The Talent City Council on Aug. 6 adopted two motions that change how city committees may use city-provided event space. First, the council will require committees to seek council concurrence if they wish to invite another nonprofit to share a city-provided booth or similar space at events such as the Harvest Festival. Second, the council directed staff to waive cost-recovery fees for council-approved, committee-sponsored events at the Talent Community Center and to keep a record of waived fees.

The measures grew out of a staff request for direction after a volunteer festival contractor asked whether a committee could host and share its booth with an outside nonprofit. Councilor Byers, who disclosed she is the Harvest Festival producer for the city and declared a potential conflict of interest on the record, explained the context: Together for Talent had offered booth space to Rogue Seniors so the grassroots seniors group could provide a senior respite area and outreach at the event. "For the record, I am the consultant that is producing the Talent Harvest Festival on behalf of the City of Talent," Byers said when asked to disclose the relationship.

Councilor Panomarath moved the concurrence requirement, asking that committees obtain council approval before inviting nonprofits to join them in city-provided spaces; the motion passed on roll call. Councilor Byers moved the second measure directing staff to waive cost recovery for council-approved committee-sponsored events and to maintain a record of such waivers; that motion also passed. City staff said committees have historically been given booth space at the Harvest Festival at no charge, but councilors expressed a desire for clearer rules and guardrails to keep the process transparent and avoid ad hoc exceptions.

Why it matters: The new concurrence requirement creates a short oversight step for committee-hosted public-facing city space use and clarifies expectations about when outside nonprofits may be amplified using city resources. The fee-waiver direction formalizes prior practice of waiving fees for approved committee events while requiring a staff-maintained record for transparency.

Next steps: Staff will notify committees of the new requirement and will maintain records of waivers for events held at the community center. The Harvest Festival is scheduled for Oct. 4; committees have time to request council concurrence for invited nonprofit partners before the event.