Calistoga council approves concession deal, expands fairgrounds survey boundary and moves advisory meetings to 6 p.m.

Calistoga — The Calistoga City Council on Aug. 19 approved a concession license with the Native Sons of the Golden West Parlor 86 to handle alcohol sales at Calistoga Speedway, voted to expand a planned statistically valid survey of fairgrounds users to the Calistoga Joint Unified School District boundary, and adopted a resolution moving the Fairgrounds Advisory Committee’s regular meeting time from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

The concession agreement with Native Sons of the Golden West Parlor 86 gives the city 25% of gross alcohol sales at Sprint Car races at the speedway. Staff projected that if race events proceed in 2026 the revenue could amount to about $5,000 per race (roughly $21,000 across events the staff listed). Mayor Williams recused himself from the concession vote because he is a member of the local parlor; the council approved the agreement by roll call, with Council members Eisenberg, Cooper, Gift and Vice Mayor Lopez Ortega voting aye.

Why it matters: The three actions concern how the city manages and finances the 70‑acre fairgrounds, a city-owned facility that has drawn increased public interest. The concession deal creates a recurring revenue share and formalizes use of a local nonprofit as a vendor; the survey boundary decision expands the population sampled for community input; and the meeting‑time change is aimed at increasing public participation in advisory committee meetings.

Concession license: staff report and vote

Shelly Wright, fairgrounds rehabilitation director, presented the concession license proposal and said the agreement provides the city with 25% of all gross alcohol sales at Sprint Car races. Wright told council the city issued an RFP and that the Native Sons parlor was selected; staff noted the RFP was issued twice and the last RFP produced a single proposal. Wright also said the vendor must follow licensing and community‑standards compliance.

Council member Gift praised staff for choosing a local nonprofit. “I'm glad that we are working with local non profits… the benefit will stay in the city,” Gift said. No public commenters were in the queue on the concession item.

Because Mayor Williams was a member of the local Native Sons parlor he recused himself from the vote; the council approved the agreement by roll call: Council member Eisenberg — aye; Council member Cooper — aye; Council member Gift — aye; Vice Mayor Lopez Ortega — aye; Mayor Williams — recused. The motion carried and the item was closed.

Survey boundary: advisory committee recommendation and public comment

Wright told the council that the Fairgrounds Advisory Committee, by a 3–2 vote, recommended expanding distribution of a statistically valid community survey from the city limits to the Calistoga Joint Unified School District boundary. Wright said the survey consultant, FM3, had the mapping in hand and reported no additional cost to change the geographic boundary.

Several people who identified themselves as Calistoga residents but living outside the municipal limits urged inclusion in the survey, saying they shop, attend school and otherwise participate in town life. One commenter said, “My address has been Calistoga ever since I've lived in this area… I would like to have a say in the survey whether I'm in town or out of town.”

Mayor Williams moved to adopt the advisory committee recommendation to expand the survey boundary; Council member Eisenberg seconded. The roll call recorded Council member Eisenberg — aye; Council member Cooper — aye; Council member Gift — abstain; Vice Mayor Lopez Ortega — aye; Mayor Williams — aye. The motion passed, with Gift recording an abstention.

Council members and staff clarified that the Calistoga Joint Unified School District boundary differs from ZIP code 94515 and that FM3 had already mapped the school‑district boundary. Wright said FM3 would attend the Fairgrounds Advisory Committee meeting on Aug. 28 to explain the survey process and accept final input from the committee before distribution.

Meeting time for Fairgrounds Advisory Committee

Wright recommended, and the council adopted, a staff resolution changing the Fairgrounds Advisory Committee’s regular meeting time from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. beginning in September to allow greater community participation. The advisory committee had itself voted to recommend the evening start time so people who work daytime hours could attend.

Staff warned the change would be inconsistent with some other advisory committees and could require overtime for hourly employees who support the meetings. Wright estimated the overtime cost at about $1,400 annually and said the change would require a mid‑year budget adjustment; the meeting record contained a garbled budget figure for that adjustment and did not provide a definitive dollar amount beyond the $1,400 overtime estimate.

Council members debated staff impacts and logistical constraints for evening meetings, including setup and teardown time and limited staff availability. Council member Isenberg suggested flexible scheduling options (for example, staggered shift or flex time for the committee secretary) but noted that personnel rules and existing MOUs would require human resources review. Several council members said the civic‑engagement benefits outweighed the modest cost estimate; Council member Cooper moved to adopt the resolution and Council member Eisenberg seconded. The roll call recorded Aisenberg/Eisenberg — aye; Cooper — aye; Gift — aye; Vice Mayor Lopez Ortega — aye; Mayor Williams — aye. The resolution passed.

Other fairgrounds notes

City Manager and Wright provided additional fairgrounds updates: Charlie Sakai was introduced as the city’s first dedicated maintenance worker for the fairgrounds (hired to increase on‑site staffing); grandstand repairs were completed and an engineer’s letter had been sent to the city engineer and public works director; recent events generated roughly $36,000 in gross revenue for a single busy week, and staff estimated it would take about 41 similar weekends to cover the fairgrounds’ costs based on that level of revenue. Wright said the Butler roof contractor had backed out and staff would bring a replacement project back to council for approval.

Votes at a glance

- Concession license agreement with Native Sons of the Golden West Parlor 86 (alcohol sales at Calistoga Speedway): approved. Roll call — Eisenberg: aye; Cooper: aye; Gift: aye; Lopez Ortega: aye; Mayor Williams: recused. Motion mover/second: not specified in record. Note: last RFP cycle produced a single bidder.

- Fairgrounds statistically valid survey boundary (expand to Calistoga Joint Unified School District): adopted. Roll call — Eisenberg: aye; Cooper: aye; Gift: abstain; Lopez Ortega: aye; Mayor Williams: aye. Motion by Mayor Williams; second by Council member Eisenberg.

- Resolution to change Fairgrounds Advisory Committee meeting time from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.: adopted. Roll call — Eisenberg/Aisenberg: aye; Cooper: aye; Gift: aye; Lopez Ortega: aye; Mayor Williams: aye. Motion by Council member Cooper; second by Council member Eisenberg.

What’s next

FM3, the survey consultant, will attend the Fairgrounds Advisory Committee meeting on Aug. 28 to review the survey process and finalize distribution. Staff said they will prepare any required mid‑year budget adjustment paperwork to cover overtime and other costs associated with the meeting‑time change and will return any contract or capital items (for example, the Butler roof) to council for approval as needed.

(Reporting based on the Aug. 19, special meeting of the Calistoga City Council; quotations and vote tallies are drawn from the meeting transcript.)