COVER LETTER

for
Music in the Park Concert Series
Proposal
Note: Other than this cover letter’s ​references​ section, the information in this
cover letter is also contained in the proposal. This cover letter is written solely to
list items in the mandatory order in response to item #7, on pages 10 and 11 of
the RFP.

Item 1 from RFP (Proposal Summary):

These individuals have the authority to bind the proposal:

Mr. Neal Turley Mr. Mark Secchia

104a Edelen Avenue 130 Edelen Avenue
Los Gatos, CA 95030 Los Gatos, CA 95030
cell: (512)917-3907 cell: (669)258-9005
[email protected] [email protected]

The legal form of the executing firm will be decided in conjunction with the town.
It could be done as a non-profit through Sustainable Waze, could be done as a
for-profit through Bliss Point Productions, or could be done as sole proprietors
without any entity. Neal Turley is the principal of both Sustainable Waze and
Bliss Point Productions. We are open to discussion with the town as to which
entity is most appropriate. The two entities are described as follows:

Sustainable Waze ~ 501 3C non-profit organization.​ This organization was

founded in 2018 by Neal Turley to provide consulting services for special events.
The goal of Sustainable Waze is to help events reduce their environmental impact
while maintaining fiscal responsibility.

Bliss Point Productions​ is an event production company based in Los Gatos. For
20 years, Bliss Point has provided mobile staging and professional equipment
necessary for producing outdoor live music events. Bliss Point Productions is
involved in all aspects of events including sponsorship development, talent
buying and onsite event execution.

ATTACHMENT 1
Both entities are relatively small and have less than five full-time employees.

Item 2 from RFP (Experience/Expertise):

Neal Turley lives in Los Gatos and has been in the music festival business for over
20 years, and has previously submitted a proposal to produce MIP in 2016. His
career has been dedicated to executing outdoor music festivals. Three years ago,
he simplified his business to focus on small-scale community events, often with
corporate hospitality and artist development. Local events he works on include
Claws for a Cause, San Jose Jazz Festival, Redwood Mountain Faire, and the
SoFA Street Fair. His corporate clients include Facebook, BottleRock, PG&E,
Barracuda Networks, Pure Storage, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, Lagunitas
Brewing Company, and New Belgium Brewing Company. For MIP, Neal plans on
bringing in rustic wooden wine barrel furniture and trailers and looks forward to
sharing his vision with the town. Neal will provide his marketing, operations, and
planning expertise, and will also bring in equipment for the event, and if MIP
2020 does not lose money, will receive 40% of the net profits.

Mark Secchia lives in Los Gatos, and has previously worked with the town to
establish a local business. He completed Leadership Los Gatos, and currently
serves on the Sales Tax Oversight Committee. Mark will be responsible for
sponsorships, childrens’ activities, and will be the point of contact for the town
regarding MIP. Mark will fund the project, and if MIP 2020 is profitable, he will
receive 40% of the profits.

Perry Thorwaldson was born in Los Gatos, and currently lives in Saratoga.
Through his company Thor Audio, he has been providing exclusive audio services
to MIP for the last few years, and has over 30 years of experience in audio
engineering & recording, and a 20+ year record of successful business
management as evidenced by the fact that Thor Audio Solutions has never had
any litigation against them. His role would be identical to what he did in the past,
with the additional responsibility of managing the bands (choosing, negotiating,
contracting, hosting, etc). Although being paid for his services, Perry
Thorwaldson is also a partner in this venture, with a trailing 10% profit share. He
will provide the same equipment, staffing levels, dedication, professionalism, and
quality that you have come to expect of him.

Item 3 from RFP (Scope of Work):

Yes, we can comply with the scope of work as outlined in section three of the RFP.

