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A Few Clouds and Breezy Long Beach releases Quiksilver documents
Officials say company will pay more than $200,000 for expenses
Quiksilver: A breakdown of payments to date
Police/Auxiliary/Specials: $79,244
Site permit: $26,875
Lifeguards: $17,664
Sanitation: $9,000
Beach maintenance: $8,136
Fire/EMT services: $5,880
Street maintenance: $5,000
Generator permit: $3,948
Total: $155,747
Quiksilver has paid the City of Long Beach over $155,000 to cover the costs of the Association of Surfing Professionals’ New York Pro, the largest surfing competition ever held on the East Coast, and city officials say that Quiksilver is expected to reimburse the city thousands of dollars more in the coming months.
The costs associated with last month’s event ranged from police services to an event permit to host what was described as a historic competition, featuring 10-time ASP World Champion Kelly Slater and drawing an estimated 100,000 people, according to Quiksilver.
Documents recently obtained by the Herald through a Freedom of Information request shed some light on the financial details of the event, which was nearly canceled in the wake of Tropical Storm Irene. The documents include a copy of the permit issued for the event, a list of fees, a copy of a multimillion-dollar insurance liability form, a copy of the site plan and copies of checks made payable to Long Beach.
In September, city officials said that Long Beach “received hundreds of thousands of dollars in fees for the event,” including compensation for all municipal services and an increase in anticipated sales tax revenue “from increased business traffic that the event generated.”
According to the documents, the city expressed its commitment to Quiksilver to host the surf competition in December 2010, shortly before the event was announced in January, and a site permit application was issued. Quiksilver submitted the application in April and paid the city $26,875 for the permit, which covered the use of the beaches at Pacific, Lincoln, National and Laurelton boulevards from Sept. 2 to 15.
Additionally, Quiksilver paid $124,924 to reimburse the city for police services and overtime, beach maintenance, sanitation and other services. City lifeguards were provided free of charge through Labor Day weekend, though Quiksilver shelled out more than $17,000 for lifeguard costs between Sept. 6 and 10. Police services totaled $79,244, sanitation fees, $9,000, and fire and emergency services, $5,880.
