Day Festival, there was still a substantial investment of Staff time to oversee the promoter and to coordinate those activities that were not the responsibility of the promoter. If the Council is desirous of continuing to use a promoter in the future, Staff would suggest that the scope of services for the promoter be thoroughly evaluated and, if needed, redefined. Staff would then recommend that a formal request for proposals be prepared and distributed. lbis was not done for 1998 due to the timing with which the promoter needed to be brought on board to organize the festival. CONCLUSION Based on the positive comments received from people who attended and participated in all aspects of the St. Patrick's Day Celebration, Staff would declare the 1998 celebration a success. However, as with all. events of this magnitude, there is always room for improvement. Consequently, Staff would recommend that the City Councit'review the various components of the celebration and provide recommendations for implementation in next year's celebration. Staff is also recommending the continuance of the St. Patrick's Liaison Committee and would recommend that the City Council appoint a representative(s) to serve on the Committee. - . - - -, _ ___ __ . __ _ ,,_ _. . -4-