Economic Development,
Placemaking and
Branding/Marketing Committee
TO: ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT, DATE: MAY 18, 2023
PLACEMAKING AND BRANDING/MARKETING
COMMITTEE MEMBERS
FROM: COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WARDS: ALL
DEPARTMENT
SUBJECT: FISCAL YEAR 2023/24 CI TY SPONSORSHIP PROGRAM, JANUARY 1, 2023 – JUNE 30, 2023, JULY 1, 2023 – DECEMBER 31, 2023, VALUE OF $127,904,
AND BIENNUAL BIANNUAL TABLE SPONSORSHIP UPDATE
ISSUE:
Receiv
e, review, provide input on and re commend City Council approval of staff recommendations for the City Spons orship Program support in t he form of monetary funding and/or in-kind contributions of $127,904 for charitable and community events, which are produced by local non-profit organizations for the six-month period of July 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023, and receive and file City Department T able Sponsorship summary for July 1, 2022 – December 31, 2022.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the Economic Development, Placemaking and Branding/Marketing Committee:
1. Receive, review, and provide input on st aff recommendations for the City Sponsorship Program for the six-month period of July 1 – December 31, 2023; and
2. Recommend that City Council approve City Sponsorship support in the form of monetary funding and/or in-kind contributions of $127,904 for charit able and community events, which are produced by local non-profit organizations; and
3. Receive and file Table Sponsorship report for July 1, 2022 – December 31, 2022.
BACKGROUND:
The City Sponsorship Program (Program) provides local non- profit organizations wit h the
opportunity to apply for City Funds and/or in-kind services twice each fiscal year. The July 31 deadline covers applications for charitable and community events and meetings for the following January 1 – June 30 funding cycle. The January 31 deadline covers applications for charitable and community events and meetings for July 1 – December 31, 2023.
Date: EDC 5-18-23
Item No.: 2Revised
City Sponsorship Program – FALL 2023/2024 Page 2
Individual organizations were no tified of the process via e-mail notifications in December and January, prior to the January 31, 2023, deadline, and staff led a Sponsorship 101 webinar in December 2022. The City Sponsorship Program Agreement, Guidelines, and processes are posted on the City’s website and included as Attachment 1.
The Program is administered by the Community & Economic Dev elopment Department; fund
availability from the Arts & Cultural Affairs Division Budget is as follows:
Arts & Cultural Affairs Budget for City
Sponsorships, Fiscal Year 2023/2024
Proposed Cash Sponsorships from Arts &
Cultural Affairs Budget for Fall 2023/2024
$135,545 $66,000
DISCUSSI
ON:
City Spons
orship
The spons
orship applications were evaluated by various City departments, based on each organization’s ability to create or enhance its events in the spirit of Seizing Our Destiny, as indicated in the Sponsorship Pr ogram Agreement. Other factors that were considered include projected attendance (virtual or live, as appropriate), event/organization history, event budget, City Sponsorship history, and location of project in an underrepresented ward.
Forty-eight (48) local, non-pr ofit organizations have applied for monetary and/or in-kind sponsorship during the current application process for events to be produced from July 1, 2023 – December 31, 2023, and forty-seven (47) or ganizations are recommended as sponsorship recipients (Attachment 2); one application was declined because it was outside the appropriate project period. A component of the recommendati ons for sponsorship includes funding from Riverside Public Utilities (RPU), which is included in its budget, as well as in-kind sponsorship awards from the Fire Department; Library; Police Department; Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department (PRCSD); Public Works; and Riverside Public Utilities.
New applicants for this funding cycle include: a Kids’ Day event produced by Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Redlands-Riverside; Mercy House’s National Night Out event; Deaf Riverside Community’s Deaf Awareness Day; and Casa Blanc a Home of Neighborly Services’ Jacobs Spirit of Giving holiday event. These groups are known to the community, but these are their first applications to the City Sponsorship program.
A summary of the recommended sponsorship values for Fall 2023/2024 appears below:
Fall, 2023/2024 Recommended Funding
Cash
Sponsorships
(Arts & Cultural
Affairs)
Cash
Sponsorships
(RPU)
Total Cash
Sponsorships
Total Value of
In-Kind
Sponsorships
Total Value of
Sponsorship
FA 2023/2024
$66,000 $6,950 $72,950 $54,954 $127,904
City Sponsorship Program – FALL 2023/2024 Page 3
All impacted Department Heads concur with this report: Chief, Fire Department (RFD); D irector,
Library; Chief, Police Department (RPD); Director, Parks, Recreation and Community Services Department (PRCSD); and General Manager, Riverside Public Utilities (RPU).
