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After six years, advisory board recommends dropping Wine, Art & Music Festival; suggests reallocating funds to family events
Summary
Parks staff presented preliminary reconciled finances for the Wine, Art & Music Festival (a $757.44 surplus this year) but recommended removing the event from the calendar due to lack of sustainable attendance and staff time; the board discussed reallocating the budget to multiple family-oriented events and ramping vendor outreach for the Harvest Festival.
Parks staff told the advisory board that the Wine, Art & Music Festival produced an estimated 400 attendees (226 paid tickets) and a preliminary surplus of $757.44, but recommended removing the event from the roster after six years because it has not generated consistent growth or justified staff effort.
Lorena said, "I don't think we have the demographics here in Taneytown for it," and recommended reallocating those resources to lower-effort, family-oriented activities such as additional family fun days or to park amenities (fitness stations, swings). Board members discussed options including three family fun days (estimated $2,500–$3,000 each), sponsorship outreach and reusing WineFest assets (lanyards, corkscrews, glasses) to generate small donations at other events.
Program highlights: The board also reviewed the broader 2026 summer schedule: morning yoga at Bollinger Park starting July 7 (Tuesdays, 8:30–9:30 a.m.), Memorial Park evening yoga through Aug. 20, a summer scavenger hunt launching June 22, a movie-in-the-park (June 27), July 3 fireworks at Memorial Park with food trucks and activities, a July 4 5K/walk/run at Roberts Mill Park and a family fun day on July 5. Staff will send Harvest Festival vendor invitations June 22 for the Sept. 26 event; staff noted select distilleries and vendors will be placed inside a fenced area requiring ID checks for purchases, per state alcohol rules.
Next steps: The advisory board agreed to pursue reallocation of WineFest funds for community-oriented events, pursue sponsorships, and use existing WineFest merchandise as fundraising items at other events. Staff will reach out to previous vendors and local businesses to assess interest and report back on sponsor prospects and event budgets.
