Staff Report
PREPARED BY: MONICA RENN
Economic Vitality Manager
Reviewed by: Town Manager, Assistant Town Manager, Town Attorney, and Finance Director
110 E. Main Street Los Gatos, CA 95030 ● 408-354-6832
www.losgatosca.gov
TOWN OF LOS GATOS
TOWN COUNCIL REPORT
MEETING DATE: 2/6/2018
ITEM NO: 12
DATE: JANUARY 30, 2018
TO: MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
FROM: LAUREL PREVETTI, TOWN MANAGER
SUBJECT: DECIDE NEXT STEPS FOR THE PARK SUMMER CONCERT SERIES HELD ON
THE LOS GATOS CIVIC CENTER LAWN EACH JUNE THROUGH AUGUST
RECOMMENDATION:
Decide next steps for the park summer concert series held on the Los Gatos Civic Center lawn
each June through August.
BACKGROUND:
Since 1988, Music in the Park (MIP) has been a free public summer concert series held on
Sunday afternoons from June through August on the Los Gatos Civic Center lawn .
Over the years MIP has been managed by multiple parties including the Town’s Arts and Culture
Commission, Los Gatos Music and Arts (LGM&A), and Los Gatos Music in the Park (LGMIP). In
the past several years there have been several changes in the annual production of MIP. In
2015, LGM&A notified the Town that they would not be seeking to enter into a new agreement
to manage and administer MIP. In December 2015, the Town Council reviewed and discussed
options regarding MIP and issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the production, management
and coordination of MIP. In January 2016, the Town Council reviewed the two proposals that
were submitted and selected Los Gatos Music in the Park (LGMIP) to produce, manage, and
promote MIP with a contract valid through September 30, 2017.
Following the final concert in September 2017, staff contacted LGM IP to set up a meeting to
debrief the series and discuss a prospective contract for future years. At its December 5, 2017
meeting, the Council authorized the Town Manager to enter into another contract with LGMIP
PAGE 2 OF 5
SUBJECT: DECIDE NEXT STEPS FOR THE PARK SUMMER CONCERT SERIES HELD ON THE
LOS GATOS CIVIC CENTER LAWN EACH JUNE THROUGH AUGUST
JANUARY 30, 2018
BACKGROUND (cont’d):
for two years under the same terms and conditions as the last contract. On December 7, 2017,
the Town received a letter from LGMIP stating that they would not be managing the MIP
Summer Concert Series.
On December 21, 2017, following Town Council direction, Town staff issued a RFP for the
production and management of the 2018 Music in the Park Summer Concert series. The RFP
was sent in an email to over 40 past Town event organizers, local service clubs, and event
production companies that have shown potential interest in the opportunity. In addition, it was
posted on: the Town’s website homepage; Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Next Door Social
Media accounts; and the weekly What’s New. Staff also reached out to known regional music
promoters to inform them of the RFP and request they distribute the information within their
networks. The deadline for RFP submittals was January 24, 2018, and at the conclusion of the
deadline no proposals were received.
DISCUSSION:
Given no external parties stepped forward to manage MIP, and recognizing the social, cultural,
and economic value that MIP brings to the Town of Los Gatos, staff recommends that Council
discuss options for potentially producing the 2018 summer concert series internally by Town
staff. As previously noted, the Town’s Arts and Culture Commission did at one time manage the
concert series; however, it was determined that the Commission could not solicit donations for
the series. It is important to note that internal management of the 2018 summer concert series
would require significant Town staff resources and possible additional financing not previously
programmed requiring tradeoffs with other Town priorities.
If the Council would like to consider internal management of the MIP events, two options the
Council may consider are:
• Maintain a sponsor-based business model for the MIP concert series with staff doing
the logistical work of selecting, managing, and promoting musical artists.
• Produce, manage and coordinate MIP exclusively with Town staff and resources at
an estimated cost of potentially more than $60,000
As stated in the RFP, the successful production of the concert series requires the following
organizational capabilities for either option:
• Plan, organize, produce, manage, and fund the Music in the Park summer concert series
to provide a positive, high quality, social experience through music for families and
community members.
