Belleville DDA postpones donation for Belleville Lake Fest

The Belleville Downtown Development Authority decided to put a request from Belleville Lake Fest for a $2,000 donation on the agenda of the DDA’s next meeting on April 21.
At the DDA’s March 17 meeting via Zoom, DDA chairperson Alicia McGovern said the Strawberry Festival no longer exists and Lake Fest will have a promotion coming out listing sponsors and would really like to have the DDA on it.
The DDA’s deadline for applications for community events funding is March 25 and McGover suggested changing the deadline date on the application and instead consider the budget associated with the event.
“Without a deadline we would have applications throught the year,” said DDA Coordinator Carol Thompson. “This deadline fits our budget.” She said the DDA provides matching funds for groups that encourage them to go out for more sponsors.
She suggested keeping a deadline date, but being able to fund extra new events throughout the year.
Councilman Ken Voigt said Thompson is right and the DDA provides seed money for events.
“The problem is the date, arbitrarily the end of March,” Councilman Voigt said, noting Lake Fest won’t be accepting money until the beginning of June so they don’t have to write a lot of refund checks like they did for Winter Fest when it was canceled.
“Music Lakeside wouldn’t exist without the DDA giving the seed money,” Voigt said. “Set the date as Jan. 1, earlier than March, with a decision by the end of January. I wouldn’t want anything to be changed but the date.”
DDA Treasurer Sabrina Richardson-Williams said Lake Fest would like the DDA to fund money for late June and the city hasn’t had any events this year. She said the finance committee has set up so much money for special events, but how much do they want? She said they have to give the DDA budget to the city. Lake Fest has to apply, she said.
Chairperson McGovern said Lake Fest had applied four weeks ago and the application is not in the board packet of information.
“I got it a month ago,” agreed Thomspon, who puts the packets together. “They are not collecting money until June.”
“The marketing material will be out before that,” Voigt said, referring to the Lake Fest.
Thompson said she knows Lake Fest wants to have names on its marketing materials, and, “It would always make sense to thank the DDA and the City of Belleville” on materials.
“To add our logo to the marketing materials, they would have to have an agreement we would give them money,” McGovern said. “We have to let them know we will provide seed money … All ships rise together … We will pay and fund you June 1. You have our approval.”
“I don’t have a problem with that since there is no Strawberry Festival,” Williams said.
“No approval until after March?” Voigt said. “It’s not the check so much … This hasn’t been a problem for Music Lakeside … It would be nice if organizations that do apply have a decision by the end of March … Now they don’t know until June 1 and that’s a problem.”
McGovern said they are going to see a perk-up in the city activities and will be able to do more things.
Voigt suggested having a rolling approval for first-time events. He recalled Jane Vesche came to the DDA for help a couple of months before the first Winter Fest event.
“How would you approve one event over another?” McGovern asked.
Mayor Kerreen Conley suggested having two times to apply, one for summer and one for the fall, for new events.
Board members agreed that was a good idea. A motion was made to approve two deadline times and after more discussion, the motion was withdrawn.
“I would like some time to work this out,” Williams said. “This is new for us. It is not a problem to cut Lake Fest a check… I want to see the application first.”
Secretary Denise Baker said they need to follow the policy.
McGovern said the financial committee will get together and look at appropriate dates and look at the application.
The dates proposed would be on the next agenda with approval in April. The DDA’s fiscal year is July through June. January and July were suggested as new application deadline dates.
In other business at the 47-minute March 17 Zoom meeting, the DDA:
• Took no action on becoming a part of the Destination Downriver Campaign that was presented by a group at the DDA’s last meeting. Williams said she thinks the project is more for a chamber of commerce, especially with its leadership training. “The part that bothers me is they need money and I don’t think we qualify for Downriver,” McGovern said, adding the $15,000 they want would be better spent if the DDA allocated in this community themselves. Vice chairman Jason Mida said he grew up in Belleville and, “We’ve never been considered Downriver.” Valerie Kelley-Bonner said Belleville is not “Downriver” according to state guidelines in her professional area. Mayor Conley said the only “downriver” connected to Belleville is that its sewers go to the downriver system. “We are foregoing this,” McGovern said and Thompson said, “I’ll let them know”;
• Heard Police Chief/Interim City Manager Dave Robinson say he had been informed that March 17 showed the largest number of COVID-19 confirmed cases this year in Wayne County. No cases were confirmed in Belleville that day;
• Heard Thompson report she has gone back and forth with Fantasee Lighting on proposed café lighting for the Fourth Street Square, as proposed by Voigt. She said there is a considerable amount of overhead power and lighting, plus trees and poles already in place at the square. She said there are other ways to add lights without another structure. McGovern said she is not opposed to looking at alternatives and described some lighting she saw at an outdoor wedding, which will be investigated. She said the lighting could help the DORA district and she would like the DDA to approve something to move forward with; and
• Heard McGovern say: “I appreciate everyone’s consideration … We’ve seen a lot of change over the last year … We need to have these conversations … We want to move forward.”