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Lucas parks board reviews events budget, seeks produce and vendor help for farmers market
Summary
The Lucas Parks and Open Space Board reviewed next year’s special-events budget, including a $35,000 Founders’ Day allocation and last year’s $46,000 in event spending; members discussed boosting farmers market produce through vendor-sharing, a pilot partnership with Wylie Farmer’s Market, volunteer sign-ups and approved the March 24 minutes by voice vote.
The Lucas Parks and Open Space Board met to review next year’s parks events budget and plan staffing and vendor outreach for the Lucas Farmers Market.
Chair John Elliott asked Donna to walk the board through the parks budget and special-events numbers. “Founders' Day, and you'll see that we have $35,000 budgeted for Founders' Day,” Donna said, noting organizers expect additional donations and that retaining a $12,000 donation baseline would allow the city to match last year’s programming. Donna later reported the city actually spent about $46,000 on Founders’ Day this year, with donations covering much of the overage.
Members discussed fundraising and marketing tactics. Donna said the parks team sends personalized sponsorship letters and uses social media boosts; she noted the board can reallocate modest line items such as shirt budgets toward promotions if needed. ‘‘We send them a nice letter,’’ Donna said of event appeals to sponsors.
A major focus was increasing produce at the farmers market. Board members proposed two approaches: seed funding or vendor-sharing arrangements that would let a grower supply produce while the board or volunteers staff a booth for sales. One board member cautioned against using city staff to buy and resell produce, saying that would inappropriately use tax-funded employee time; Chair Elliott and others replied they were considering seed grants or volunteer-led solutions instead and not city-run retail efforts.
Donna reviewed recent events and logistics: the Keep Lucas Beautiful spring cleanup on March 28 drew about 26 volunteers who collected roughly 310 pounds of litter, and the Lucas car show registered about 150 vehicles. Donna also reported the city spent about $2,183 on the car show and said both the car show and Founders’ Day drew robust turnout.
Board members coordinated volunteer sign-ups for upcoming markets (including June 13 and July 11), assigned morning and afternoon shifts, and discussed music and attractions such as a dunk tank and a build-a-birdhouse activity. They also noted vendor no-shows tied to rain and graduations and discussed letting vendors and organizers from nearby markets share marketing resources.
The board agreed to pilot joint marketing and occasional vendor sharing with a nearby Wylie Farmer’s Market group to attract produce vendors and increase overall market attendance. Chair Elliott said Wylie’s market organizers have shown interest in cross-promotion and that the two markets run on alternating weeks, which could help vendors maintain weekly sales.
Votes at a glance: Brian Bellows moved to approve the minutes of the March 24, 2026 Parks and Open Space Board meeting; Michelle Miller seconded and the chair announced the motion passed on a voice vote. A motion to adjourn was moved, seconded and approved by voice vote.
The board then adjourned; next procedural steps include continuing vendor outreach, implementing the joint-marketing pilot and finalizing volunteer schedules for upcoming markets.
