Municipal Band only halfway to a full season
By Joey Berlin
Originally published 02:03 p.m., May 5, 2008
Updated 02:03 p.m., May 5, 2008
Half the funding, half the fun.
After becoming a casualty of the city’s efforts to balance the budget, the Emporia Municipal Band decided to contract for half of the number of concerts it normally performs each summer. But with its concert season approaching, the band would like donations from the community to help it play its usual 10-concert schedule.
The city band has typically received $15,000 from the city for 10 concerts in June and July. This year, the city committed half that amount, $7,500, which led to the band being contracted to play only five concerts. Band President Dick Winter said the band has decided to go ahead with a 10-concert slate.
In addition to the city’s money, the band has secured an additional $1,000 in donations made to the Emporia Community Foundation. That leaves it about $6,500 short of the funding needed for 10 performances. People wishing to donate to the Emporia Community Foundation to fund the band can do so by dropping by either Bank of America, where the community foundation is based, or Lyon County State Bank.
“We’ve been meeting quite a bit this last year trying to figure out what we needed to do and how we needed to do it, and all of that,” Winter said. “And we decided our best thing is, we’ll just go ahead and plan for the whole summer, and assume it’s all gonna happen.
“Plus, we kind of feel like the players, too, may even sacrifice maybe getting paid, just to perform that year. So we’ll just have to see how it works out.”
City Manager Matt Zimmerman said the funding cut was a result of a series of cuts made to balance the budget based on public input. He said public hearings indicated that people would rather see some services cut instead of seeing an increase in property taxes.
“We cut many, many things from the budget to balance it, including almost the entire (capital improvement plan),” he said. “But the feeling of the city commission was that the band certainly provides entertainment, provides value and quality of life to the city. ... So, as we were balancing the budget, that was one of the things where we said, we’d like to cut the funding in half, and that’s what we’re gonna do.”
Following the decision to cut the band’s funding in half, he said, the city accepted the band’s request to contract for just five concerts, ensuring that its musicians would be paid the same amount of money per concert.
“We certainly didn’t have to do that,” Zimmerman said. “We certainly could have said, ‘No, if you want our money, we expect, in exchange for $7,500, 10 concerts. We chose not to do that in the spirit of continuing to support the municipal band.”
Winter estimated that at least 300 people come to each concert at Fremont Park. He said the band is important to Emporia because of the reaction it generates from both adults and children who attend the concerts.
“And it’s one place where the parents can take the kids and let ’em play on the playground equipment,” he said. “And the park really gets some value then, because there’s something happening there.”
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Posted by dhcc66 (anonymous) on May 5, 2008 at 4:38 p.m. (Suggest removal)
First off i have to commend the band and the city for coming to any kind of an agreement....last we visited this, it was a lose lose situation.
Now that the band has some money, they claim they still can't play without being paid?? Again i have to ask...why do we have to pay a municipal band? Most towns that have municipal bands have them as a volunteer situation and the performers do it for the love of the music.
This is starting to sound like some of the professional atheletes i see on tv saying "I NEED MORE MONEY OR I"M NOT PLAYING THIS YEAR!". too bad we can't do things for the love and enjoyment of playing as part of a well "tuned" instrument.
Posted by 4thgenEmporian (anonymous) on May 6, 2008 at 1:24 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Emporia has an awesome Municipal Band. The director and musicians are outstanding, and the monetary reimbursement is more appreciation than covering their time and expenses in rehearsals, events, equipment, etc. I am donating because I enjoy the free-to-attend performances of this talented group. This is clearly a fun time of exposure to music for the children (future musicians?) who attend these events. Thank you Band!
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