By Khalida Sarwari
The Saratoga City Council awarded $35,000 in community event grant funding to 13 organizers, enabling them to coordinate their events over the course of the next fiscal year.
At its March 16 meeting, the Saratoga City Council allocated grants to nearly all applicants. The largest allocation, $4,770, went to the Saratoga Area Senior Coordinating Council for its Health and Wellness Expo. The Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival received the smallest amount at $350.
In making her appeal to the council, SASCC president Lisa Heuning noted that the health fair was attended by well over 250 people last year. In her application, she had asked for $5,150, although organizers had spent less than $4,000 to put the event together. She said they planned to use the extra money for marketing and to expand their reach.
“I’m very proud of how this event has grown over the years and become more and more interactive for families and given more resources that are available to them,” Heuning said.
The other events that received funding include the Blossom Festival, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows’ Easter Egg Hunt, the Memorial Day Observance, Saratoga Community Band Concert in the Park, Saratoga Independence Day Celebration, Saratoga Pet Parade, Hakone Matsuri, Holiday Wine Stroll, Montalvo Arts Splash, Opera in the Park and Relay for Life of Saratoga. The Saratoga 60th Anniversary Parade received $7,000 from the city’s discretionary fund.
Unlike the other events, the Hakone Foundation’s request for $5,000 is for this year’s Matsuri event, which is scheduled to take place on May 15. Because the community event grant program had a remaining $5,617 in unused funds, the council agreed to allocate that money toward the Matsuri event.
Organizers can use the grant money to cover the cost of event materials, supplies, contract services, permits and city-related fees such as park rental or permit costs.
The council had agreed in December to allocate $35,000 from the general fund for the community event grant program in next year’s budget. Since applications for the program were released in January, the city received 15 applications amounting to $48,970 in community event grant requests.
Councilwoman Mary-Lynne Bernald alluded to how painful of a process selecting the organizations and allocating funds can be for the council.
“Howard and I both said this is the night we hate the most,” she said. “This is saying which child do you love more? And it’s just going to have to fall that way that we don’t have all the money. The citizens of our city expect us to spend our money on other things, too.”
In making its decision, the council gave highest priority to Saratoga-based nonprofits planning an event in the city intended to bring the community together and establish an identity for the city. Organizers were required to demonstrate that they could produce an event for which they could manage the costs, attract attendees and obtain any necessary permits and other authorizations in a timely manner.
The community event grant program, a formal funding allocation process that allows organizers to request grant funds for events that are held in Saratoga and are open to the public, was developed in 2012. The process came about after years of the council’s considering requests for event grants or waiver of city-related fees. One significant change this year is that the city is requiring all organizers to take out insurance for their events.
Link: Seniors get biggest cut of city’s community event grant funding
