Could canceled Twilight Concert Series return in 2018?

Could canceled Twilight Concert Series return in 2018?

(David Vogel, File)


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SALT LAKE CITY — There might be some hope for a 2018 Twilight Concert Series.

But it could still be a long shot.

Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski's administration last month recommended that the concert series be canceled for the 2018 season while city leaders try to re-work how the series is planned and funded — but Tuesday a council member proposed finding a "creative way" to fund the concert series next year.

Councilman Derek Kitchen said he was "a little disappointed" by the conversation around canceling the concert series for next year, worried that a one-year break would jeopardize the series' success in 2019 and beyond.

He also said he's been hearing from constituents in his district and citywide who were "upset" about canceling the series for 2018.

"There might be a nimble, creative way for us to continue this program that the city has invested in over the last 30 years," Kitchen said. "Honestly I don't think it's smart for us to skip a year, even if we scale it down significantly. I think by skipping a beat it's going to lose its wind."

Kitchen proposed the council "carve out" some money in a budget adjustment, perhaps $300,000, he said, and give it the Salt Lake City Arts Council to administer as a grant local community organizations could use to put on a smaller-scale concert series next year.

"I'm just shooting from the hip here a little bit," Kitchen said, but he added there are some local companies that program concerts "very successfully" on a budget.

"There are folks we could look to partner with that could take say a $90,000 grant and do some amazing things with it," he said.

At least one council member, however, wasn't receptive to the idea.

Lisa Adams said she appreciated Kitchen's efforts, noting that the "entire time I've been on the council it's been on life support," but she said she favors the administration's proposal.

"I think hitting pause isn't the same as killing it, and I'm still in favor of trying to do that," she said.

Adams then compared the struggles with the concert series to the council's longtime frustrations over the city's struggling golf fund and recurring conversations around closing Wingpointe Golf Course.

"I feel a little bit with Twilight like I do with Wingpointe — that it's tough to make this work," she said. "I think it's a great option to just say, 'Hang on for a year while we get this right.'"

Biskupksi and her economic development staff did not attend Tuesday's meeting, so City Council Chairman Stan Penfold suggested following up on the proposal during next week's meeting.

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