Board tables two beach vendor MOUs, asks vendors for sales and attendance data

The Michigan City Parks and Recreation Board voted March 18 to table two memoranda of understanding with vendors that use beach space while asking the vendors for additional information about days of operation, lessons taught and approximate sales to help set fair fees.

Staff presented a proposed MOU for Ryan Wellman (eFoil) that increases the annual beach space fee to $250 from a previous $150 at that location; the board chose to table that MOU until the April meeting so the owner (who is out of state) can finalize items in the lease. A separate Windy City kite sports MOU for Washington Park would raise the fee from $150 to $450; board members worried the increase could be large relative to vendor profits and requested additional data before approving.

Several board members suggested alternative fee structures (for example, a percentage of lessons or sales) but recognized that a percentage fee would require a method to verify vendor receipts. The board asked staff to return with metrics — number of lessons, days of operation, or other indicators of vendor activity — rather than immediate profit/loss statements. The Windy City kite sports MOU was tabled pending that follow‑up. Public commenters and board members generally supported keeping vendors but asked for clearer compensation metrics.