title
CC - ACTION ITEM: (1) Approval of an Agreement with the New Zealand Olympic Committee for Exclusive Use of Town Plaza during the 2028 Olympics for a Hospitality House and Fan Zone; (2) Designation of the New Zealand Hospitality House and Fan Zone as a City-Sponsored Event; and (3) Direction to the City Manager as Deemed Appropriate.
body
Meeting Date: September 29, 2025
Contact Person/Dept.: Jesse Mays, Assistant City Manager
Phone Number: City Manager’s Office - (310) 253-6000
Fiscal Impact: Yes [X] No [] General Fund: Yes [X] No []
Attachments: Yes [X] No []
Public Notification: (E-Mail) Meetings and Agendas - City Council (9/24/2025)
Department Approval: John Nachbar, City Manager (09/24/2025) _____________________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council consider (1) approval of an agreement with the New Zealand Olympic Committee for Exclusive Use of Town Plaza during the 2028 Olympics for a Hospitality House and Fan Zone; (2) designation of the New Zealand Hospitality House and Fan Zone as a City-Sponsored Event; and (3) provide other direction to the City Manager as deemed appropriate.
BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION
On April 28, 2025, the City Council directed staff to work with the Olympics Ad Hoc Subcommittee (Mayor O’Brien and Vice Mayor Puza) to negotiate the terms and conditions of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with New Zealand for a Hospitality House and Fan Zone in Town Plaza and return to the City Council for approval. The City Council discussed the proposed Term Sheet at its meeting on September 8, 2025 (Attachment 1). The City Council agreed with the terms presented by New Zealand but asked staff to return to the City Council meeting on September 29, 2025, with additional information, including cost cutting and revenue generating opportunities.
The Term Sheet is non-binding until the parties agree to enter into a legal binding agreement. If approved by the City Council, staff will execute the Term Sheet, and then negotiate and execute a legally binding agreement (such as a license agreement and/or MOU) based on the terms contained in the Term Sheet.
Community Input and Activation to Date
On July 22, 2023, the City held a kickoff event to celebrate the five-year countdown until the opening ceremonies and to conduct a high-level brainstorm/community visioning workshop relative to Culver City’s role in the games. More than 50 people attended the workshop to discuss topics related to arts and culture, tourism, policy issues, and infrastructure/improvements.
On May 22, 2024, the City held a joint meeting of the Subcommittee, Parks, Recreation and Community Services (PRCS) Commission, Cultural Affairs Commission (CAC), and Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) Olympics Subcommittees, and representatives of the Equity and Human Relations Advisory Committee (EHRAC) and the Disability Advisory Committee (DAC), to discuss planning for the 2028 Olympics. Also in attendance were representatives from CCUSD, the Culver City Arts Foundation, the Downtown Business Association, Westfield, the Sister City Committee, the Historical Society, West Los Angeles College, the Culver City Arts District, and the Wende Museum. The group discussed how the City can actively and equitably engage its residents in the Olympics and ensure that the Games creates a positive impact for the community, what part of Culver City they would want to highlight to the world, and what Culver City needs to do to prepare for the Olympics. Notably, there was significant interest in hosting arts & cultural events, creating destination events to attract visitors and engage the community.
In August, 2024, the City held an Olympic Closing Ceremony Viewing Party in Town Plaza.
The attached 2028 Olympics Policy and Program Ideas document (Attachment 2) summarizes the policy and program ideas included in the June 12, 2023 approved workplan and gathered by the Council Subcommittee during the May 22, 2024 joint meeting of the Council Subcommittee, the PRCS Commission, CAC, and BPAC Olympics Subcommittees, and representatives of EHRAC and the DAC; the July 22, 2023 public input meeting; and the Council Subcommittee’s own meetings. This document was presented to the City Council at the September 29, 2024 City Council meeting. Subsequently, the staff sent letters to various committees, departments, etc. named in the Policy and Programs Ideas document, asking them to discuss and provide feedback on the various ideas.
Budget
The Subcommittee recommends that the City establish an $800,000 budget for the New Zealand event in Town Plaza. In effect, the $800,000 would be a “cap” on spending for this event. Should the City’s projected costs for this event exceed $800,000, the City would work with New Zealand to adjust the event to reduce costs. The Term Sheet indicates a desire by New Zealand to collaborate and co-create with the City on the event, so the City would work with New Zealand to design an event that fits within these budget constraints.
