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Culture & Recreation committee proposes reallocating Kids Fest funds; council to place item on next agenda for public input
Summary
A Culture & Recreation committee plan to reallocate about $36,000 previously used for Kids Fest drew questions about process and prompted the council to schedule the matter for public discussion at a future meeting.
The Culture & Recreation Committee presented a proposed reallocation of funds historically used for the town's Kids Fest; the council asked staff to place the proposal on the next meeting agenda for public discussion.
Councilman Benafield presented the committee's draft allocation, which would repurpose roughly $36,000 previously associated with Kids Fest toward several items: expanded Orange Park After Dark programming, holiday decorations, an event-management subscription for vendor registration and mapping, targeted advertising, fall festival prize upgrades, conference and travel support for staff, and employee engagement. Benafield said the committee wants to invest in events that have shown strong resident interest and reduce administrative burden through software.
Several council members raised process and budgetary questions. Vice Mayor Taylor and others asked whether canceling Kids Fest had been authorized by the council and noted the town charter and budget rules require council action to reallocate encumbered appropriations. Council members discussed whether the funds were encumbered, where they appear in the adopted budget line items, and whether the town manager had authority to transfer money between line items by ordinance. The council agreed to add a formal discussion and decision to the next meeting agenda so the public can comment.
No formal reallocation vote was taken; the council directed staff to place the proposal on the next meeting agenda and to provide public notice so residents can comment.
