By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
Locking in a new fee schedule for all of the City of Great Bend’s
services, permits and rentals is becoming more challenging than expected,
especially with regards to the Great Bend Events Center.
A master fee schedule was again tabled at this week’s Great Bend City Council
meeting with a dispute over increased rental fees for the ballroom and
conference rooms at the Events Center.
In order to make the Events Center profitable, the full ballroom was proposed
to increase from $1,000 to $1,500 for an event such as a wedding reception or
fundraiser.
Currently, individuals or organizations that rent the facility on
10th Street get a free setup day before their date and a free
cleanup day the day after their event. City Administrator Kendal Francis said
the new master fee schedule would charge renters half price for any days before or after
their event.
"The day before and day after are no longer free," said Francis. "We believe that will substantially add to the revenues by not giving away those days even though we're only charging half the fee. I think it's going to take a couple of years before you see the true effect of this."
There are already 178 bookings at the Events Center for 2023, 138 events for
2024 and 14 contracts for 2025. Those already booked would be grandfathered in
with the current fees. Once the master fee is approved, future bookings would
be subject to the new price.
With a fear of overpricing the venue, Mayor Cody Schmidt said there are other
facilities that citizens are encouraged to use.
"If the Events Center isn't for you financially, then there are other places in town," said Schmidt. "I think that frees up dates for other people that can't get in there. I think we're going to lose some events, but I don't think that's always a bad deal. I think we turn people away because the dates are so limited because it's booked so much."
The current proposal included an additional food and alcohol fee based on the number
of people that attend the event. The city council was not overly in favor of
the additional fee and suggested a higher lump sum for the main rental.
Revisions to the master fee schedule will be presented at a future meeting.