Revenue Generating Ideas
The Olympics Ad Hoc Subcommittee met on September 11, 2025, and again on September 23, 2025. They developed the following recommended budget strategy to pay for the City’s costs associated with the Fan Zone as presented by New Zealand, which are estimated at just under $725,000, plus a contingency budget of $75,000:
Given the public input received through the City’s community processes held to date (see above), the Subcommittee believes that there is public support for spending a certain amount of City funds in support of special activities during the Olympics. The $250,000 recommended by the Subcommittee to be contributed by the City’s General Fund towards the event would represent that City funding for an activity during the Olympics. An additional $225,000 from the City’s General Fund would be contributed with the understanding that it is anticipated to be backfilled by an increase in tax revenues. The Subcommittee recommends reallocating $75,000 from funding that would normally go to the Special Events budget for FY2028/2029, to the New Zealand event. For example, the Summer Concert series could be pre-empted or scaled down during the Summer of 2028, especially since it would not be possible to be held in Town Plaza during July 2028 if the Fan Zone were to occur.
The Subcommittee believes it is a realistic goal to raise $250,000 over the next three years to help fund the event. The Culver Arts Foundation has expressed interest in serving as the non-profit receiver of those funds. Fundraising could be targeted towards downtown businesses that will see benefits from having a large-scale event nearby.
Additional sources of revenue could include:
• State Grants
• Federal Grants (including Federal Security Grants)
• Advertising partnerships with local businesses
Lower and Higher Cost Event Options
The following is a description of potential events and their estimated City costs, including options that are lower cost than the one proposed by New Zealand:
$13,000 One evening event in Town Plaza, similar in scope to the Summer Concert Series
$84,000 One Weekend Street Closure (Friday night - Sunday night)
$158,000 Two Weekend Street Closures (Friday night - Sunday night)
$232,000 Three Weekend Street Closures (Friday night - Sunday night)
$250,000 19 days of evening events similar in scope to Summer Concert Series (small stage, one screen, 2-4 hours an evening)
$250,000 One weekend event (Friday night - Sunday night) similar in scale to Fiesta La Ballona
$713,000 19-day street closure
$717,000 19-day New Zealand Hospitality House and Fan Zone, some costs paid for by New Zealand, as proposed in the Term Sheet.
$1,169,000 19-day Fan Zone of same scope as proposed in Term Sheet, sponsored solely by Culver City
$1,420,000 19-day New Zealand Hospitality House and Fan Zone, some costs paid for by New Zealand, as proposed in the Term Sheet, plus 19-day street closure
$1,872,000 19-day Fan Zone of same scope as proposed in Term Sheet, sponsored solely by Culver City, plus 19-day street closure.
Impact of the Participation of Additional Nations
After review, it has been determined that adding additional public fan zones for different countries on public property would increase (not decrease) the City’s costs, compared to holding the event as proposed by New Zealand. Adding additional fan zones would expand the size of the event currently proposed by New Zealand. This would require additional City staff support and resource costs. No nation has expressed interest in establishing a hospitality house in our downtown on a closed street. Nations have only expressed interest in indoor venues or park spaces. If other countries were to propose private hospitality houses or fan zones in private venues, the City’s additional costs (if any) would be covered by Special Event permitting fees.
New Zealand has offered to make available its Fan Zone area for smaller Oceania nations. The participation of those nations are not expected to have a positive or negative impact on the cost of the Fan Zone.
Community Benefits
A list of community benefits that the New Zealand hospitality house and fan zone would bring to Culver City include:
• A unique, local experience including culture and storytelling, experiential and commercial opportunities, and arts and cultural opportunities; providing connection to athletes and the Olympic Games.
• An estimated $2,280,000 in additional revenue at local businesses from spending by visitors to the Fan Zone during the 19 days of the event. (New Zealand estimates economic impact of $3.36 million to $10.08 million.)
• An estimated increase City tax revenues by an estimated $225,600 (see Financial Analysis section, below). (Based on New Zealand’s estimates, the additional City tax revenue generated would range from $250,000 to $381,600.)
• An estimated $452,000 in cost savings to the City, compared to holding a similarly sized “Fan Zone” event without New Zealand (see Financial Analysis section, below). This estimate includes:
o Theming and branding of the Town Plaza
o Installation of two large video screens for the Fan Zone including Stages, AV set up, microphones, lighting, generators and technical support as needed:
o Provision of additional seating options for central area e.g. bean bags, deck chairs
o Installation of a Stage for performances and medal celebrations
o Audio visual /sound system in central Plaza
• International exposure for Culver City during an international event.
