Council keeps community activity grant funding levels intact for FY 2026'27

City staff presented a review of the Community Activity Grant (CAG) program and the ad-hoc committee's recommendation for FY 2026'27. The committee proposed retaining existing funding levels: $20,000 for one-time financial awards and $40,000 for in-kind fee waivers (facility rental fees, traffic management, or staff overtime). Staff also recommended updates to the application to require applicants to state goals and provide more information to help council decision-making.

Councilmember motioned and the council approved the recommendation to keep funding levels the same and to include $40,000 in in-kind fee waivers and $20,000 for financial requests in the draft budget. Staff said the CAG cycle will open April 1 and applications will be reviewed by the ad-hoc committee before returning to council for awards in June.

The council's action maintains the program's seed-funding intent (to support new events/programs rather than sustain ongoing operations) and asks staff to implement the procedural improvements discussed.