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Council approves Windfest 2025 use agreement, allocates up to $75,000 in hotel-occupancy-tax funds
Summary
Portland approved a multi-day Windfest 2025 use agreement with the Portland Chamber of Commerce and authorized a maximum $75,000 allocation from hotel-occupancy-tax funds to reimburse eligible event expenses.
The Portland City Council on Feb. 18 approved a use agreement with the Portland Chamber of Commerce for Windfest 2025 and authorized allocation of a maximum of $75,000 in hotel-occupancy-tax (HOT) funds to reimburse eligible expenses.
Chamber staff said the 2025 Windfest will mark the event’s 50th anniversary, feature two headline acts (Wade Bowen Friday and Waterloo, an ABBA tribute, Saturday), expanded kids programming and a kite expo, and aims to grow attendance and regional reach. Tracy, representing the Portland Chamber of Commerce, told the council the Chamber is asking the city to keep the funding ask the same as last year: $75,000.
Tracy described event logistics and changes from past years: market vendors will be under the pavilion rather than in the soccer field, the kite and wind expos will be in the soccer fields, mutton-busting will return behind the pavilion, and the Chamber plans expanded advertising including billboards and regional media. Tracy said last year’s headliner programming increased attendance and revenues and that the Chamber turned in invoices and canceled checks to document HOT-eligible reimbursements. “The request from the city, from the, Chamber is $75,000 as it was last year,” Tracy said.
Council members asked for and received additional financial detail: city staff provided last year’s final cost number ($193,043.38) and the Chamber said it would continue to supply invoices and check copies to support reimbursements. Council members also requested trend information on attendance; Tracy said the Chamber can report credit-card ticket counts and add sponsor and volunteer counts to estimate total attendance, though cash sales and Thursday-night attendance may be recorded separately.
Councilman Wilson moved approval of the use agreement and the HOT allocation; Mayor Pro Tem Green seconded. The motion carried on a 4-0 vote.
Chamber representatives asked council members to solicit volunteers for the event; the council and staff noted an online signup at winfest.org for schedules, tickets and volunteer registration.
