Farmers Branch to pursue sponsorship for Firefighter Challenge; council supports $10,000 hotel‑tax contribution

City staff told the council on July 1 that the Firefighter Challenge World Championship plans to bring national and international competitors to Farmers Branch in October and asked whether the city should enter a sponsorship agreement that would include a $10,000 cash contribution from restricted hotel occupancy tax (HOT) revenues and the waiver of local fees and permits.

Special Projects Manager Jose Garabay said the event is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 20 through Saturday, Oct. 25 at the Dallas College Brookhaven campus in Farmers Branch and that organizers expect about 800 attendees plus accompanying volunteers and families; the tourism team has blocked 600 hotel rooms. “This will include athletes, volunteers, families, and different guests,” Garabay said. Staff reported that the event regularly attracts participants from across the United States and from more than 17 countries; last year’s field included competitors from Canada, Norway, France and the United Kingdom.

Under the proposed sponsorship, staff said, the city would waive local fees and permit costs, allow on‑site hydrant water hookups, assist with volunteer recruitment and provide a $10,000 cash payment funded by hotel occupancy tax revenue. In return, event organizers would use the city logo on marketing, include the city on signage and event materials, air a 15‑second commercial across the event’s social channels, and mention and thank the city in media outreach. Garabay said that firefighters from the Farmers Branch Fire Department could sign up to compete and that the department’s participation would be voluntary.

Council members were generally supportive and asked for additional metrics. Councilman Bennett asked where the event has been held previously; an event representative said the championship was in Nashville last year and that a smaller version ran at the Doubletree Galleria Hotel in 2017. Councilman Neal asked whether the city could measure return on investment for the proposed $10,000 HOT contribution; staff said they would run an economic impact report similar to the one used for the city’s pickleball event. “We will run the same report for this event,” an event/tourism representative said.

Council members also asked for details about the 15‑second commercial and online reach; staff said the video would run across the organizer’s channels (website, Instagram, live streams) and agreed to return with metrics on the event’s reach and subscriber counts. The council requested that staff prepare a resolution and a sponsorship agreement and place the item on a near‑term agenda.

Outcome and follow-up: Council signaled support for pursuing the sponsorship and asked staff to draft a resolution and agreement for formal council action. Staff will provide an economic impact analysis and documentation of projected media reach prior to the formal action.

Ending: Staff will prepare a resolution and the proposed sponsorship agreement and return with metrics and the economic impact report for council consideration and a formal vote.