NORTH AURORA DAYS
COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES
Monday, June 14, 2021
Call to Order
Mark Gaffino called the meeting to order at 6:02 pm.
Attendance
Mark Gaffino, Doug Botkin, Jessi Watkins, Holly O’Brien, David Fisher, Robyn Stecklein, Steve Bosco, and David Hansen.
Approval of Minutes
Jessi Watkins made a motion to approve the May 10, 2021 meeting minutes, which were seconded by David Fisher.
Motion to Approve: All in Favor
Discussion
1. Discussion of 2021 One Day Festival
Village Administrator Steve Bosco updated the committee on details for the event. As discussed at the May committee meeting, the event will be Saturday, September 18th from 11am to 10pm in Riverfront Park. Bosco mentioned that staff created a map layout and reached out to bands, a tent company and stage/audio company, which the Village has used in the past. Bosco said that four bands will perform with an hour time slot between each band for setup and transition. The band lineup includes: Hillbilly Rockstarz – 11am-1pm; Student Body – 2-4pm; The Moods – 5-7pm; and ARRA – 8-10pm. Total cost for all four bands will be just under $10,000. Bosco said since there are no sponsors this year so the entire event will be paid out of the Village’s budget.
North Aurora Committee Member Doug Botkin asked why September 18th was chosen. Bosco mentioned a date needed to be selected to book contracts and at the May committee meeting the 18th was the date the committee selected as the primary date for the event. A map layout was shared with the committee on how the event may look. The layout included a beer tent, a separate seating tent, five food vendors spots, a stage, port-o-lets, snow fencing, barricades, a handicap parking section, and a band drop-off/shuttle/police staging area. Committee Member Jessi Watkins said a smaller beer tent should be viable if the beer tent is going to use all cans again. Bosco mentioned staff looked at multiple site layouts, but this one seemed to make the most sense since it had open access and good flow. The Committee asked staff to reach out to the following food vendors: Team Fib, Mario’s Pizza, Suzie’s Fun Foods, Juquiltas Tacos, and Oberweis with MaMaw’s Kitchen as an alternate.
Botkin asked if south of the Gazebo could be utilized since it’s an open area. North Aurora Days Committee Chairman Mark Gaffino said hopefully it could be used to offload equipment off State Street for bands since going down the path from the north could be dangerous. Robyn Stecklein asked if there will be seating anywhere else in the park since at past North Aurora Days events picnic tables have been used under the beer tent and outside of it. Bosco mentioned there will be picnic tables in the grass area between the stage/tents and possibly in grass area behind the food vendors. Gaffino asked the square footage for park. Bosco said it was approximately 100,000 square feet and about double the size when compared to the Clocktower parking lot. Committee members mentioned that if a face painter/balloon artist was on site they could possibly be in the parking lot or over by the overlook gazebo.
Bosco asked the committee their thoughts on using a shuttle for the event. Gaffino mentioned it could be a good trial for future events and nice to offer to residents. Committee Members Jessi Watkins and Holly O’Brien mentioned that in the past the Mothers Club used First Student shuttle service for the community parade. Bosco asked how many buses were utilized. Watkins and O’Brien said only one or two. Bosco and Gaffino agreed at least 2 buses would be needed if the shuttle option was used. Jewel Middle School was used as an example and has around 200 parking spots. The committee asked staff to look into possible centralized locations in the Village that have parking and homes near them.
Stecklein asked how many people would need basset training for the beer tent. Gaffino mentioned only a manager/crew leader would need to have basset training rather than everyone. The committee discussed ideas if they wanted to expand the event for kids. Ideas included working with Messenger Library, petting zoo, and bounce houses for a few hours earlier in the day. Committee members mentioned they would prefer to have all activities in Riverfront Park and not utilize North Aurora Island Park so families don’t have to cross the street. Splitting up restrooms around the park and starting the event with the pet parade were discussed briefly.
The committee brainstormed possible names for the festival. The following names were mentioned: North Aurora Day, Fall on the Fox, Music on the Fox, North Aurora Fest on the Fox, Fall Fest, Fall Music Fest, Party in the Park, The Big Party in the Park, Fall Party in the Park, Fall Fest in the Park, and Fall Fest on the Fox. Fall Fest in the Park is what the committee liked the most.
Botkin updated the committee on the Lions Club beer tent process. Botkin mentioned Jason Owens of the Lions Club is working on the beer tent state special event liquor permit and insurance for the event. Botkin also said a representative from Superior reached out and that he will be working with them to get some beer options for the event. The committee asked if the Village could mention this event is not BYOB when advertising the event and that new banners will be needed for the event. Committee members mentioned that Water Wonders is open until Sept 30 and should be taken into consideration when planning. Gaffino closed the meeting by mentioning the next meeting will most likely be in person.
Mark Gaffino made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 7:06 pm, which was seconded by Dave Fisher.
Motion to Adjourn: All in Favor
Respectfully submitted,
David Hansen
