Miami Lakes committee advances fall festival planning; seeks sponsors, tents and safety support

Miami Lakes Community Events Committee members spent the mid‑July meeting advancing plans for the town’s fall pumpkin festival, focusing on vendor logistics, sponsorships and public‑safety coverage.

Committee members said the event will reuse elements from last year — pumpkins, a stage and children’s activities — but they want more sponsor support and professional help to set up tents, tables and a generator so volunteers are not overburdened.

The committee’s discussion centered on three near‑term needs: (1) hiring a vendor to supply and install tents, tables and a generator, (2) finalizing sponsors and vendor commitments, and (3) arranging limited police presence. A committee member moved to obtain quotes from a commercial rental company to supply tents, chairs and a generator; the group also asked town staff to pursue a separate quote and to explore staff assistance for set‑up and tear‑down. The transcript does not record a formal roll‑call vote on the procurement motion; committee members instructed staff to return with cost estimates at the next meeting.

Organizers listed several groups already interested in participating as informational or funding partners: Knights of Columbus, the Florida Guardian ad Litem office, A&P Mental Health, Discovery (a recovery program), a First Alarm representative and an American Legion post (Post 44). The committee also discussed stage availability through a contact identified as “Senator Garcia’s stage.” Committee members said they would assemble a sponsorship packet and begin outreach immediately.

Renee, a committee member, summarized the group’s budget approach: "They're not gonna spend a dime on this," she said, indicating volunteers plan to secure private sponsorships before requesting town funds. The group agreed to prioritize fundraising and to use any leftover festival revenue toward other program priorities, with a follow‑up report at the next meeting.

Committee members discussed program ideas to draw families — pumpkin painting (to be staffed by Girl Scouts), a dunk tank to raise money, inflatable attractions and local performers — and emphasized promoting the event more widely than last year through social media and printed flyers placed in local businesses.

On public safety, the committee asked staff to contact Officer Abadore to explore whether one or two officers could be present the day of the festival. Committee members noted police overtime or special‑event costs can be substantial and said they would report estimated fees when quotes are available.

Next steps assigned at the meeting included: compiling a sponsorship sheet, getting quotes for tent/table/generator rental, confirming stage and vendor commitments, and producing a festival flyer to distribute in August. Committee members set a goal of firming contracts and sponsorships by the next scheduled meeting to allow time for promotion.

Less critical details discussed included volunteer assignments, ways to use social media hashtags to aggregate posts, and the desire to keep the festival family‑friendly and resource‑oriented rather than lecture‑heavy.