• Assistance securing relevant public viewing broadcast rights and LA28 Organizing Committee / IOC consent
• Funding for a cultural performance group to attend LA28 and perform in Culver City
• Marketing and promotion of the event through New Zealand Olympic Committee channels.
• Educational resources and curriculum material that may be of interest in the Culver City School program in the build-up to LA28, including an overview of the Olympics, insights into the New Zealand Team and New Zealand’s cultural heritage.
• The New Zealand Olympic Team will gift a unique carved pou (pillar) or waharoa (gate) to thank the local community and serve as a reminder of the collaboration between the parties. The unveiling and blessing of this would form part of the opening of the Fan Zone at the beginning of LA28 and include local indigenous parties where possible.
City’s Costs
Based on what is known at this time, staff estimates that hosting New Zealand’s hospitality house and Fan Zone for 19 days would result in a cost to the City’s General Fund of $717,763 This includes the following estimated costs:
• Police Support: $300,000
• Fire Support: $190,000 $(10,000/day)
• Environmental Programs and Operations $11,346 ($597/day)
• Public Works Support: $5,000 ($263/day)
• Finance: $557
• IDS (Plaza Management): $13,300
• Deposit for Plaza (refundable): $3,000
• Reserved Parking at City Lots: $4,560
• Fencing Rentals $85,000 ($4,730/day)
• Temporary Restrooms $100,000 ($5,263/day)
• Temporary Water Facilities $5,000 ($263/day)
The City has never used private security to do bag checks or use metal detectors for events in Town Plaza or on closed streets in the past. For this reason, the cost of additional private security has not been included in the cost estimate for this event. Currently we do not anticipate this being necessary. It is not yet known what specific security arrangements will be needed for events of different scales during the Olympics. If the City wanted to add private security, like what has been previously done at Fiesta La Ballona (bag check, metal detector, etc.), it would cost approximately $10,000 per day, or $190,000 over the course of a 19-day event.
Outreach to Other Countries
In addition to New Zealand, City staff and the Mayor have discussed the Olympics with representatives from the following 32 countries: Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Belgium, Belize, Canada, Chile, China, France, Finland, Germany, Greece, Guinea, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Japan, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Mexico, Netherlands, Paraguay, Poland, Romania, Senegal, Spain, St. Vincent & The Grenadines, Sweden, Thailand, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. During these discussions, the countries were made aware that Culver City would be hosting New Zealand’s hospitality house and that Culver City was open to hosting additional countries. Based on these conversations, and through communications that staff and the Mayor have had with the LA28 Organizing Committee, staff believes it is well known within the international community that New Zealand has been working towards establishing its hospitality house in Culver City, and that Culver City is open to hosting other nations’ hospitality houses. At this time, no other nation has told the City it would like to host a hospitality house in Culver City.
Examples from Other Cities
To date, only a few countries have announced the location of their hospitality houses for the 2028 Olympics.
• Croatia will establish a hospitality house in San Pedro, a neighborhood of Los Angeles. The City of Los Angeles signed an MOU with Croatia in 2024, with “each party covering its own costs and allowing flexibility in the project’s scope.”
• Greece will establish a hospitality house in Long Beach. Long Beach said in its press release: “the City may incur associated costs that would be reimbursed through supplemental agreements with each NOC.”
• The Pride House will take place in the City of West Hollywood and is being organized by the non-profit Our Athlete Fund. On June 23, 2025, the West Hollywood City Council approved use of West Hollywood Park for a 17-day Pride House event during the Olympics as well as a $1 million contribution towards the event. Other sponsors include the County of Los Angeles, the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus, and private companies.
• The City of Santa Monica has entered into an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement with Hochsitz, an Austrian event production company, to negotiate terms of a potential license agreement for portions of Crescent Bay Park and Beach Parking Lot 4 South for three structures for Olympic related activations, including a satellite IOC broadcast center and two country or brand hospitality houses.
2028 Olympic Games
The 2028 Summer Olympics will be hosted by Los Angeles from July 14 to 30, 2028 marking the city's third time as the Olympic host, following previous Games in 1932 and 1984. This edition of the games emphasizes sustainability and innovation, adhering to a "no-build" approach by utilizing existing venues across Southern California.
