TO: Mayor and Members of City Council
THRU: Douglas Hewett, ICMA-CM, City Manager
FROM: Jodi W. Phelps, Director, Chief of Staff
DATE: November 13, 2023
RE:
Title
Support for Fayetteville Dogwood Festival Feasibility and Sustainability Plan
end
COUNCIL DISTRICT(S):
Council District(s)
All
b
Relationship To Strategic Plan:
Goal #3: Invested in Today and Tomorrow
Goal #6: Collaborative Citizen and Business Engagement
Executive Summary:
City Council is asked to adopt a resolution affirming their intent to provide funding to the Fayetteville Economic Development Corporation for the sole purpose of engaging a professional consultant to perform a feasibility and sustainability study to deliver recommendations on the Fayetteville Dogwood Festival's organizational structure, governance structure and ongoing festival composition.
Background:
City staff have been in communication with the Fayetteville Dogwood Festival board who are seeking to establish a fiscally and operationally sustainable model for the future. The Fayetteville Dogwood Festival has been a signature event bringing positive brand recognition to our City for more than 40 years. With the last economic impact estimated in 2018 of more than $8.1 million for our City, there is vested interest in providing stability and continuity for the festival along with key community partners such as Cumberland County, the TDA and Distinctly Fayetteville.
The City has provided financial support for the Festival since 2017 in the following amounts:
* June 2022 $15,000
* May 2021 $15,000
* March 2019 $12,000
* March 2018 $12,000
* April 2017 $12,000
Issues/Analysis:
The proposal and recommendation for Council's consideration would provide financial support of no more than $20,000 to FCEDC to fund a feasibility study and planning process that will identify options to answer two questions:
a. what does a model look like for successful operation...
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