Milan City looks at ways to fine-tune event fees policy

Milan City leaders and community members spent the last meeting of 2025 evaluating the special events policy. They explored whether to simplify the permit process for food trucks, reduce pavilion rental fees, and how to handle events put on by nonprofits for federal holidays.

Since the policy went into effect on Jan. 1, 2025, Police Chief Don Tillery reported that the planning process is significantly improved. The city made the change in part to reduce the pressure on officers who need to staff events—some who were being told they couldn’t take vacation during months with many festivities. City leaders said they hoped to encourage people to consolidate or simplify events and parade routes and also give earlier notice to the city.

“For us it is just heads and shoulders above what it was. It’s just an incredibly good, stream-lined, excellent process,” Tillery said. “And, that 90 days [advance notice] is really important, especially with our planning to get vacation.”

Fees

Overall, Parks & Recreation Director Jill Tewsley said the city brought in $15,475 from event and rental fees – including those sponsored by city entities—and spent $16,333.82 on overtime for police and the Department of Public Works support for events. 

Federal holidays

A focus of the discussion was how to handle events for federal holidays put on by nonprofits.

“It is the fair board who puts on the fireworks … It is not on the Fourth of July, but that’s our fireworks, Fourth of July celebration,” Councilmember David Snyder said. “The American Legion takes care of our Memorial Day parade and I wonder if it might make sense to delegate the responsibility when we have a federal holiday … [and] we wave the fees on those organizations.”

Mayor Ed Kolar said the city has to have a consistent policy that impacts everyone equally. However, the attorney indicated the city could have a written agreement to co-sponsor events so there are no fees for those events.

“I think it’s worth a further discussion with [City Attorney] Steve [Mann],” Kolar said.

Kolar said his family sponsored the Memorial Day parade in 2025.

“I felt so bad having to charge the Legion for the Memorial Day I paid for it myself,” Kolar said.

Councilmember Mary Kerkes said she also valued the American Legion’s Veterans Day event, which until 2025 had included a walk across the street from the Legion to the Veterans Wall, often accompanied by children from the local schools who sang songs.

Kolar said he has reached out to the Legion about possible collaboration. 

American Legion Post 268 Commander Angie Jaworski said their board can provide a statement on their position when they meet the third week of January.

Community Feedback

During public comments later, community members and business owners asked for a simplified application process for small events and that when they pay their fees locations are clean and spots are saved for food trucks. Some asked that the city take a deposit and return part of the cost for residents who clean and help staff the events themselves.

Milan resident and Former Councilmember Dave Baldwin noted that the town is run by volunteers. Baldwin also said volunteers have offloaded some of the tasks for the city, putting out barricades, removing trash, and cleaning up public areas.

“I think most of the time we forget about where we came from and there was a time in the early 2010s where we were a community of vacancies,” Baldwin said. “We had a lot of 60 percent to 70 percent vacancies downtown and one of the things that brought this town back to life was all of our efforts, our volunteer hours, our work making things happen in this town, and all the time we spent volunteering. Nobody got paid for these times. We all did it. In that same vein, now we are asking people to continue to vitalize our town, that are volunteers, and now you are volunteering your time, now also pay us some money, too. This comes out of membership fees, sponsorships, things like that. It hurts volunteers. It hurts nonprofits.”

Read more: Parade Fees Will Help Milan Cover Public Safety, Public Works Costs