Edmonds forwards summer market, Springfest and Arts Festival agreements to council consent

Janice, staff member, told Edmonds City Council Committee A on April 1 that the city plans to forward three large special-event agreements — the weekly summer market, Springfest and the Arts Festival — to the April 8 council consent agenda for approval and mayoral signature upon council authorization.

The agreements cover a mix of operational details and cost recovery for city services tied to larger events that affect streets, parks and public safety. “I would estimate over a hundred special events that come through our city throughout the year, but only a handful of them are what we put on contract,” Janice said. “And typically, they are events that are intended to drive economic benefit, economic development, and then, just they have larger scale impacts, on the residents such as transportation.”

Committee members were briefed on the principal changes for each event. The Saturday summer market in front of City Hall and on Bell Street (May through October) will add a late-October market date this year and a modest new cost-recovery charge: $360 to cover six hours of street-team time and related parks staff time for barricade and signage work. The market contract also reserves a 10-by-10 booth one week each month for the mayor or council to promote city business. The agreement preserves a 20-foot-wide emergency vehicle access on Bell Street at the request of the fire department.

Springfest, produced by Urban Crafts Uprising and held on the Anderson Center field the Saturday before Mother’s Day, was described as roughly 100 craft vendors with a partial closure of Eighth Avenue between Maine and Dayton to local access for food trucks. Janice said Springfest faces a larger fee package this year because of increased cost recovery: a damage deposit for the field, a $240 street fee, a $240 parks fee and a $415 park rental fee, bringing the event’s total charge to $1,395 (up from $875 last year). Janice said the city has never kept a damage deposit in connection with this event but withholds deposits in cases of field damage or excessive waste.

The Edmonds Arts Festival Foundation’s contract covers a longer site occupation window (load-in June 5–17, with the three-day main event), rental of multiple Anderson Center rooms (including the higher-fee Plaza Room) and a small beer-and-wine garden that requires higher insurance and banquet permit compliance. Janice said the arts festival will pay $9,000 this year to rent the Anderson Center and related services; she also noted the festival will not use the Third Floor this year because the city leased that space to Olympic Ballet for year-round use.

Committee members asked operational questions about ADA parking signage, street repairs and past damage claims. Susan Payne asked who owns the ADA parking signage; Janice said ownership depends on whether signage is temporary for market days or permanent and that the city’s agreement does not require the market to deploy special ADA parking signage. Council members also discussed the status of street repairs on Main Street ahead of spring events.

Committee A recommended forwarding the three agreements to the April 8, 2025 council consent agenda and authorizing the mayor to execute the contracts if council approves them. The committee recorded verbal assent to the recommendation and sent the items to consent.

The agreements were reviewed by police, fire, streets, risk/human resources and legal staff before presentation to the committee.