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Santa Monica council authorizes staff to negotiate major‑events agreements for 2026–28
Summary
Council approved staff recommendations to enter exclusive negotiations for a series of major events — including a FIFA World Cup fan pitch on the Pier, a Goldenvoice‑run music festival and Olympic activations — and adopted a cost‑recovery approach to avoid direct city subsidies.
Santa Monica’s City Council on Dec. 16 voted unanimously to authorize staff to advance negotiations with event producers for a string of high‑profile activations in 2026–2028, citing potential economic benefits and a requirement that the city not underwrite productions.
Deputy City Manager Peter James told the council the major‑events working group had created a pricing methodology “that establishes cost recovery as our minimum standard such that the city incurs no net loss and provides no public subsidy to the production of these events.” Staff described two commercial pathways: a “high benefit” model that offers flexible terms and legacy…
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