Santa Clara ad hoc committee revives 2026 event planning; staff pursues sponsorships through city-asset marketing program

The Economic Development and Marketing Ad Hoc Committee for the City of Santa Clara met to restart work on the city’s economic development program and coordinate community-facing activities tied to major 2026 events at Levi’s Stadium, including the Super Bowl and FIFA World Cup matches.

The committee’s work centers on two tracks: public-facing community events and marketing activities tied to the 2026 matches, and development of a more active economic development program for local businesses. “In terms of this year's focus being the major events of 2026, so this is Super Bowl and FIFA World Cup matches that are gonna be held in Levi Stadium, where we expect thousands of visitors,” Rena Brio, the city’s director of economic development and sustainability, told the committee, urging use of the events to support local businesses and generate revenue.

Why it matters: Santa Clara will host multiple high-profile international events that draw regional and global attention. Committee members said they want visible, resident-focused programming — not just event tourism — and to capture sponsorship revenue without costing the city upfront.

What the committee heard and directed - Bloomberg-Harvard fellowship: Assistant City Manager Liz (Klotz) reported that the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative provided a 10-week summer fellow, Aliyah Kozak, to help develop a strategy for community engagement, stakeholder relations and communications tied to the mayor’s 2026 priority. Kozak will begin a June-to-August placement and present recommended engagement strategies to the committee when complete.

- Community engagement vs. task force: Committee members debated two approaches for developing community events: (A) a broadly public, recurring working meeting of the ad hoc committee where residents and stakeholders would present ideas directly to council members, or (B) a separate community task force that would meet more frequently, do hands-on planning and philanthropic outreach, and then report recommendations to the ad hoc committee. Mayor Katz and several council members pressed for a transparent process that ensures broad resident participation; other members emphasized the need for a nimble group that can act quickly. The committee agreed to a path forward that preserves public access while allowing faster implementation: staff will invite community stakeholders to recurring, more-frequent ad hoc committee meetings and also stand up a working task group to carry out rapid planning and fundraising activities, with at least one committee member serving as the liaison.

- City Asset Marketing Program (CAMP): Assistant City Manager Chuck Baker described a staff proposal and a vendor selection process to monetize city assets for marketing and sponsorship revenue. Staff issued a two-step RFP and identified OutFront Media as the leading finalist based on qualifications, out-of-pocket cost structure, and conservative revenue projections. Baker summarized the program’s goals: "the purpose of the city asset marketing program or camp is to monetize city assets, attract sponsors, support community uses, strengthen the city's global presence, and deliver long term value to the city." Under the proposed approach, OutFront would help identify city assets, prepare marketing materials, solicit sponsors through its sales teams and execute activations; staff said the conservative revenue projection in the vendor proposal was about $1 million in net new revenue and that the program is intended to require no upfront city cost. City staff said a contract will be finalized and brought to the council for approval in the coming weeks.

Details and constraints highlighted in discussion - Clean‑zone / commercial-affiliate limits: Staff noted FIFA imposes a commercial “clean zone” around match activity; activation within that zone would require coordination with FIFA and its authorized commercial affiliates to avoid ambush marketing. Staff said the draft contract contemplates working with FIFA commercial affiliates where appropriate.

- Geographic and community priorities: Council members repeatedly requested that activations and community programming extend beyond the stadium area and reflect the whole city — ideas ranged from downtown night markets and vendor fairs to concerts, youth sports on-field experiences, and heritage walking tours tied to local institutions such as the Triton Museum, Santa Clara University and Mission College.

- Volunteer and philanthropic work: Several council members and members of the public urged recruiting broad volunteer participation and local fundraising/sponsorships to offset costs. Staff cautioned about legal constraints on council- or staff-led solicitation and said philanthropic fundraising would need to be undertaken by independent partners or community groups under appropriate legal guardrails.

Public input - A number of residents called in with ideas: Ian Bonham offered a private “sleep pod” concept for transit hubs and volunteered to share revenue projections with the city manager’s office. Other callers suggested a local vendor “village,” music festivals, youth-team appearances on the stadium field, drone shows in Central Park and walking-history tours.

Next steps and timing - Staff will finalize negotiations with the selected marketing vendor and return to city council for contract approval. - The Bloomberg‑Harvard fellow will work with staff over a 10‑week summer placement to draft a community engagement and communications strategy and report findings to the committee. - The committee asked staff to return to the committee’s next regular meeting in June with a more fully developed list of proposed community activations and a schedule for recurring committee meetings (staff noted meetings may need to be scheduled at times accessible to working residents). No formal votes or final policy decisions were recorded at this meeting.

The committee adjourned after asking staff to prioritize visible, resident-centered programming while moving quickly on sponsorship opportunities that can offset city costs and raise revenue.