Coronado's nonprofit-run events will keep their full city fee waivers after the City Council rejected a staff-proposed overhaul on Tuesday, Sept. 1.
The council scrapped a plan that would have introduced four cost-sharing tiers for special events, preserving $343,500 in annual fee waivers that cover events including the Coronado Island Film Festival and the Coronado Flower Show. The one change: the Low Tide Ride & Stride, reclassified as a fundraising event, will now reimburse the city an estimated $2,410 per year.
Under the current system, Coronado covered 93 cents of every dollar that certain nonprofit events cost the city last year, the Coronado Times reported. A city review found 22 major and moderate special events cost about $371,000 total. Eleven received full fee waivers, accounting for the $343,500 figure. The other 11 paid or reimbursed the city about $27,400 combined.
The fee waiver program covers four cost categories: the special event application fee, personnel costs for city staff working the event, facility use fees, and equipment, materials and contracting services such as police staffing parade routes and public works barricading streets.
Had the tiered overhaul passed, both the Flower Show and the film festival would have owed the city money for the first time.
Film festival funding drew sharpest questions
Councilmember Carrie Downey questioned whether the Coronado Island Film Festival (CIFF) still needs the same level of support it received at its start. She noted the city's backing has grown from an initial $50,000 seed grant to about $100,000 annually in combined grants and waived fees. Unlike free civic events like the Fourth of July parade, CIFF charges admission, Downey said, raising the question of whether it should contribute something back as events like the Coronado Art & Wine Festival do.
Film festival representatives defended the waiver at the meeting. CIFF Board President Phil Garn described the festival as run on a "very tight budget." CEO Merridee Book said the festival now pays rent on the Village Theater for the first time.
Mayor John Duncan made the case for the festival's hotel tax impact during a slow week for tourism. Downey ultimately voted to keep the waiver in place.
Councilmember Kelly Purvis moved to scrap the proposed tiers altogether, keeping the Flower Show and film festival at full cost coverage while shifting only the Low Tide Ride & Stride to full reimbursement. The council approved her motion.
Grants compound city's nonprofit support
Fee waivers are one piece of the city's nonprofit support. Coronado also allocated roughly $1.12 million in community grants last year. The Coronado Floral Association received a $95,600 community grant in 2025, while CIFF received $50,000. Both organizations received the same grant amounts in 2026.
A staff report found the city's four support programs for nonprofits and events overlap more than previously realized.
CIFF founder Doug St. Denis traced the waiver's origins to a conversation with then-City Manager Blair King when the festival was starting out. St. Denis recalled King saying the festival should not have to pay for the rental of city facilities, framing the arrangement as a low-cost civic partnership.
The council also voted to keep the Orange Avenue banner program largely as-is, alternating between nonprofit- and artist-focused years, and dropped a proposed banner application fee. Staff were directed to return with information on adding more median-sign locations along Orange Avenue.