Item 4 from RFP (References):

Neal Turley:
-Kevin Sanchez, Recreation Coordinator, City of Burlingame,
​[email protected]
-Sheila Cotruvo, Event Coordinator, City of Pleasant Hill,
​[email protected]
-Tim Beeman, CEO Miramar Events, Representing Chamber of Commerce for
City of Mountain View and Menlo Park, ​[email protected]
-Dan Lawson, Claws for a Cause, ​[email protected]

Mark Secchia:
-Monica Hernandez, principal, Saint Mary School, ​[email protected]
-Sue Farwell, landlord, Los Gatos, ​[email protected]
-Jim Foley, owner, Rootstock, ​[email protected]

Perry Thorwaldson​:
-Eric Lochtefeld, Golden State Theatre, ​[email protected]
-Dena Grim, Facebook Events, ​[email protected]
-Teri Hope, Jazz on the Plazz

Item 5 from RFP (Proposal Agreement):

By submitting this proposal, the team agrees to be bound by it.

Item 6 from RFP (Proposal Exceptions):

The team would like to lock in the dates of each concert, and eliminate the RFP
clause that the town can “postpone opening for its own convenience”.

Through his audio corporation work, Perry Thorwaldson is in contact with others
who may be doing proposals for MIP, but the team has not engaged in any
activities not allowed in the RFP.

The RFP requires the team to be available for an evaluation panel. We

respectfully request that only Principals Neal Turley and Mark Secchia be
required to attend. Partner Perry Thorwaldson will do his best to attend but is
often unavailable in the evenings due to his work schedule.

Item 7 from RFP (Proposal Submittal Requirement):

This proposal is submitted via three hard copies and one USB drive to Arn
Andrews on February 20, 2020.
Production & Promotion Proposal

Music in the Park Concert Series

Proposed to the town of Los Gatos

by Neal Turley, Mark Secchia, and Perry Thorwaldson

Submitted via three hard copies and one USB drive to Arn Andrews
February 20, 2020
____________________________________________
Table of Contents:
Summary
The Vision
The Team
Proposed Dates and Location
The Entity
Bands
Estimated Costs
Conflicts with the RFP
Commitments from the Team
Commitments from the Town
Contract
Further Considerations for Discussion
Attachment A - Sponsorship
Attachment B - Childrens’ Activities

Summary:

We (“the team”) are very excited about the opportunity to bid on producing and
promoting the Los Gatos Music in the Park summer concert series (“MIP”), and
are looking forward to working with the town to execute a successful 32nd annual
MIP possible, and to continuing a long-standing tradition of a fun-filled, exciting,
family and community event that makes Los Gatos the vibrant town that we are
proud to call home.

The Vision:

The team is committed to executing the town’s vision. We have observed the
prior two years of the town producing and promoting the event, and will follow
their lead.

However, we would like to propose a few deviations from 2019 such as a focus on
alternative marketing, family-friendly activities, and the addition of a tasting
area.

For more information on alternative marketing, please see Attachment A

“Sponsorship”.

For more information on the family-friendly activities, please see Attachment B

“Activities”.

For the tasting area, the team proposes to work in conjunction with the town and
within its and the ABC’s guidelines, to create a roped off area where beer and
wine tastings are available. Wristbands will be sold or given in sponsorship
packages. Simple food may also be included. The tasting area would open up at
4pm, one hour after the childrens’ activities commence. See Attachment B
“Activities”.

The Team:

Principal Principal Partner

Mr. Neal Turley Mr. Mark Secchia Mr. Perry Thorwaldson
106a Edelen Avenue 130 Edelen Avenue 945 Berryessa Road
Los Gatos, CA 95030 Los Gatos, CA 95030 San Jose, CA 95133
cell: (512)917-3907 cell: (669)258-9005 cell: (650)823-5361
[email protected] ​[email protected] [email protected]