Last spring, the City Council Economic Development, Placemaking and Branding/Marketing Committee requested an opportunity to review the criteria used by City Departments during the evaluation process. ACAD Staff survey ed the participating D epartments and created a universal form, to be used by all participating Departments du ring the review of eligible applications. That form includes the following criteria:
1. Projected Attendance
2. Previous Attendance (if applicable)
3. History of Service to Community (Y/N)
4. Connection to Specific Sect ions of the Strategic Plan
5. Eligible Monetary Reques t (50%, 35%, or 20%, based on Sponsorship Guidelines)
6. Projected Cost per Participant
7. Cultural Program (Y/N)
8. Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (Ability/Cultur e/Ethnicity/Families/Seniors/Children & Youth)
9. Council Ward
10. Availability of Requested Resource (Y/N)
Table Sponsorship
City Counc
il approved a policy on March 12, 2019, authorizing the City Manager to review and approve department requests for table sponsorships. The policy was implemented immediately, with process and tracking completed in the City Manager’s Office. Included in this report is the reporting cycle for table sponsorship from July 1 – December 31, 2022 (Attachment 3). Two events received a combined total of $1,155. During the pandemic, there were no applicable events, but event activity continues to increase. Staff provided an update on the City Table Sponsorship Program to City Council on December 13, 2022 reporting that one event received a $600 table sponsorship.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT
The City Sponsorship Program supports the Arts, Culture, and Recreation goals of Envision
Riverside 2025 by assisting with events and projects that cover all elements of Goals 1.1 and
1.2: learning, arts, culture, recreation, senior programs, and partnerships, as well as facilitation of requests for in-kind sponsorship related to va rious City amenities. Because of the diversity of requests, the Program also addresses Goal 1.5: programs and services related to literacy, health, and education for all ages. Community Well-Being ( Goals 2.3 – 2.5 ) are addressed City Sponsorship Program – FALL 2023/2024 Page 4
through programs rel
ated to development of a sense of community, community engagement, neighborhoods, and partnerships.
This item aligns with the following Cross-cutting Threads:
1. Community Trust:
Each round of City Sponsor ship funding is documented fully in the reports that are presented to the Economic Development, Placemaking & Marketing/Branding Committee and to the City Council, includi ng each request item and each staff recommendation item
Sponsorship 101 workshops are offered to prospective applicants every six months to ensure that they are informed of the processes and requirements
2. Equity:
As staff members evaluate applications, they give particular attention to organizations that seek to serve populations representing the diversity of Riverside Access is a key factor in the evaluation pr ocess; each event or project must include significant outreach, with a pr eference for events and projects that are offered at no cost to the participants, and those applican ts that cannot do that must eliminate significant barriers to entry, usually by o ffering free or reduced admission prices for specific populations (children, students, veterans, and seniors)
3. Fiscal Responsibility:
The City Sponsorship program is included in the Arts & Cultural Affairs Division operating budget, placing it directly withi n the sphere of accountability that encompasses each staff member’s work , through the supervision of City Management, to the City Council
The events and projects do not, generally, provide revenue directly to the City budget; however, sales tax revenue is generated th rough budget expenditures related to the production of each event or project and through the commerce generated by an event or project participants
Additionally, these Sponsorship dollars are leveraged through the funded projects to provide community-enhancing activities throughout the calendar year, which multiply the value and impact of those dollars
On average, the nonprofit organizations that spend the City’s Sponsorship dollars utilize about one City dollar per each person who receives services, based on the estimated number of individuals served through these Sponsorship-funded programs and across a broad spectrum of causes
Innovation:
Because the Program operates through two rounds of funding each year, there is broad opportunity for applicants to innovat e in response to community needs, new trends, and fresh inspiration
The frequency of the application process encourages innovation, because it mitigates risk in a way that a project of longer dur ation cannot, and that frequency also allows for flexibility in response to emerging needs in the community The Program provides opportunities (prima rily during the Sponsorship 101 Training) for nonprofits to interact, opening doors to innovation through collaborations and partnerships
City Sponsorship Program – FALL 2023/2024 Page 5
5. Sustainability & Resiliency:
Funded projects promote the health of our nonprofit community, which makes this an investment in the capacity of the nonprofit community, as well as an investment in each life served by that community
The nonprofit organizations in our community represent such broad and diverse areas of interest that they serve as a barometer of need in the community FISCAL IMPACT:
City Spons
orship recommendations represent a total investment of $127,904, with $72,950 in monetary contributions ($66,000 from the Arts & Cultural Affairs Division of the Community & Economic Development Department and $6,950 from Riverside Public Utilities), and in-kind services (including facilities) valued at $54,954. Pending budget approval for Fiscal Year 2023/2024, sufficient funds are available in the Arts & Cultural Affairs Division City Sponsorship Account No. 2850000-450302 and Riverside Public Utilities Account No. 6020000-456022. Table Sponsorship expenditures of $1,155.00 have no fiscal impact in this funding period.
Prepared by:
Jennifer Lilley, Community & Economic
Development Director
Certified as to
availability of funds: Ed ward Enriquez, Chief Financial Officer/City Treasurer Approved by: Rafael Guzman, Assistant City Manager
Approved as to form: Phaedr a A. Norton, City Attorney Attachments:
1. Program
Agreement/Guidelines
2. Staff Funding Recommendations for Fall, 2023/2024
3. Table Sponsorship, July – December 2022
4. Presentation for Summar y of Funding Recommendations