Special events staff presented recommended special event grant allocations for fiscal year 2025–26 and told council one applicant withdrew, enabling small reallocations to lower‑tier applicants.

Special Events Manager Brian Craig said the program typically funds a mix of legacy and new events and that the advisory board ranks qualitative elements while staff computes quantitative scores to arrive at award amounts. This year the program received fewer applications than in prior years; one new applicant withdrew late and staff redistributed those dollars to other applicants to bring scaling in line across tiers.

Staff said the grant pool funds incubator‑style awards that favor new events or concepts; legacy events receive smaller amounts over time per program rules. No council action was required; staff will finalize allocations per program rules and existing budget authority.