Agenda Packets - 2007/06/04 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Item No: 05C Meeting Date: June 4, 2007 Type of Business: WS City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor and City Council From: Kurt Ulrich, City Administrator Item Title/Subject: Purchase of “City of Mounds View” Apparel for Resale Background Council Member Flaherty suggested at the May 29th Council meeting that the City consider purchasing “City of Mounds View” sweatshirts for resale to the public. This item was referred to this work session for discussion. Discussion Many cities have used City apparel as a way to promote City pride with residents and “team spirit” among employees, volunteers and staff. Currently, the Public Works Department orders sweatshirts through Dave’s Sports for a cost of approximately $25 each. The shirts say “Mounds View Public Works” in an embroidered design. A sample of this shirt will be brought to the Council meeting. Public Works Department employees pay for these shirts with the City clothing allowance provided in the bargaining unit contract, or personal funds. If the City ordered sweatshirts for resale, they would be designed differently than the Public Works shirts to minimize confusion of who might be a City employee. One design example would be to have the City logo with “Pride-Progress-Partnerships” embroidered into the design. The City may also want to incorporate “Celebrating 50 years, 1958 – 2008” into the design for the coming year. An upfront investment in inventory to have shirts available for resale would be required. Shirts would be sold at the front counter, and at special events such as Festival in the Park and the Annual Town Meeting. If the City stocked 100 shirts in various sizes, the cost would be approximately $2,500. An alternative would be to have sample shirts made and to take orders with payment upfront. Fewer sales would be expected if the shirts are not in stock, however, the City could avoid the inventory cost, and offer a greater variety of colors and styles. In-stock shirts would be priced above the purchase cost in order to offset carrying costs (e.g., a $25 shirt would be sold for $30 - $35). The City currently has no budget monies allocated toward this expenditure in 2007, but monies could be allocated from the Council contingency account. Sales revenue would go back to the General Fund. Monies could also be allocated in the 2008 budget that is currently being developed. A t-shirt or polo shirt design with the same logo could also be considered in addition to sweatshirts. The Council may consider providing shirts to staff, the City Council, and volunteers as a gift for service and to promote the City. Or, the shirts could be offered these individuals at a discount, or at full price. If the shirts are embroidered with the City logo, they would be considered a promotional item. If the City wishes to provide these items free of charge to selected individuals, it is recommended that a policy be considered and adopted that defines the “public purpose” of doing so, to avoid any legal improprieties and/or conflicts with the clothing allowance provided by the unions. Recommendation Council issues to consider: - How much money to allocate for inventory - Policy for providing to City Council, volunteers, and/or employees - Design and style considerations