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Committee splits on sharing special-event parking revenue for Christkindlmarket; issue moved to work session
Summary
Downtown Westchester requested a traditional revenue split of special-event garage fees for Christkindlmarket; proponents said the market brings 15,000 visitors and supports small businesses, while opponents called the request 'double dipping' given borough support for the BID; committee voted to send the matter to a work session for full-council review and deferred further discussion to the next meeting.
Downtown Westchester director John Bridal asked the Parking Committee to approve sharing the garages' special-event parking revenue for Christkindlmarket and other future Central Business District events under the borough's existing revenue-share approach.
Bridal said the market attracts roughly "15,000 folks" and helps local retailers and restaurants during business hours. He told the committee that the special-event revenue split has historically been applied to garage event fees and that the revenue-share approach made prior events financially manageable for organizers: "If you could certainly say that's probably another $5,000 that you're gonna receive," he said of lot revenue paired with the garage split.
Several committee members questioned the request. One member said it "feels a little bit like double dipping" given the borough's ongoing financial support for the BID and recommended careful adherence to the special-event policy. Staff reminded the committee that the November policy established criteria for revenue sharing, including that applicants be 501(c)(3) organizations, demonstrate borough-wide benefit, be open to the public and increase awareness of West Chester.
Members also raised timing concerns: several speakers urged that revenue-share requests be submitted before events and noted the BID sometimes makes requests after events conclude. Bridal said his organization submitted applications under the old system and that the move to the new policy requires retooling.
A committee member moved to send the request to a work session and to have full council decide; the mover indicated that, at the committee level, opinions were split and that the full council should consider the matter. The committee agreed to discuss the issue again at the next meeting, and no final revenue-share decision was made at this session.
The committee also asked staff to provide cost estimates and maps related to signage and to ensure future special-event applications follow the adopted policy criteria.
