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Fort Lauderdale staff propose event-fee matrix, ask commission to set scope and ticket-assessment options
Summary
Parks staff presented a proposed fee matrix to recover city costs for third‑party events on city parks and beaches, including stepped application fees, per‑day impact pricing and a possible percentage charge on ticket sales; commission directed staff to return recommended limits and for advisory boards to weigh in.
Carl Williams, the city’s parks and recreation director, told the City Commission the department had developed a transparent fee “matrix” to apply to third‑party events that use city property. "We were tasked with looking at our events and our process from a holistic perspective and understanding the fees that we're charged now," Williams said. The matrix uses impact variables — road closures, alcohol, amplified music, turtle season and similar factors — to score each event and set per‑day fees.
Williams outlined a stepped application fee schedule that rises the closer an application arrives to an event date: a $500 nonrefundable application fee for submittals 90 days in advance; a $500 late fee for filings under 90 but over 75 days; and higher processing fees for filings under 75 and under 60 days (counting multiple $500 increments, he said). He also described impact bands on the matrix (for example, “no impact” under 10 points, limited impact 11–14, and “major” at 18+ points) and noted the fees are per day and therefore can vary year‑to‑year with differing impacts.
Commissioners and advisory‑board stakeholders had raised other possible charges during outreach, Williams said: the Central Beach Alliance suggested assessing a percentage of ticket sales for ticketed events; the Beach Improvement District supported cost recovery but asked for consideration of events that provide significant economic value to the barrier island, such as major annual attractions. Williams said staff had contacted the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, the Central Beach Alliance and the Beach Improvement District about the proposal.
Commissioner Sorensen asked staff to add parking‑impact scoring to the matrix; he said reimbursements for use of public parking lots do not fully capture the neighborhood impacts when parked spaces are unavailable. Other commissioners asked for a clear calendar of recurring events and the number of beach events per year to inform any limit on events; Williams said the department maintains a calendar and estimated roughly 45 events on the beach annually and about 350 permitted events citywide, though he said staff tested the matrix against only about 15 representative events so far.
Vice Mayor Glassman and others asked staff to return with adjustments and with a consolidated list of events (including dates and locations) so commissioners and advisory boards could consider caps for the Barrier Island and downtown. Williams said staff would refine the matrix and return to the Parks Board with recommendations and a list of events.
The commission did not vote on the fee matrix itself but gave direction to return to advisory boards and bring back recommendations, including the ticket‑percentage option and proposed event caps for high‑impact areas.
Ending: Staff will present an updated matrix, a calendar of recurring events and advisory‑board feedback to the commission; no ordinance or fee schedule was adopted at this meeting.
