NILES — A longstanding festival with roots going back 15 years was a source of contention Monday night, as city council members discussed the festival’s impact on taxpayer dollars, Riverfront Park and talked about establishing guidelines for future event approval.

In the end, council members voted 6-1 to approve the 16th annual Niles Family Fun Fair and Bluegrass/Americana Festival for May 31 to June 3, 2018, in Riverfront Park.

The agenda item was initially planned to be voted on last Monday, but council member Gretchen Bertschy called upon a subcommittee of the parks board to review the application and the potential impact that the event has on Riverfront Park, before council members cast their votes.

Subcommittee members Larry Pickles and Heather Bosch advised that event promoters consider relegating the carnival aspect to a parking lot closest to Broadway Bridge, as opposed to its regular location near the Riverfront Park Amphitheater. They said this would lessen the traffic issues and be a better spot for vendor vehicles, should they leak any fluids.

Pickles and Bosch also brought up the condition of the park after the event’s teardown.

“We are by no means trying to limit a family function,” Bosch said. “I have taken my kids down there and we enjoy it. But I also did a trash pick-up with my 3-year-old after that and it was a mess down there. It is just a matter of respecting the property you’re on and trying to make it better for everybody.”

Niles Mayor Nick Shelton said the subcommittee’s suggestions would be taken into consideration for future festival happenings.

Bluegrass Festival operation coordinator TJ Martin, who submitted the application for review, was in the audience that evening. Martin emphasized that the event helps to raise funds for a charitable cause.

The Niles Riverfront Optimist Club hosts the festival and uses the event as a fundraiser to aid youth projects in the community. The festival costs about $15,000 to $25,000 to put on. The amount donated is what is left after festival expenses, which includes paying musicians for their performances. Last year, he said event organizers were able to donate about $5,000 to aid youth education and music programs.

Martin requested a couple thousand dollars in in-kind services to defray costs for electricity and water, among other items.

In response to critiques about the park’s condition following the event, Martin said he deploys a team of about six volunteers to spend roughly half a day cleaning after the festival’s breakdown.

“Oh, we clean up,” Martin said. “It is never dirty when we leave.”

Council member Bob Durm said council members’ discussion Monday night highlighted the need to create more consistent guidelines for all future festival approval.

“I just think all festivals should be put on notice that the city is going to be looking real hard at the fees and in-kind services that we are waiving,” Durm said, “that maybe in the future might not be as accessible to them.”

Bertschy echoed this sentiment and said that in the future she would like to discuss whether or not festival promoters raising money for a cause should pay off their event’s cost before writing a check to another organization.

“The citizens of this city support that [cost for festival] and I have grave concerns about that,” Bertschy said.

Council member John DiCostanzo added that he wanted to hold the event operators responsible for any damage the park might accrue after the festival. He asked that city leaders stipulate event organizers pay $1,000 for turf repair, but only if there are any damages.

“The point would be to motivate [festival goers] not to damage the turf, which would benefit the park and the city as a whole,” DiCostanzo said.

Several council members said they supported the Bluegrass Festival and its promotion of Niles.

Council member Daniel VandenHeede said he appreciated the hard work that all festival promoters put into organizing a city event. In regards to the Bluegrass Festival, VandenHeede said it is hard to find a multiple-day event that features an array of artists that can be appreciated without the cost of a ticket.

“Where else are you going to get a festival with 20 different acts,” VandenHeede asked. “He [Tom Majerek, the event organizer] really brings in some quality acts for free.”

Shelton also agreed and said that he wanted to see the festival happen, but emphasized the need to work together to achieve this.

“I am looking forward to the Bluegrass Festival,” Shelton said. “I think it is going to be great. I think in the future, we need to think about ways we can work together. I am not saying it is just the Bluegrass Festival [causing the problems in question].”

Following the meeting, Martin expressed some frustration with the process for approval, but said that he was ready to move on and take the next step in preparing for the festival.

“It’s over with now and now we can get a hold of the vendors and tell them we are having a festival,” Martin said, “[We can] start putting things in play now.”