THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, February 7, 1995 TAG: 9502070301
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KAREN WEINTRAUB, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 84 lines
To ensure the survival of the 21-year-old Neptune Festival, the City Council is expected to award this year's organizers $45,500 today.
The money would cover the cost of the annual parade and fireworks display and other necessities for the festival that marks the end of the summer tourist season.
It would come about six weeks after the city took a lucrative summertime events contract from Virginia Beach Events Unlimited, the nonprofit company that had operated the festival.
City subsidies for the festival were supposed to be phased out, but when the summer contract was instead awarded to Cellar Door Productions of Virginia, Mayor Meyera E. Oberndorf offered to increase festival funding.
The festival, named for the ancient Roman god of the sea, has been run for more than two decades by prominent local business leaders and thousands of volunteers. This year's festival will be launched with an air show Sept. 23 and 24; Neptune weekend runs from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1.
``This will be a commitment to the citizens of Virginia Beach to continue to see that the festival flourishes and that all people will continue to have the opportunity to participate in it, whether as entertainers, members of the court or families coming down to enjoy it,'' Oberndorf said Friday. ``We look forward to continuing the very positive relationship with the many volunteers who worked so unselfishly to make it a success.''
Events Unlimited was awarded the nearly $1 million-a-year summer events contract in 1990, after the success of the Neptune Festival convinced council members that its organizers should be entrusted with it.
The Neptune Festival was supposed to be financially independent of the other events. But Virginia Beach Events Unlimited's concern about losing the contract showed that the two projects were linked, Oberndorf said.
``We, on the council, always thought that the Neptune Festival stood alone,'' Oberndorf said, but that was ``not entirely'' the case.
Even those who had opposed Events Unlimited in December seem inclined to support the subsidy now.
``I think that certainly we wanted the Neptune Festival to continue, and I think that the mayor has come up with a good (agreement) that the city will sponsor certain public events,'' Councilman Linwood O. Branch III said. ``This should put to rest any concerns that there may be an impact to the Neptune Festival.''
The controversy surrounding Events Unlimited began in 1993 when the organization overspent its Memorial Day events budget by more than $100,000. Branch then fought to increase the city's oversight of the contract, adding more bookkeeping requirements and calling for a competitive bid for the contract's renewal.
In the process, four companies offered bids. Two were selected as top candidates. Cellar Door Productions of Virginia Inc., a Virginia Beach-based entertainment company, beat out Events Unlimited after hours of rancorous council debate.
Council concluded that Cellar Door would provide more services for less money.
Nancy Creech, a former member of the City Council and president of the Virginia Beach Neptune Festival and the now-dormant Virginia Beach Events Unlimited, said last week that the festival would have survived without council funding.
Creech said she offered council members the opportunity to help sponsor the festival, but did not ask for funding.
``The City Council felt that they wanted to be involved and wanted to make some contribution to the festival,'' Creech said. ``It's not a matter of life and death.''
Although the festival can support itself through sponsorships and concessions, Creech said the loss of the summer events contract cost her firm credibility and will make it harder for her to solicit donations.
The festival has received public subsidies since it began. In 1992, at the request of festival organizers, the city began decreasing its contributions. Organizers had asked for only $10,500 for 1995, and, at one time, had said even that amount would not be needed.
But if the council approves the agreement in today's meeting, it will restore the $10,500 for support of a Boardwalk public address system and other general sponsorships.
It will also earmark $35,000 to sponsor the Grand Parade, the fireworks, and ``costs incurred to support these two events that are held to benefit the general public.''
KEYWORDS: NEPTUNE FESTIVAL VIRGINIA BEACH CITY COUNCIL by CNB