Brakes on city events

The city council's event funding scheme is looking like becoming a victim of its own success, after councillors placed a request for more staff for the expanding department on the back burner.

The strategic and city events team's wants an additional $471,000 to increase the marketing budget and pay for another four staff, but it was put to the back of the list when councillors came to discuss it last week.


Events like the Hairy Maclary open day cost the city money. File photo.

City councillors significantly boosted events funding in the 2015-25 long term plan with the intention of encouraging event attraction and development over the next 10 years, and ensuring Tauranga is considered a 'Top Tier' events destination and attracts major events to the city.

It's working really well with events going from 257 to 329 and about 450-500 expected next year, says events manager Pip Loader.

But there is a huge increase in demand on staff time.

'The complexity and significant impact on stakeholders and the city from events that Tauranga City is now attracting, was underestimated.

'To successfully facilitate and engage with these events, the time required addressing the regulatory requirements, enhancing community activations and leveraging these events to ensure legacy benefits for the city as a result of the investment have exponentially increased.

'The change in the events 'landscape' and in the significant increase in quality expectation, has also added significant workload,” says Pip.

'The City Events Team is already under immense pressure to deliver to quality standards required with the resources and output generated by the increase in city wide event activity and this is only likely to worsen. This is seen as a risk to TCCs and Tauranga's event friendly reputation and focus on becoming a Major Events destination.”

In addition to the staff and marketing increase, the budgets associated with delivering Civic events has increased by $145,805, says Pip.

This is to ensure the successful delivery of additional events in 2016/17, such as the Greerton Library Opening, the Access to Water Project Opening event, the 75th Navy Commemorations event and an increase to the New Year's Eve and Summer activity programme budget to reflect cost increases to address crowd safety and better manage risks associated with the large events.

Kelvin Clout wanted to prune the amount by $100,000, but acceded to a motion to let the funding request lie on the table until later in the deliberations process.

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18 comments

Overit

Posted on 30-05-2016 13:09 | By overit

4 more staff members???


OMG

Posted on 30-05-2016 13:29 | By Captain Sensible

No way. Councils are not for that. Almost half a billion dollars in .....DEBT and they want to spend more!!!!!!!!!


Hmmmm

Posted on 30-05-2016 13:42 | By How about this view!

I guess if the events were that successful they wouldn't need MORE funding..... It would be self funding from profits, wouldn't it ???????


Commonsense at last

Posted on 30-05-2016 14:04 | By Annalist

Finally we have councillors who are sticking to a budget and not rubber stamping increased expenditure which if really necessary should have been part of the events budget in the first place.


Funding

Posted on 30-05-2016 14:40 | By Denny G

Well there does seem to be some life in councillors after all - just as I was completely bamboozled about which people to vote for in the coming elections. Maybe they wanted to save some money to cover their next wage /salary/ retainer increase !!!!


OMG

Posted on 30-05-2016 17:13 | By Kenworthlogger

Yes totally agree with you captain. This sort of thing is not what councils are for. Councils are meant to provide infrastructure not entertainment. The author of Hairy Mclairy should have paid to advertise their own product. Not the council. Does the Hamilton council pay for a Hamilton Jet statue?


Remember

Posted on 30-05-2016 18:17 | By Capt_Kaveman

Election time clean out the whole lot


So Just 4

Posted on 30-05-2016 18:21 | By NZgirl

thats $117,000 a year each not worth that much to push paper around


@Kenworthlogger

Posted on 30-05-2016 20:10 | By tibs

Why should Hamilton pay for a statue to the Hamilton Jet? It was invented by a man by the name of Hamilton and he was based in the high country near Christchurch, where the internationally renowned company continues to develop, design and produce these Jet units and associated products.


@By How about this view

Posted on 30-05-2016 20:13 | By tibs

Ah, something on which we can agree. Also, has anyone ever been able to see the spreadsheet figures for what the organisers drag off these events?


AD

Posted on 30-05-2016 20:47 | By Alan Davidson

Yes, I'd like to know what these extra 4 staff members job description is , obviously full time , but to what degree , more management??


Event management

Posted on 31-05-2016 09:20 | By Crash test dummies

Why is TCC getting involved? These events are meant to be community organised, that is how a community gets together, works and achieves good things for a city, throw money and officials at it will only result in a huge and expensive disaster, ops that is what has already happened in the CBD, obviously on to bigger, better and more things.


More fluffy bums?

Posted on 31-05-2016 10:13 | By nerak

You know, like the insects that decimate the life giving sap from plants and spread disease? Why would the ratepayers want any more in a council already bursting at the seams with them? Already noted in comments, NOT the place of council to involve in event management. Gosh, Pip Loader, you use a lot of words to say very little, you don


Tibs

Posted on 31-05-2016 10:13 | By Kenworthlogger

You have missed the point. No council should be paying to advertise any commercial enterprise.


4 More !!

Posted on 31-05-2016 10:35 | By putamadre

Four more staff ! Why don't they get rid of some they already have? In particular some of those overpaid, underworked morose faced harridans that attend the public at the counter at the Willow St service center.


@ kenworthlogger

Posted on 31-05-2016 10:37 | By earlybird

I can't help smiling when I read comments about councils only supplying infrastructure and nothing else. So, you're saying that council should sell off all the sports fields and parks, stop mowing the grass, get rid of the libraries and swimming pools, etc, etc. Kenwworthlogger I say to you, if you want to live like that then emigrate to somewhere in Siberia & I'm sure you'll find the town of your dreams.


Earlybird

Posted on 31-05-2016 15:34 | By Kenworthlogger

Please show us where i have said that council should sell off all the sports fields and parks, stop mowing the grass, get rid of the libraries and swimming pools, etc, etc. all that is infrastructre anyway or mainatanence of. If after all that there is hundreds of thousands left to spend without having to raise rates again then we could possibly look at things like this artical talks about.. Only then. Surely my learned friend your realise the difference?


Can anyone tell please...

Posted on 18-06-2016 18:01 | By groutby

if the City Event's team, being "so successful" actually pays for itself?..or is it yet another solely ratepayer funded arm of the Council, if something is widely used and perceived to be "free" then of course it will be seen to be overused..but someone always pays, and we really know who..again.


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