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Oakley council raises rodeo purse to $50,000, weighs new ticketing rules
Summary
The Oakley City Council approved a $50,000 purse for this year's rodeo and discussed a proposed ticketing policy that would limit locals' purchases to a one-day in-person presale and cap online orders to 25 tickets per credit card to curb resale bots.
The Oakley City Council voted to raise this year's rodeo purse to $50,000 and spent significant time debating a new ticketing policy intended to make ticket distribution fairer and reduce automated resale.
A councilmember moved that the city "raise the purse money to $50,000 for this year's rodeo," a motion seconded by another councilmember and adopted by voice vote. The council discussed totals during the debate (transcript references to $45,000, $50,000 and $55,000 appeared while members and staff reconciled event counts and payouts).
The move followed council discussion about balancing a larger purse against other festival features for Oakley's 250th-anniversary summer events. The mayor argued for keeping the drone show and expanding fireworks for the celebration and suggested a potential small ticket-price increase to cover added costs, saying the city should "party hearty for our 200 and fiftieth celebration." (direct quote from the mayor in the meeting)
Staff presented a detailed ticketing proposal. Amy, a city staff member, told council members the recommended approach is a one-day, in-person locals-only presale (8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.) limited to residents living within Oakley's legal boundaries and to volunteers who earned vouchers; on-sale day for the general public would move online the following day. For locals, staff recommended limiting purchases to 25 tickets per night and allowing that allotment to be stacked across the five rodeo nights (a potential 125-ticket total). Online sales, staff said, should be limited to 25 tickets per credit card and ‘‘non-stackable’’ to slow bots and commercial resellers. Amy also gave historical sales figures: an average order size of about 17 tickets, roughly 69 orders that included 40 or more tickets last year, and about 790 total public orders (not including corporate holds).
Councilmembers voiced competing priorities: several pressed concern that raising prices risks pricing out longtime local patrons; others pushed for measures to reduce long in-person lines and prevent online scalping. One councilmember suggested adding a second in-person locals day for people in the wider region (Camas Valley, Marion and the Canyon) so long-time supporters have a chance to buy tickets. Staff cautioned that online sales typically clear leftover tickets within minutes, and mixing in-person and online sales on the same day risks confusing patrons.
No change to ticket prices was adopted at the meeting; councilmembers asked staff to take comments, consider refinements and return with further options at upcoming meetings. Staff requested formal council direction to begin advertising the suggested presale dates and limits; councilmembers agreed to continue the discussion at the next council meeting (the transcript references February 2 and 3, 2026, as staff's recommended locals and public sale dates). The council also approved the purse increase at the same meeting.
What happens next: staff will solicit additional council input, refine the ticketing approach and return with recommended language and timing; final ticket prices and any formal policy will be set by the council or by staff with the council's clear endorsement.
