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HomeMy WebLinkAbout031225-06.2 PARKS, RECREATION & ARTS COMMISSION STAFF REPORT 6.2 March 12, 2025 TO: Parks, Recreation & Arts Commission and Arts Advisory Board SUBJECT: Village Theatre Ticket Sales Maintenance Fee BACKGROUND The Village Theatre & Art Gallery dates back to 1913 and has been part of the Danville community since its start as the Grange Hall. The building has been through many iterations including a movie theater, church and even a morgue. It was remodeled in 2009 to its current state. The Village Theatre is currently maintained by the Town’s Maintenance Department, who perform daily, monthly, and yearly upkeep to maintain the standards of the Town and its renters. However, with the increase in theatre rentals, the growing needs of the community, and the challenges that come along with an aging building, staff sought out to find alternatives to assist with maintenance and improvement costs. DISCUSSION The 2017 Parks, Recreation, and Arts Strategic Plan (the Plan) provides a long-term vision for maintaining and enhancing the community's parks, recreation, and arts amenities. Among its key strategic recommendations are sustaining and reinvesting in existing infrastructure. In an effort to explore alternative and sustainable funding sources for maintenance and other building upkeep, staff researched surrounding theaters for ideas and discovered that generally an additional fee is added to ticket sales to cover a variety of administrative cost to include maintenance. For example, the City of San Ramon has a fee which is then placed into a fund for continued maintenance and the City of Pleasanton has an order processing fee. Another example, the Lesher Center in Walnut Creek charges an extra $1 to use a third-party ticketing system. Staff is considering a potential fee of $1 for every ticket sold through the Village Theatre Box Office and online ticketing platform, which would be placed into a future Village Theatre Improvement Fund. The fee would be embedded into the ticket price and would only be charged for tickets that are over $5. The funds would only be used after they have been collected in the previous fiscal year and staff will work with the Performing Arts Coordinator and the Town’s Maintenance Department to identify needed improvements. RECOMMENDATION Review information and provide feedback regarding a potential maintenance fee on ticket sales sold through the Village Theatre. Prepared by: Jessica Wallner Recreation Superintendent Reviewed by: Henry Perezalonso Recreation, Arts & Community Services Director