REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Consider Hosting a Semiquincentennial Fourth of July Celebration Event and Approval of Budget Modification No. 3
Report
BACKGROUND
In 2024, the City of Sunnyvale hosted a first of its kind in Santa Clara County drone show to celebrate the Fourth of July. The event exceeded attendance expectations significantly, overwhelming staff and planning resources, creating risk to both attendees and staff. After a detailed debrief of the event and extensive planning discussions, the City Manager determined that a repeat event could not be held without significant changes to the event planning, attendance, and parameters.
In 2025, the City scaled back its Fourth of July event to a family focused celebration downtown during the day. This was more consistent with Fourth of July events held in previous years, although the annual event had been paused for at least a decade prior.
The City Manager requested that staff research the feasibility and analyze the cost of hosting a one-time Fourth of July event for Sunnyvale residents to mark the semiquincentennial anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. The purpose of this report is for the Council to review event options and associated costs, determine feasibility and interest, and allocate required funding to host an event in Sunnyvale in 2026.
EXISTING POLICY
No local regulations pertaining to drones exist in the City of Sunnyvale, and the operation of drones is not addressed in the City's Municipal Code.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulates and sets guidelines for the safe operation of drones in the United States. Furthermore, the FAA has a mandate from Congress to develop a comprehensive plan to accelerate the integration of civil Unmanned Aerial Systems and operate them in accordance with several best practice guidelines. Commercial drone operators are also required to learn specific drone rules (Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 107), obtain a Remote Pilot Certificate, and get an FAA tracking number, as there are FAA restrictions with the San Jose International Airport airspace and potentially other nearby airspace, such as Moffett Federal Airfield. Any drone operator selected for this show will need to obtain a permit from the FAA, follow safety standards, and meet all relevant FAA requirements, including rules related to operating drones in or near airport airspace.
Pursuant to Sunnyvale Charter Section 1305, at any meeting after the adoption of the budget, the City Council may amend or supplement the budget by motion adopted by affirmative votes of at least four members so as to authorize the transfer of unused balances appropriated for one purpose to another, or to appropriate available revenue not included in the budget.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
A single-day Fourth of July holiday event is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15304(e) because it is a minor temporary use of land having negligible or no permanent effects on the environment.
DISCUSSION
Staff considered a variety of options to celebrate the nations semiquincentennial anniversary. Proposed options for a 2026 Fourth of July celebration:
1. A family festival held downtown, similar to the festival held in 2025 (10am-2pm)
2. A family festival and food trucks held at the Civic Center, similar to the festival held downtown in 2025 (10am-2pm)
3. A drone show (750 drones / 13 minute show) and food trucks only at Baylands Park (5pm-10pm)
4. A drone show (750 drones / 13 minute show), food trucks, and family festival at Baylands Park (4pm-10pm)
The following table provides a summary of various aspects for each event option for comparison purposes.
Event Option
Event Scalability
Logistical Feasibility
Safety Challenges
Financial Feasibility
Staffing Requirements
1 - Downtown Family Festival (10am-2pm)
Fun family event; room for attendee growth; no attendance limitations or ticketing; easily walkable and bikeable; additional business to Downtown
Minimal disruption to surrounding areas; some barricades; minimal road closures; vendor for stage, tents and game vendor
Crowd staggered over 4 hours; on-duty Public Safety patrols staff and dedicated event staff;
Approx. $350,000 - $400,000
Large number of staff & volunteers needed;
8-hour day
2 - Civic Center Campus Family Festival
(10am-2pm)
Fun family event; room for attendee growth; no attendance limitations or ticketing; easily walkable and bikeable; food trucks allowable
Minimal disruption to surrounding areas; some barricades; minimal road closures; logistical resources onsite; vendor for stage, tents and game vendor; zero waste management
Crowd staggered over 4 hours; on-duty Public Safety patrols staff and dedicated event staff (more staff on site);
Approx. $350,000 - $400,000
Large number of staff & volunteers needed;
8 hour day
3 - Drone Show & Food Trucks at Baylands Park (5pm-10pm)
Number of attendees would be limited due to capacity, safety, and traffic/parking limitations, event would require advance tickets; accessibility challenges; food trucks
Many third-party agencies to be involved: FAA, CHP, Moffett Airspace, County, vendor for stage, tents, contracted food trucks; significant road closures; street signage; fencing and barricades; shuttle buses for attendees; zero waste management; offsite parking; additional lighting; additional power resources; additional marketing
Crowd present at one time; will need dedicated events officers; regular patrol officers will be responding to large call volume on July 4 night (fires, illegal fireworks, disturbances, etc.); will need to supplement DPS with private security; street closures; potential 237 off-ramp closures (would require California Highway Patrol approval, which is challenging); would not be able to have a fire engine on-site; mutual aid agreements are for emergency incidents rather than planned events and and special agreement for this date is unlikely given demands in other jurisdictions.