Neal Turley lives in Los Gatos and has been in the music festival business for over
20 years, and has previously submitted a proposal to produce MIP in 2016. His
career has been dedicated to executing outdoor music festivals. Three years ago,
he simplified his business to focus on small-scale community events, often with
corporate hospitality and artist development. Local events he works on include
Claws for a Cause, San Jose Jazz Festival, Redwood Mountain Faire, and the
SoFA Street Fair. His corporate clients include Facebook, PG&E, Barracuda
Networks, Pure Storage, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, Lagunitas Brewing
Company, and New Belgium Brewing Company. For MIP, Neal plans on bringing
in rustic wooden wine barrel furniture and trailers and looks forward to sharing
his vision with the town. Neal will provide his marketing, operations, and
planning expertise, and will also bring in equipment for the event, and if MIP
2020 does not lose money, will receive 40% of the net profits.

Mark Secchia lives in Los Gatos, and has previously worked with the town to
establish a local business. He completed Leadership Los Gatos, and currently
serves on the Sales Tax Oversight Committee. Mark will be responsible for
sponsorships, childrens’ activities, and will be the point of contact for the town
regarding MIP. Mark will fund the project, and if MIP 2020 is profitable, he will
receive 40% of the profits.

Perry Thorwaldson was born in Los Gatos, and currently lives in Saratoga.
Through his company Thor Audio, he has been providing exclusive audio services
to MIP for the last few years, and has over 30 years of experience in audio
engineering & recording, and a 20+ year record of successful business
management as evidenced by the fact that Thor Audio Solutions has never had
any litigation against them. His role would be identical to what he did in the past,
with the additional responsibility of managing the bands (choosing, negotiating,
contracting, hosting, etc). Although being paid for his services, Perry
Thorwaldson is also a partner in this venture, with a trailing 10% profit share. He
will provide the same equipment, staffing levels, dedication, professionalism, and
quality that you have come to expect of him.

Proposed Dates and Location:

This proposal is for the 2020 MIP, to promote and produce eight sundays of
bands and entertainment on the Los Gatos Civic Center lawn. All eight dates will
be free to attend.

July 5, 12, 19, 26

August 2, 9, 16, 23

Childrens’ and family activities will be from 3-5pm

(see Attachment B “Childrens’ Activities”).

Music will be from 5-7pm, with a 7:15 non-negotiable hard stop.

The Entity:

The legal form of the executing firm will be decided in conjunction with the town.
It could be done as a non-profit through Sustainable Waze, could be done as a
for-profit through Bliss Point Productions, or could be done as sole proprietors
without any entity. Neal Turley is the principal of both Sustainable Waze and
Bliss Point Productions. We are open to discussion with the town as to which
entity is most appropriate. The two entities are described as follows:

Sustainable Waze ~ 501 3C non-profit organization.​ This organization was

founded in 2018 by Neal Turley to provide consulting services for special events.
The goal of Sustainable Waze is to help events reduce their environmental impact
while maintaining fiscal responsibility.

Bliss Point Productions​ is an event production company based in Los Gatos. For
20 years, Bliss Point has provided mobile staging and professional equipment
necessary for producing outdoor live music events. Bliss Point Productions is
involved in all aspects of events including sponsorship development, talent
buying and onsite event execution.

Both entities are relatively small and have less than five full-time employees.

Bands:

Selection/Production​: The artist we choose will be similar to what we historically

have seen at Music in the Park. Perry Thorwaldson, in conjunction with Neal
Turley, will be choosing and contracting with the bands. We will choose talent
that can capture the crowd’s attention and make them feel comfortable enough to
get up and dance while the music should not be so overwhelming that it demands
your full attention. Bands will be consistent with previous years’ bookings, and
will perform songs from mainstream genres such as or similar to rock, salsa, top
40, blues, etc. Bands will be chosen that can perform for approximately 2,000
people, and with the understanding that we want attendees to be local, drawn
from the tax-paying base of Los Gatos, and we are not looking for bands that will
bring a big following along with them. Mark Secchia will submit the band names
and dates to Arn Andrews more than three weeks prior to each band’s
performance date. The town reserves the right to deny any band for any reason,
but must do so within three business days of submission, via Arn Andrews.

