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Council backs Manvel Fall Festival at daytime hours, approves $150,000 plan after debate over lighting and alcohol
Summary
After a lengthy discussion about hours, lighting, staffing and a beer-and-wine area, the council directed staff to move forward with a $150,000 festival package that will run 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; staff and the organizers said an evening version would raise costs to about $225,000.
The Manvel City Council voted unanimously to direct staff to move forward with a Manvel Fall Festival organized with Your Neighborhood Farmers Market Association and to authorize the city manager to execute the hotel/motel tax grant agreement and a services agreement, with the event scheduled from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and a $150,000 budget.
City Manager Dan Johnson and a representative of Your Neighborhood Farmers Market presented an event budget and options to the seven-member council. The market's representative said a daytime festival (11 a.m. to 5 p.m.) was the basis for the $150,000 proposal and that converting the event into an evening music festival with lighting and extended security would raise the cost to roughly $225,000. He said, "If we decide to go with the lighting, decide to go with the option from 2 to 8, then it changes the price...that number goes to around 225,000 versus the 150,000 that we were able to fit into this from 11AM to 5PM." (representative remarks as spoken in the meeting.)
Council raised questions about a proposed beer-and-wine garden, crowd control, staffing and vendor recruitment. The farmers market representative said alcohol vendors would hold their own TABC licenses and collect sales revenue, while the city would budget roughly $8,500 for the beer-and-wine area to cover setup, insurance and oversight. Council members asked for vendor pricing transparency and market-research data to justify attendance projections; the representative offered to provide the market-research figures if council wished.
Several councilmembers, including Councilman David Lance and Councilman Hudson, said they preferred an evening music festival but acknowledged the added costs and logistical trade-offs: lighting, extra security, longer tear-down times and greater staffing. Councilman Lance said a 7 p.m. end time would change the event's character into an adult-oriented music festival; Councilman Hudson warned that later hours bring alcohol-related enforcement issues. Councilwoman Carmen Roby Robinson and others urged balancing family activities and music.
After discussion, Mayor Pro Tem moved to approve the plan as presented with hours 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; the motion passed unanimously. City staff will finalize the hotel/motel tax grant agreement and services contract, work with Colleen and the existing Manvel market vendors to avoid displacement, and provide follow-up information about vendor fees, security plans and the beer-and-wine vendor structure.
Organizers estimated 60 to 100 vendors could participate; they said the $150,000 budget includes site production, vendor infrastructure, a kids zone, entertainment, staffing and marketing. Organizers and staff also noted the city has applied for generator grant funding for critical facilities and is exploring sponsorships to offset event costs. Council asked staff to return any additional vendor-selection terms and insurance details before final contract execution.
