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Resident seeks Founders Square booking and fee assistance; board offers guidance but not a full fee waiver
Summary
Dominique Petrovic asked the board to waive booking fees for a community potluck at Founders Square on Aug. 22. Board members supported the event in principle, advised her to avoid implying city sponsorship, and said staff/attorney would follow up; the board noted established fee-waiver practice is typically a percentage discount rather than full waivers.
Dominique Petrovic, a Portage resident, asked the Park Board to permit a community picnic at Founders Square on Aug. 22 and requested a fee waiver for booking the space. Petrovic described the event as a low‑key neighborhood potluck aimed at connecting long-time and newer residents; she said she had already contacted the county health department about permits and was prepared to arrange volunteers for cleanup.
Board members and staff discussed whether the park calendar had conflicts for Aug. 22; staff said the date was currently open. The mayor and staff emphasized that the board’s practice historically has been to offer percentage discounts rather than blanket 100% fee waivers and that the city could mark a date as tentatively booked so a fee waiver question would not be necessary unless an organization later paid to reserve the same date. Staff and the attorney also advised Petrovic to remove any wording from promotional materials that would suggest the city was sponsoring or officially endorsing the event.
The board encouraged Petrovic to pursue the event, said staff would follow up about permit and booking language, and noted that if another, larger group later booked the date, the board would need to communicate that change to her.