Sponsors​: We would like to find a sponsor for each band, such that at each event,
we will acknowledge the sponsor for today’s band and thank them for providing
the entertainment for the evening. A sponsor could be an individual, a group, or
a company.

Encore​: On some evenings, the bands may be making announcements that after
MIP they will be continuing on to other Los Gatos entertainment venues. For
example, #1 Broadway may be a promotional partner, and some bands may
announce that after MIP they will continue later at #1 Broadway.

Marching Bands​: Although they will not perform on stage, we will be approaching
the Los Gatos high school band for occasional appearances. For example, we may
have the band march through at the beginning as a kick-off of the first MIP of the
summer, or for closing ceremonies.

Estimation of costs:
audio, $1,800 per week $14,400
bands, $2,000 per week $16,000
bathrooms, $1,200 per week $ 9,600
insurance, $1,000 per week $ 8,000
marketing & advertising $ 8,500
onsite staff, for eight concerts $ 5,000
tasting area beverages, food, and supplies, $6,000 per week $48,000
misc event expenses $ 2,000

TOTAL $111,500

We believe an estimation of revenues at this point is premature. The team hopes

to break even in 2020, and if chosen to do future MIP concerts we would aim to
make a profit.
Conflicts with RFP:

The team would like to lock in the dates of each concert, and eliminate the RFP
clause that the town can “postpone opening for its own convenience”.

Through his audio corporation work, Perry Thorwaldson is in contact with others
who may be doing proposals for MIP, but the team has not engaged in any
activities not allowed in the RFP.

The RFP requires the team to be available for an evaluation panel. We

respectfully request that only Principals Neal Turley and Mark Secchia be
required to attend. Partner Perry Thorwaldson will do his best to attend but is
often unavailable in the evenings due to his work schedule.

Commitments from the Team:

-Fund all the capital for all expenses regardless of sponsor and event income,
-abide with all RFP parameters not specifically listed in the section above,
-contribute 10% of net non-audited profit to the town or its chosen recipient,
-have six visibly identifiable staff for the duration of each event,
-maintain a clean, safe, and attractive environment at each concert,
-provide our own town-approved event insurance,
-liaise with the ABC for alcohol considerations,
-and we will not alter the MIP logo in any unauthorized way.

Commitment from the Town of Los Gatos:

-Purchase the naming rights sponsorship for MIP for $20,000 to remain:
“Los Gatos Music in the Park” with no additional sponsor name in the title.
-fund sufficient police officers for the full duration of each MIP
-provide trash and recycling bins and removal service,
-allow a beer and wine tasting roped off area to be run in accordance with ABC,
-provide a 30-minute meeting with the town attorney to discuss liability,
insurance, and choice of executing entity,
-allow us to remove the portable bathrooms every monday morning before 9am,
-not charge for any special event applications or parks hourly fee,
-and allow the team to exclusively deal with one person (our preference is Arn
Andrews) as a point of contact between the town and Mark Secchia.

Previous Assumed Commitments:

-provide all prior banners, and printed marketing materials,
-allow hanging approved banners on same street poles, community areas, and
concert area as past MIP’s,
-send two dedicated emails to Los Gatos residents exclusively for MIP,
-provide stage and weekly set up & tear down labor and storage,
-provide exact pricing for last two years’ advertising activities,
-provide log-ins for social media that the town wants managed,
-allow exclusive use of streetside parking spaces as in the past,
-immediately update ​https://www.losgatosca.gov/350/Music-in-the-Park​ to
reference upcoming 2020 dates,
-provide a letter authorizing us to promote MIP (for continuity),
-provide introductions to previous sponsors of last two years’ MIP,
-allow use of Council lobby for band green room,
-allow use of Council lobby bathrooms for bands and select sponsors,
-and allow use of town staff for affixing the main concert sign behind the stage.