Approx. $1,000,000 - $1,200,000
Larger number of staff & volunteers needed;
12-hour day; City Manager will need to require safety personnel and city staff to work
4 - Drone Show & Family Festival at Baylands Park (4pm-10pm)
Number of attendees would be limited due to capacity, safety, and traffic/parking limitations, event would require ;advance tickets accessibility challenges; family fun festival; food trucks
Many third-party agencies to be involved: FAA, CHP, Moffett Airspace, County, vendor for stage, tents, contracted food trucks, game vendor; contracted traffic control company for significant road closures; street signage; contracted fencing and barricades; potential contracted shuttle buses for attendees; zero waste management; potential offsite parking; additional rented lighting; additional rented power resources; additional marketing
Crowd present at one time; will need dedicated events officers; regular patrol officers will be responding to large call volume on July 4 night (fires, illegal fireworks, disturbances, etc.); will need to supplement DPS with private security; street closures; potential 237 off-ramp closures (would require California Highway Patrol approval, which is challenging); would not be able to have a fire engine on-site; mutual aid agreements are for emergency incidents rather than planned events and and special agreement for this date is unlikely given demands in other jurisdictions.
Approx. $1,300,000 - $1,500,000
Larger number of staff & volunteers needed;
12-hour day;
City Manager will need to require safety personnel and city staff to work
The following matrix assesses the challenge or difficulty level of each element of the four event options. One asterisk indicates the least challenges, two asterisks indicate moderate challenges, and three asterisks indicate the most challenges.
Event Option
Event Scalability
Logistical Feasibility
Safety Challenges
Staffing Requirements
Financial Feasibility
Totals
1 - Downtown Family Festival
*
**
**
**
**|10 10|2 - Civic Center Family Festival
*
*
**
**
**|1010|3 - Drone Show Only at Baylands Park
**
***
***
***
***
14
4 - Drone Show & Family Festival at Baylands Park
***
***
***
***
***
15
The drone show events at Baylands Park present more significant challenges in every operational area in comparison to the family festival options. The 2024 drone show attracted far more interest than anticipated, with over 8,000 people attending, which overwhelmed the safety, traffic, parking, staffing, and related plans. The maximum daily capacity for Baylands Park, as analyzed in the Baylands master plan, is approximately half the number that attended the 2024 drone show. While that limit does not necessarily preclude a one-time, City-sponsored special event that exceeds the recommended capacity, staff will need to determine an appropriate capacity and limit the number of attendees at a Baylands event to ensure public safety and protect the natural resources in the area. A ticketing program to enforce capacity would add to costs and increase resource demands, potentially negatively impacting the attendee experience.
Public safety resources are typically in high demand on Fourth of July evenings; at the same time, they would also be needed for the drone show, creating the potential for strained resources. It is not anticipated that Sunnyvale could rely on public safety staffing from other jurisdictions, as their staff are similarly impacted on the holiday. With safety being paramount, the City Manager would have to require large numbers of staff to work a significant amount of overtime on a major holiday for a drone show. For example, the Santa Clara County Sheriff allocates almost 50 sworn officers to the Cupertino fireworks show. This is equal to assigning approximately a quarter of Sunnyvale's staff to work in addition to already on-duty personnel. Mutual aid agreements are not an option as they are only for emergency incidents rather than planned events. A special agreement with another agency for this date is unlikely given demands in other jurisdictions.
A family-oriented event during the day, either downtown or at the civic center is simpler and safer to administer and can be done without the requirement to order in staff to work. In summary, downtown or civic center present simpler operational layouts, require fewer staff during the day, and are easier to staff as employees can still spend the evening with their families celebrating.
