Attachment 1
Colleagues' Memo
Study Session on City Support for Organizing Community Events.
As a city known for its vibrant diversity, Sunnyvale takes great pride in supporting and celebrating a wide array of community events. These events serve as vital platforms for bringing our communities together and fostering deeper understanding among residents. This is directly in line with the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion council strategic priority. Moreover, community events provide an excellent opportunity for the city to engage in outreach efforts. A prime example of this was the Climate Action Plan outreach conducted during the Diwali event, where the city demonstrated its commitment to engaging with residents on important issues.
At the same time, we have heard complaints from residents that working with the City to organize large events is too difficult, that City processes are too cumbersome, and that the City's requirements can be unreasonable.
The purpose of this council study session would be twofold: One, to do a deep dive into current city processes and requirements for putting on medium to large events. Two, identify opportunities to make organizing community events more accessible to more groups and organizations and easier for all community members. In addition to understanding our status quo, we propose that we also consider studying the following:
"Pain points" for groups and organizations planning and hosting events Opportunities for the city to streamline or clarify complex processes such as acquiring insurance, coordination, and permitting, etc.
What kinds of additional supports city staff may need to engage and assist the public in holding and organizing events
How the city can improve the community's cultural competency and accessibility to those of all cultures, languages, and backgrounds in Sunnyvale
How we can leverage the expertise of our Human Relations Commission in this process Other areas of interest identified by council or staff
We envision that the outcome of this study would be to provide additional information to the community about how to effectively coordinate with the City to hold large events, and to identify areas where the City can simplify and improve the process for holding such events.
Alysa Cisneros Murali Srinivasan
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