Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Budget Amendment Parks topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commissioners agree to fund special events and one‑time sound upgrades using paused amphitheater general‑fund dollars
Summary
Staff asked to add $22,000 in one‑time sound upgrades and about $23,000 ongoing for county special events. Commissioners agreed to make the events part of the ongoing budget and to repurpose $1.2M of general‑fund encumbrances tied to a paused Veterans Memorial Amphitheater project to cover the request while keeping $750,000 in federal funds reserved.
Parks and budget staff asked the Board of County Commissioners to formally fund recurring special events and to cover a one‑time $22,000 sound‑system upgrade across three campus buildings.
Parks staff said several events (Stars and Stripes, Welby Days, Foster Care 5K and others) had been funded in prior years by unspent appropriations and efficiencies, but inflation and tighter budgets mean the department could no longer absorb those costs without a line item. The department requested roughly $23,000 in ongoing funds to cover the smaller special events and a one‑time $22,000 request for facility sound upgrades.
Byron and Betina presented attendance and cost details and described internal cost‑savings: reducing staff shirts, eliminating rented light towers for cleanup, using existing equipment rather than rentals, and other efficiencies. Parks staff suggested adding special events to the base budget for transparency and predictability.
Staff discussed drone‑show options. County staff said a 400‑drone, 10‑minute choreographed show is quoted at about $40,000; fireworks runs from roughly $6,500 (fair show) to $46,000 (full Fourth‑of‑July choreography). Commissioners asked staff to continue research and to default to fireworks for the larger Fourth‑of‑July event while evaluating a drone pilot for the fair.
Budget manager Mark Cluth presented the first 2026 budget amendment and carryovers across multiple funds. Staff proposed repurposing $1.2 million in general‑fund dollars that had been encumbered for a paused Veterans Memorial Amphitheater project rather than leaving those funds idle. Staff emphasized $750,000 of federal funds tied to the amphitheater would remain reserved and that the board has until 2029 to make longer‑term decisions on that project.
Several commissioners supported moving the $1.2 million back to the general fund to fund the parks request and fold the special events into the ongoing budget rather than continuing to rely on unspent balances. Staff agreed to return with a 2027 budget presentation and further detail on amphitheater options and the drone research.
Next steps: staff will bring the budget amendment to public hearing, implement the short‑term repurposing of the amphitheater general‑fund allocation to pay for events and sound upgrades, and return with options on the amphitheater by 2027.