Contract:

This proposal is for the team to promote and produce one year (2020) of MIP.
The contract will commence from March 20, and end three months after the last
executed concert.

If, after the successful completion of MIP 2020, the town would like the team to
manage MIP 2021, the team and the town shall sign the contract before
December 31, 2020, in which case the team prefers the second contract be for a
subsequent three years.

Any profit sharing is cumulative. Cumulative losses will be offset against future
profit-sharing.

In Conclusion:

The team hereby represent that we have carefully read and fully understand the
information that was provided by the town in the town email update Friday
January 30 which included the RFP to which we are replying. The team has not
read any previous or subsequent versions of the RFP.

Submitted respectfully on this 20th day of February, 2020,

Neal Turley Mark Secchia Perry Thorwaldson

 Attachment A - Sponsorship Levels
Sponsorship will be our primary source of revenue to support the event, with
prices that are negotiable but it remains critical that we are successful in these
fundraising efforts to keep the event free to the community. We will leverage our
relationships with the Chamber of Commerce and Jazz on the Plazz to discuss
how to approach sponsors, and whether we can work towards group packages.

We hope to target individuals, groups, and companies to offer experiential,

engaging marketing opportunities. For example, we would like to find a sponsor
for each band. That sponsor will be acknowledged and thank them for providing
the entertainment for the evening. Through integrated sponsorship packages, we
hope to create memorable experiences that attendees will remember. It’s
important that attendees will appreciate our sponsors' contributions. In an
informal survey of past MIP-goers, we have learned the majority assume the city
underwrites the whole event, and very few people could remember any sponsors
from previous years except for “that Arthur adult dance company” that two
people remembered.

$20,000+ “Title” sponsor (1) Available

We feel it’s appropriate for the town of Los Gatos to partner with us at this level.
There is only 1 title sponsor available. This is very much like Oracle Park, AT&T
Park.

$10,000 Sponsor (2) Available

This (2) sponsors will have key presence onsite and will be included in all
marketing and collateral materials

$5,000 Sponsor (4) Available

will be included in all marketing and collateral materials

$2,500+ “community” sponsor(s)

onsite presence and activation

$500+ group purchases & memberships

We believe there are many members of the community who appreciate MIP and
want to support it. We would like to offer them ways to buy advance wristbands
for the tasting area, as well as possible seating reservations in the tasting area or
other perks we can offer to them.
 Attachment B - Childrens’ Activities
The team would like to host MIP childrens’ activities in the early afternoons at
each MIP from 3-5pm, in an area separate from the main stage (which will be
busy doing sound checks), most likely closer to the library parking lot. During
this time, we will continue set up for MIP in the main area, but at least some of
the bathrooms will be ready. The tasting tent will open at 4pm, but cold waters
will be available for purchase from 3pm.

During Childrens’ Activity time, we will have static activities such as face-painting
(for a fee which is kept by the painter...unless we have a face painting sponsor),
and similar simple entertainment. Another idea is to hang a large-rolling butcher
paper roll that children can draw on, to be left up for that day’s MIP.

We also will have more engaging group activities like:

-water balloon toss,
-relay games,
-watermelon or pie-eating contests,
-walking balancing an egg on a spoon,
-treasure hunts,
-and/or potato sack 3-legged contests.

Other than the previously mentioned possibility of a marching band, we do not

plan on having any amplified music during childrens’ activities. However, we may
engage local childrens’ dance studios to dance, or similar activities, that may have
some background music that will be played at a much lower volume than MIP
bands.

We will engage the local elementary schools to see if they have an interest in
choosing one date to promote to their kids as, for example “Van Meter Childrens’
day at the park”, and we will work with them to see what activities the children
can do from 3-5pm.

We will also engage local non-profits such as Rotary, Elks, Kiwanis and others to
see if they would like to have a presence and help host some childrens’ activities
as well.

We will list these childrens’ activities and times on the insurance application, and
rely on the town to provide the correct police officer presence.