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: 9/4/2018
ITEM NO: 10
DATE: AUGUST 25, 2018
TO: MAYOR AND TOWN COUNCIL
FROM: LAUREL PREVETTI, TOWN MANAGER
SUBJECT: REVIEW THE 2018 MIP SUMMER CONCERT SERIES AND DECIDE EITHER
TO:
A. ISSUE A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP) FOR OUTSIDE PRODUCTION,
PROMOTION, AND MANAGEMENT OF THE 2019 MIP SUMMER CONCERT
SERIES, OR
B. AUTHORIZE TOWN STAFF TO MOVE FORWARD WITH PROGRAMMING
THE 2019 MIP SUMMER CONCERT SERIES, ADOPT A RESOLUTION
(ATTACHMENT 1) TO ENABLE SPONSORSHIPS, AND ISSUE AN RFP FOR
OUTSIDE PRODUCTION OF THE 2020 MIP SEASON AT THE END OF THE
2019 SEASON.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the Town Council review the 2018 MIP summer concert series and
decide either to:
A. Issue a Request For Proposal (RFP) for outside production, promotion, and
management of the 2019 MIP summer concert series, or
B. Authorize Town staff to move forward with programming the 2019 MIP
summer concert series, adopt a resolution (Attachment 1) to enable
sponsorships, and issue an RFP for outside production of the 2020 MIP
season at the end of the 2019 season.
BACKGROUND:
Since 1988, Music in the Park (MIP) has been a free public summer concert series held on
Sunday afternoons on the Los Gatos Civic Center lawn. Over the years, MIP has been managed
BACKGROUND (Cont’d):
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SUBJECT: DECIDE NEXT STEPS FOR THE 2019 MUSIC IN THE PARK (MIP) SUMMER
CONCERT SERIES
August 22, 2018
by multiple parties including the Town’s Arts and Culture Commission, Los Gatos Music and Arts
(LGM&A), Los Gatos Music in the Park (LGMIP), and most recently Town staff. In the past
several years, there have been several changes in the annual production of MIP. Following is
the recent chronology of MIP:
• In 2015, LGM&A notified the Town that they would no t be seeking to enter into a new
agreement to manage and administer MIP.
• December 2015, the Town Council reviewed and discussed options regarding MIP and
directed staff to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the production, management and
coordination of MIP.
• 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.
• December 2017, the Town Council authorized the Town Manager to enter into another
contract with LGMIP.
• December 2017, the Town received a letter from LGMIP stating that they would not be
continuing management of the MIP Summer Concert Series.
• December 2017, Town staff issued a RFP for the production and management of the
2018 Music in the Park Summer Concert series.
• January 2018, at the conclusion of the RFP deadline, no proposals were received.
• February 2018, given that no external parties stepped forward to manage MIP, Council
directed staff to produce the 2018 summer concert series utilizing a sponsorship based
model.
DISCUSSION:
To provide sufficient time for either staff or a third party to effectively produce and promote
the 2019 MIP summer concert series, staff seeks direction from Council on whether to replicate
the 2018 staff sponsor based MIP model or pursue third party programming through the
issuance of an RFP.
2018 Staff MIP Production
The 2018 MIP summer concert series was programmed at five concerts, with the first concert
commencing after the Town’s Symphony in the Park on the Fourth of July and the final concert
concluding prior to the Kiwanis’s Fiesta de Artes. The 2018 series was designed to provide a fun
mix of musical genres and incorporate a family friendly atmosphere. Each concert included
some form of child friendly activity hosted either by the Town, or through existing partnerships
such as NUMU or our concert sponsors like the Bay Area Acting Studio.
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SUBJECT: DECIDE NEXT STEPS FOR THE 2019 MUSIC IN THE PARK (MIP) SUMMER
CONCERT SERIES
August 22, 2018
DISCUSSION (Cont’d):
In addition, this season included partnering with the Chamber of Commerce for the hosting of a
beer and wine garden.
Staff designed a sponsorship campaign predicated on higher sponsorship financial
commitments and fewer sponsors overall. The sponsor packages were built to provide
sponsors with a high degree of brand visibility with little brand dilution or crowding. Targeting
a smaller universe of sponsors also helped staff mitigate the effects of a shortened fundraising
calendar and facilitated more efficient day of concert logistics. The Town offered three
sponsorship levels ($1,000, $2,500, and $5,000) which provided varying degrees of market
visibility for sponsors. The packages sought to provide sponsors with a variety of brand
placement and company recognition opportunities, along with VIP treatment at the
concerts. In addition, staff created a unique offering for early Premier sponsors to have a single
placement logo on street pole banners throughout the Town.
