Ticket revenue generated from Freakfest 2007 climbed from last year and police costs remained steady. City officials hope in the coming years a greater interest will not translate into a higher city cost.
According to Dave Maynard of Frank Productions, the company organizing the event, 34,273 tickets were sold for Freakfest. Of those, he said about 20,000 tickets were sold the day of the event. And going by Maynard's numbers, ticket revenue totaled approximately $200,000.
Last year, roughly 35,000 paying customers went on State Street - which would have generated about $175,000 in ticket sales.
Maynard said the city and Frank Productions recovered out-of-pocket expenses, but noted Freakfest was by no means a money making endeavor. Still, he stressed being part of the event is more important than generating a profit.
Any time you enter into a new venture, it's difficult to make money the first year,"" Maynard said, adding he believes the city and Frank Productions will work together again next year to increase revenue and excitement for the event.
While the ticket revenue has seemingly increased, police said their costs remained the same - about $750,000.
Madison Police Department's public information officer Joel DeSpain said police costs totaled $750,000 in 2006, but that was not just for Madison police.
The State Street area was policed by over 400 officers from five different local agencies. DeSpain said MPD costs are only about $300,000. He said agencies such as the Wisconsin State Patrol and Dane County Sheriff's Office take care of their own expenses.
Still, Mayor Dave Cieslewicz said the city is working to reduce police costs, while at the same time ensuring the safety of the thousands of people attending. He said one reason police levels are high is the amount of alcohol partygoers consume.
""It is my hope that we can continue to improve this event,"" Cieslewicz said in a statement, adding his three annual goals for the event are continued peaceful endings, reducing the overall cost and finding solutions to alcohol abuse.
""We have met the first goal two years in a row; we are making progress on the second goal '¦ the third issue is the most challenging, but anecdotal information indicates that abuse of alcohol was not as significant this
year.""
Maynard said if the event continues its success into the future, costs should decrease.
Mary Schauf, MPD central district captain, has repeatedly said it is the hopes of the police to have a smaller presence in the years to come. She also said one day the event will not be about the police and the burden their presence during Freakfest puts on taxpayers.
