Oswego trustees back pausing staff-run concerts and prioritizing community use while hiring events manager

The Oswego Committee of the Whole heard a staff presentation on village events and the financial and staffing pressures of running the municipal venue, and trustees signaled a consensus to favor a plan that shifts the venue toward community reservations and fewer staff-run concerts while the village hires an events manager to refine options.

Jean, a village staff member who led the presentation, told trustees the village runs many annual events — including Wine on the Fox, Movies Under the Stars and Christmas Walk — and that Wine on the Fox has been the biggest revenue driver for the special events fund. “Wine on the Fox … came away ahead with approximately $60,000,” Jean said. She added that the venue concert series generally trailed recent attendance averages but that the final concert of the season prevented a much larger deficit; without that show, expenditures would have exceeded revenues by over $20,000.

Jean laid out four options for the board to consider. Option 1 would return the venue to its original intent: community use for free or low cost without village-run events, with Movies Under the Stars potentially returning to Village Hall. Option 3 would reserve one post–Labor Day event, and Option 4 would put the venue out to bid for an outside entertainment firm to manage operations. Jean said staff recommended reducing the schedule so work is manageable and emphasized seeking operational efficiencies for longstanding events.

Trustees questioned staff about how event-related hours are counted. Jean said the overtime figures presented reflect changes made in 2024 — police overtime and benefits have been charged to the special events fund — but that regular setup hours performed by public works and other staff are not included in the overtime slides. Trustees pressed that many additional staff hours are associated with events and may not be visible in the presented numbers.

During discussion trustees emphasized different priorities. Several trustees supported moving to Option 1 now to reduce the burden on staff. “I personally would love to have us move to Option 1,” one trustee said. Others favored holding one larger annual event or testing market interest for outside vendors. Trustees and staff discussed practical constraints for rentals — deposits, cleanup, porta-potty coordination, and garbage pickup — and noted those services either add staff time or would need to be charged to renters.

Several trustees recommended onboarding the events manager before fully committing to longer-term changes. The board agreed to proceed with an interim posture consistent with Option 1 — making the venue more available for community reservations and reducing staff-run events — while the village recruits an events manager and floats vendor interest via a request-for-interest or RFP process. Jean said an events manager could later recommend whether to restore more staff-run programming, hold a single large annual festival, or pursue an outside operator.

The committee adjourned for a short break and will return to the board meeting to continue with staff reports. No formal roll-call vote on venue policy was recorded during this session; trustees described their position as a working consensus and directed staff to continue planning and to report back after hiring the events manager.