The City of Merritt will once again finance a $10,000 gold sponsorship of the Great Canadian Bike Rally – but this time, council says the total should include in-kind donations.
Councillors made the decision during a Committee of the Whole meeting last Tuesday as they discussed the allocation of city initiative funds.
Last year, the city sponsored the Great Canadian Bike Rally, with $10,000 to support the event that brought bikers from around the country to Merritt for rides, shopping and concerts.
This year, however, several councillors felt the sponsorship should include the city’s in-kind contributions as well.
“I would recommend that we combine what we are giving in-kind, with cash up to $10,000,” said Coun. Dave Baker, adding that otherwise the city contributions would exceed $10,000.
In-kind donations would include city labour, such as putting up barricades in the downtown area, as well as the use of the Civic Centre if bike rally organizers include that in the request, said city chief administrative officer Matt Noble.
Coun. Clara Norgaard opposed the sponsorship because she disagreed with the event financial plan that budgets money toward the Great Canadian Bike Rally organization up front.
“We’re not a bank; our tax money shouldn’t be used for that,” she said.
However, Noble said council could choose to put a condition on any money the city offered.
“They have a company providing the work such as advertising – it’s the same as if they paid another company to do the work for them,” he said. “Without the amount that they are asking for, there would be an impediment to [the event’s] success.”
Mayor Susan Roline said council needed to consider how important the event was to the community in deciding whether or not to grant the group’s request.
Coun. Mike Goetz also suggested the city support the event.
“We can’t expect one group to be financially stable in one year,” he said. “I would rather see a graduated-down level of support over the next few years.”
Council eventually voted to grant the request with the condition that the $10,000 include in-kind contributions. Both Councillors Harry Kroeker and Norgaard opposed the decision.
City administration will negotiate with the Great Canadian Bike Rally Association to determine a breakdown of the costs.
Last year, the association paid for the use of the Civic Centre. The association was also billed $25,000 for safety services, which they are expected to pay for before the event in July. This includes extra RCMP and fire protection.
