Lombard seeking groups interested in helping run new festival

Volunteer groups interested in helping run a new community festival in Lombard are being encouraged to express their interest soon to village staff members.

A survey recently was sent to roughly 30 nonprofit organizations asking if they had any interest in operating or helping out at a new festival.

Village Manager Scott Niehaus said the response has been minimal so far and he suspects it's because smaller groups or organizations with older members are concerned they won't be able to run an event on the scale of Taste of Lombard.

However, the newly formed Lombard Pride Committee - which is responsible for exploring options for a new flagship community festival in 2016 and beyond - is stressing that the event does not need to mirror past fests, including Taste of Lombard.

During the committee's first meeting on July 9, members came to a consensus that they ultimately want to create a festival that will showcase Lombard more.

Village officials decided to suspend Taste of Lombard in January, due to what they called the "unforeseen dissolution" of the Lombard Jaycees, which sponsored the event for 32 years. There was no festival or carnival this year, but a fireworks display hosted by the village took place on July 4.

A letter from Pride Committee Chairman and Village President Keith Giagnorio accompanied the survey. It stated that the committee is exploring a future event that will span three days or less. Committee members are open to considering a date other than the Fourth of July weekend and a location other than Madison Meadow Park. They also are considering the possibility of partnering with a professional event planning company.

All final decisions regarding the new event will be voted upon by the village board.

Niehaus said some of the organizations that already responded said they would be willing to help with just one component or one day of the event,

"It's possible that multiple community organizations could participate in the new festival," he said.

Results that have been gathered so far from the survey will be presented during the committee's second meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday at village hall. The committee will also review data gathered by village staff about 12 summer events in nearby communities.

Niehaus said he hopes the committee can narrow down what the most important criteria are for the new community event during Wednesday's meeting.

"If we do an RFP (request for proposals) we're going to want to be very specific about expectations," he said.

Community groups that still want to participate in the survey are welcome to fill it out online at www.villageoflombard.com/pridesurvey.