FISCAL IMPACT
The estimated cost for a 2026 Fourth of July Celebration Event ranges from approximately $350,000 to $1,500,000, depending on the option selected.
Staff has prepared Budget Modification No. 3 to appropriate $400,000 from the General Fund Service Level Set-Aside to a new project - 2026 Fourth of July Celebration Event. The amount is based on the estimated cost of Alternative 1 or 2, which is the staff-recommended option. If the Council chooses a different option, the budget modification should be adjusted accordingly.
Budget Modification No. 3
FY 2025/26
Current
Increase/
(Decrease)
Revised
General Fund
Funding Use
New Project - 2026 Fourth of July Celebration Event
$0
$400,000
$400,000
Funding Source
Service Level Set-Aside
$1,870,084
($400,000)
$1,470,084
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public contact was made by posting the Council meeting agenda on the City's official-notice bulletin board at City Hall, at the Sunnyvale Public Library and in the Department of Public Safety Lobby. In addition, the agenda and this report are available at the City Hall reception desk located on the first floor of City Hall at 456 W. Olive Avenue (during normal business hours), and on the City's website.
ALTERNATIVES
1. A family festival downtown, similar to the festival held in 2025 (10am-2pm) and budget modification no. 3 for $400,000.
2. A family festival at the civic center, with programming similar to the festival held in 2025 (10am-2pm) and budget modification no. 3 for $400,000.
3. A drone show (750 drones / 13 minute show) only at Baylands Park (5pm-10pm) and budget modification no. 3 for $1,200,000.
4. A drone show (750 drones / 13 minute show) and family festival at Baylands Park (4pm-10pm) and budget modification no. 3 for $1,500,000.
5. No City-led event and no use of Service Level Set-Aside funds.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Alternative 1 or 2: A family festival downtown or at the civic center (10am-2pm) and approval of budget modification no. 3 for $400,000.
JUSTIFICATION FOR RECOMMENDATION
If Council would like to proceed with a semiquincentennial Fourth of July event, staff recommends a family Fourth of July festival, held either at the civic center or downtown. The 2025 day-time event received positive feedback from attendees as well as staff who volunteered to work that day. The family festival format is not only more economical than a Baylands drone event, but is also scalable and can accommodate a greater number of the community without the burden of ticketing, which the public would have to plan in advance for and additional City resources would be needed to administer before and during the event. A family festival event has fewer staffing challenges and costs, easier logistics and more programming flexibility, and fewer safety challenges, providing a better balance with community-wide public safety demands on a busy holiday like Fourth of July. In addition, doubling the Community Events and Neighborhood Grants program budget this year and going forward will allow community members to plan and receive financial support for a variety of community events throughout the year to supplement City-led and fully City-funded events.
Levine Act
LEVINE ACT
The Levine Act (Gov. Code Section 84308) prohibits city officials from participating in certain decisions regarding licenses, permits, and other entitlements for use if the official has received a campaign contribution of more than $500 from a party, participant, or agent of a party or participant in the previous 12 months. The Levine Act is intended to prevent financial influence on decisions that affect specific, identifiable persons or participants. For more information see the Fair Political Practices Commission website: www.fppc.ca.gov/learn/pay-to-play-limits-and-prohibitions.html
An "X" in the checklist below indicates that the action being considered falls under a Levine Act category or exemption:
SUBJECT TO THE LEVINE ACT
___ Land development entitlements
___ Other permit, license, or entitlement for use
___ Contract or franchise
EXEMPT FROM THE LEVINE ACT
___ Competitively bid contract*
___ Labor or personal employment contract
___ Contract under $50,000 or non-fiscal
___ Contract between public agencies
_X_ General policy and legislative actions
* "Competitively bid" means a contract that must be awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder.
Prepared by: Laura Jammal, Management Analyst
Reviewed by: Jesus Raygoza, Recreation Services Superintendent
Reviewed by: Michelle Perera, Director, Library and Recreation Services
Reviewed by: Matt Paulin, Director of Finance
Reviewed by: Daniel Pistor, Chief of Public Safety
Reviewed by: Trudi Ryan, Director, Community Development
Reviewed by: Chip Taylor, Director, Public Works
Reviewed by: Sarah Johnson-Rios, Assistant City Manager
Approved by: Tim Kirby, City Manager