PAGE 3 OF 5
SUBJECT: DECIDE NEXT STEPS FOR THE PARK SUMMER CONCERT SERIES HELD ON THE
LOS GATOS CIVIC CENTER LAWN EACH JUNE THROUGH AUGUST
JANUARY 30, 2018
DISCUSSION (Continued):
• Audition, book, contract with, and pay the performers.
• Provide a professional sound system and sound engineer on site for the duration of the
concert.
• Provide an adequate number of staff and volunteers to run the concerts and clean after
the concerts.
• Maintain a clean, safe, and attractive environment for the concerts.
• Oversee the performers.
The dates below reflect what the typical Sunday evening concert series would be for 2018.
However, it should be noted that a shorter concert series could be programmed due to
insufficient sponsorships, partial Town subsidy, and/or availability of musical artists.
June 10, 17, 24
July 1, 8, 22, 29
August 5, 19, 26
Decision elements of both options are discussed in more detail below. If the Council chooses to
pursue either of these options, staff would need additional time to analyze the necessary
budget and workload implications, and return to Council with a completed business plan. In
addition, given the existing workload of the Town Manager’s Office, the vacant Management
Analyst position would need to be filled promptly to help facilitate the MIP program
responsibilities.
Sponsor Based MIP Model
The MIP concert series has historically been funded through a sponsor based business model.
This has required the producers to develop partnerships, promotions, and sponsorships with
businesses and organizations in Los Gatos. Town staff has some familiarity with the previous
sponsoring businesses and could work to establish partnerships for 2018. To do this, the Town
Council Solicitation and Donation Policy 2-17 (Attachment 1) requires prior Council approval as
stated below:
“Targeted solicitation is defined as the direct petition or contact of specific individuals,
companies, foundations or other entities initiated by the Town Council and other elected
officials, Council advisory bodies, and Town employees herein called “Town Officials” for the
purpose of receiving goods, services, or other contributions for the Town. Targeted solicitation
excludes the direct petition for government, private, or non-profit grants for Council-approved
PAGE 4 OF 5
SUBJECT: DECIDE NEXT STEPS FOR THE PARK SUMMER CONCERT SERIES HELD ON THE
LOS GATOS CIVIC CENTER LAWN EACH JUNE THROUGH AUGUST
JANUARY 30, 2018
DISCUSSION (Continued):
programs, projects, and services. Unless prior approval has been given by Council, Town Officials
shall not engage in targeted solicitation activities on behalf of the Town.”
Even with prior Town Council approval, there is no guarantee that staff would be successful in
soliciting sufficient funding for all of the dates for the typical MIP concert series.
Town Subsidized Model
This production model requires all the same organizational elements of the sponsorship model
with the exception of seeking sponsorships. As previously stated a fully subsidized Town
concert series is estimated to cost approximately $60,000 including staff time. Additional
analysis by staff will be necessary to refine cost estimates for the 2018 music program. In
addition, the estimated costs will assume that staff is successful in recruiting sufficient
volunteers for security, set-up, take down, and cleanup. Below is a listing of known vendor
needs based on prior years.
• Locate and book 10 music acts
• Town stage setup/maintenance
• Sound equipment delivery/setup/tear down
• Portable toilets (8), ADA (1), hand wash stations (4)
• Graphic design and banner/poster production
• Additional Garbage/Recycling
• Sound engineer
CONCLUSION:
Staff seeks Council direction on whether they would like staff to prepare a business plan to
produce and manage all aspects of a weekly Music in the Park Summer Concert Series held on
the Los Gatos Civic Center lawn each June through August.
COORDINATION:
This report was coordinated with the Town Manager’s and Town Attorney’s Offices.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Additional financial impacts may result depending on the option selected by the Town Council.
Staff will conduct a full analysis of costs, if any, pending the direction of the Town Council.
PAGE 5 OF 5
SUBJECT: DECIDE NEXT STEPS FOR THE PARK SUMMER CONCERT SERIES HELD ON THE
LOS GATOS CIVIC CENTER LAWN EACH JUNE THROUGH AUGUST
JANUARY 30, 2018
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT:
This is not a project defined under CEQA, and no further action is required.
Attachment:
1. Solicitation and Donation Policy