The city of Port Moody spent $173,189 putting on community events last year — and the dollars spent weren't the only big numbers associated with those happenings.
The biggest bash by far was the city’s Canada Day celebrations at Rocky Point Park. According to a staff report that was to be presented to council yesterday, it attracted “the highest number of people ever gathered in Rocky Point Park” — 30,000 to 40,000 — for family activities like games and displays at the Canada 150 Zone, a concert by the band Trooper, and fireworks.
The actual $91,605 cost of staging the event was less than the $104,000 budgeted, and most of that approved as a special one-off for Canada's 150th birthday celebrations. Future Canada Day celebrations are budgeted for a more modest $41,500.
The city’s first Car Free Day on Aug. 20 attracted more than 20,000 people to St. Johns Street, which was closed to traffic between Douglas and Moody streets so people could enjoy roving performers, a climbing wall, bike rodeo, live music and entertainment as they visited local businesses they might otherwise drive past on the busy commuter thoroughfare.
While higher than anticipated costs to close the road and staff the event cost the city about $8,000 more than it budgeted, more than half the event’s $91,301 in expenses was recouped from sponsorships and revenues.
And “staff plan to increase sponsorship and revenues in 2018,” said the report.
Other events the city supported last year included a higher profile at the Fingerling Festival on May 6 at Noons Creek Hatchery and at Ghost Town Day Sept. 24 at the Ioco townsite. The new Holiday Cheer at the Pier tree lighting event at Rocky Point Park Dec. 2 attracted about 4,000 people and cost $554 more than the $12,000 that was budgeted.
A planned health and safety fair that was budgeted at $7,000 didn’t happen as the city diverted its attention to bigger bashes like Canada Day and Car Free Day, and no community groups in the city took advantage of $5,000 that was budgeted by the city to help them put on neighbourhood events.
