Residents, vendors and council weigh future of Illuminated Isanti amid six‑figure deficit

Isanti City Council members heard roughly an hour of public comment and discussion about the future of Illuminated Isanti, the city’s seasonal light display, including proposals to form a community committee, change the event format and shift costs away from taxpayers.

The event has become controversial after council review of its finances showed a large deficit; council members and staff said the city’s net shortfall on Illuminated Isanti is about $169,000. Council and residents discussed options including reduced days of operation, ticket or parking fees, recruiting more business sponsors, selling or placing some displays with private businesses and pausing the event this winter while a volunteer committee organizes.

Why it matters: Illuminated Isanti has become a visible downtown attraction that supporters say brings families and customers to local businesses. But council members said continuing the event as currently run is hard to justify when the city is subsidizing a sizable operating loss and when public works staff spend hundreds of hours setting up and tearing down displays.

Public comments and vendor suggestions dominated the discussion. Kim Martin, a Fifth Avenue Southwest resident, said the event draws people to town but “we don't do a very good job of having things here to make them stay, to spend their money here.” Martin suggested returning to a shorter multi‑day format so volunteers and sponsors can concentrate their time and support.

Carla Anderla, owner of the Now That's Waffles food truck, urged a public committee to manage logistics and volunteers and suggested shipping containers for consolidated storage. “We feel like there should be a committee, a public committee,” Anderla said, arguing a volunteer committee could coordinate setup, tear down and sponsorship outreach. Anderla also recommended limiting the number of days the event runs and keeping a fenced pathway so visitors pass the food‑vendor area.

Cheryl Davidson, who lives on Marion Street Southwest, said she brought her special‑needs granddaughter to the event and praised its family‑friendly, lower‑crowd setting. “I finally got the chance to take her this year … seeing her eyes light up,” Davidson said, urging organizers to market the event to special‑needs families.

Other vendors and residents offered practical ideas. A business owner who identified herself as Jennifer said she had not been asked to participate and volunteered both money and time if organizers reached out more broadly. Joe Morin, who has helped organize the display since its founding, urged charging a small parking fee as Bentleyville and other events do: “You won't make a profit the first five years,” Morin said, but a modest parking charge could help sustain the event.

Opposition surfaced as well. Nel Van Vliet said she opposes continuing taxpayer funding after three years and noted the large deficit: “I don't think it should be up to us as taxpayers to pay for it anymore.”

Council members and staff added operational detail. Council members said the city mailed letters and e‑mails to roughly 160–170 businesses; staff counted about a dozen sponsors this year, some from outside the city. City staff reported about 700 public works hours devoted to the event this year; council estimated that at a roughly $60/hour labor equivalency that equals about $42,000 in labor cost. Staff said larger displays (the big tree, snowman, shooting star) take just under two days to anchor and install.

Options discussed included: forming a 5–7 person volunteer committee to run the event and pursue sponsorships and grants; charging a modest parking fee (several speakers suggested $5 per car) rather than higher per‑person ticket prices; moving the event to a larger site such as the county fairgrounds; selling some displays to private businesses that would then store and deploy them; or pausing the event for one winter while volunteers and sponsors are recruited and a new plan is developed.

Council members asked anyone willing to serve on a volunteer committee to assemble names and proposals quickly: staff said planning should begin by mid‑April to be ready for the winter season. Council did not adopt a final decision at the meeting; several council members said they were open to a committee taking responsibility and to considering a one‑year pause to rebuild sponsorship and volunteer capacity.

Next steps: council requested follow‑up at future meetings and encouraged residents and businesses to form or join a volunteer committee to pursue sponsorships, grant opportunities and a revised operating plan. No formal council vote on the event’s future was taken at this meeting.