The following table provides the breakdown of sponsorships for 2018:
Sponsorship Level Sponsors Revenue
Premier Series (5)
Bay Area Acting Studio, Stevens
Creek BMW, Arthur Murray, Good
Samaritan Hospital, Town of Los
Gatos
$25,000
Single Concert (4) Alarm Company, Classic Car Wash,
JCC Los Gatos, SVCE $10,000
Partial Concert (1) Hillbrook School $1,000
Total Sponsorships $36,000
In addition to the revenues illustrated above, it should be noted that additional in-kind
resources were donated to the series including; weekly meals for the bands and sound
engineers provided by Purple Onion and free advertising by Los Gatos Living magazine.
DISCUSSION (Cont’d):
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SUBJECT: DECIDE NEXT STEPS FOR THE 2019 MUSIC IN THE PARK (MIP) SUMMER
CONCERT SERIES
August 22, 2018
Below are the expenses for the 2018 series:
Category Item Expense
Production Bands, sound engineer, portable
toilets, and insurance $27,458.50
Marketing Marketing items including various
banners and advertisements $7,818.17
Miscellaneous Pathway roping, giveaways,
perimeter tape, etc. $1,094.66
Paid Town Event Staff Event Attendants $2,569.13
Total Expenses $38,940.46
Total Sponsorships $36,000.00
Net Loss ($2,940.46)
Town employees who are non-exempt were paid for their services associated with MIP,
including set up, event monitoring, and break down. In addition to the staff expenses
illustrated above, significant volunteer hours were provided by Town management. To contain
costs and ensure safe and successful weekly concerts, Town management volunteered
approximately 155 hours throughout the series in addition to 24 non-staff volunteer hours.
Additionally, existing staff absorbed the following tasks into existing workloads: the initial stage
set-up, street pole banner installation, sponsorship outreach, marketing development, band
and sound booking and contracting, and creating and maintaining a social media presence
(approximately 250 hours).
2019 MIP Request for Proposal Model
Similar to 2015 and 2017, staff would issue a Request for Proposal for an individual or
individuals to produce and manage all aspects of a weekly Music in the Park Summer Concert
Series patterned after the 2018 series. The scope of services would include that the organizer
would be required to keep the series a local, family-friendly event primarily focused on
attracting Los Gatos residents and close neighbors, and the branding created for the series. In
addition, the vendor will be expected to:
• 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.
DISCUSSION (Cont’d):
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SUBJECT: DECIDE NEXT STEPS FOR THE 2019 MUSIC IN THE PARK (MIP) SUMMER
CONCERT SERIES
August 22, 2018
• 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.
2019 MIP Sponsor Based Staff Model
Similar to last year, staff would develop a business plan for a concert series which integrates
well with the style and nature of other planned summer events. Based on band availability,
staff will seek to provide a mix of musical genres to offer diversity over the course of the
concert series. Each concert will have a family friendly element and staff will work to broaden
participation of our local musical talent, non-profits, and civic organizations.
The 2019 MIP concert series would continue to be a sponsor based business model. Town staff
gained significant experience soliciting donations for 2018 and would work to establish new
partnerships and maintain existing ones for 2019. Staff believes that direct outreach to
sponsors who have shown a tradition of support, cou pled with creative packages of
sponsorship marketing opportunities, should yield similar results from prior years. Town
Council Solicitation and Donation Policy 2-17 (Attachment 2) 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
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.”
Per the above, the Town Council must adopt a resolution to enable staff to pursue sponsorships
for the concert series (Attachment 1) should this alternative be adopted. Similar to last year, it
should be noted, that any difference between the actual production cost and actual
sponsorship donations received will be an obligation of the Town and will be depicted in the
Town Manager’s Office budget.
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SUBJECT: DECIDE NEXT STEPS FOR THE 2019 MUSIC IN THE PARK (MIP) SUMMER
CONCERT SERIES
August 22, 2018
CONCLUSION:
Staff seeks Council direction on whether they would like staff to prepare a business plan to
produce and manage all aspects of the 2019 Music in the Park Summer Concert Series or
alternatively, proceed with issuing a Request for Proposal for the outside production of the
series. In addition, Council should consider if the Town will participate as a sponsor (and at
what level) in 2019 regardless of the option chosen.
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.
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT:
This is not a project defined under CEQA, and no further action is required .
Attachment:
1. Resolution to solicit donations
2. Solicitation and Donation Policy