Culver City is not a host city in which Olympic events will take place. The nearest venues to Culver City will be SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, and the LA Memorial Coliseum. SoFi stadium will host swimming events and will co-host the opening ceremonies. The LA Memorial Coliseum will host track and field events, co-host the opening ceremonies, and host the closing ceremonies. The Olympics is prohibiting parking at event venues and will rely on spectators taking bus shuttles from remote parking lots around the region. It is yet unknown if Culver City will be asked to support one of the remote parking locations.
Cultural Olympiad
The LA28 Cultural Olympiad is a regionwide arts and culture program that will run in tandem with the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Serving as the artistic counterpart to the Games, the Cultural Olympiad will showcase the region’s diverse creative landscape through a wide array of performances, exhibitions, and educational initiatives. Cultural Affairs staff has been in conversation with regional arts leaders and the City Council 2028 Olympics Ad Hoc Subcommittee about the City’s role and participation in the Cultural Olympiad.
Olympic Hospitality House
An Olympic Hospitality House is a dedicated space established by participating countries, sponsors, or organizations during the Olympic Games to celebrate national culture, support athletes, and engage with fans and international guests. These houses serve as cultural hubs, offering a mix of entertainment, food, live event screenings, and networking opportunities.
At the 2024 Paris Olympics, 26 nations had a hospitality house (<https://sports.yahoo.com/inside-hospitality-houses-unique-olympic-201934936.html>). Each house reflects its country’s unique identity, often showcasing music, cuisine, art, and traditions, while also acting as a home base for athletes, officials, and VIPs. Some hospitality houses are open to the public, while others require invitations. They play a key role in enhancing the spectator experience and fostering cultural exchange during the Olympics.
New Zealand’s Proposed Hospitality House and Fan Zone in Culver City
The New Zealand Olympic Committee has proposed a New Zealand Hospitality House in Culver City during the 2028 Olympics. The event will include a New Zealand themed Fan Zone throughout Town Plaza. A draft site map is attached (Attachment 3). The event would take place throughout the whole of Town Plaza, including The Steps, for the entirety of the Olympic Games (July 14 to July 30, 2028). This includes two weeks and three weekends. Setup would begin approximately seven days before and breakdown would last until two days afterwards. In total, New Zealand would use the space for a total of 4-5 weeks, including setup and breakdown. New Zealand is seeking to secure exclusive use of the Culver Hotel during this period for their partners’ accommodation, meeting, event, and media space.
The Hospitality House and Fan Zone activities would be open and free to the general public (with the exception of a private area for New Zealand Olympic Team supporters at the top of the Steps, and inside the Culver Hotel). Large viewing screens would be installed in the Plaza for public screening of Olympic events. Two renderings of what Town Plaza might look like are attached (Attachment 4). There would be daily programming of events, depending on the competition schedule. Popular Team USA and New Zealand Team events (such as gymnastics, basketball, swimming, athletics and rugby sevens) will result in a larger draw to the Fan Zone. The final competition schedule will be released 12-18 months ahead of the 2028 Olympics, although programming is flexible right up to the days of the events, as different team draws and results change throughout the competition. The stages within the Fan Zone would also be utilized for cultural performances, music and entertainment. The City could also utilize the stages for its own cultural activities. Further, the stages would also host medal ceremonies with New Zealand Team athletes coming to Town Plaza after their competition to celebrate, conduct live interviews, take photos with the community, and share their medals and stories.
The New Zealand Olympic Committee operated a smaller scale New Zealand House in Paris during the 2024 Olympics. During the event, 20,000 people attended 70 events and 27 cultural performances. New Zealand expects there would be many more visitors to the Culver City Hospitality House. Depending on the events taking place, the event could attract several thousand people per day.
Within Town Plaza, one of New Zealand’s ideas is to construct a series of pavilions along the walkways where displays or activities relating to New Zealand culture, tourism and trade, could showcase New Zealand to the wider community. Blending New Zealand’s culture with Culver City, other ideas include a possible New Zealand Film Festival at the Culver Theater or music concerts, blending sport and arts together during the Olympic Games. New Zealand’s intent (in the early conceptual stage) is that food and beverage will be provided by the existing local vendors and businesses. New Zealand has also proposed community activation, outreach and events to take place over the next three years, including partnering with schools and other local organizations. The current description, plans and details of the event are still preliminary and subject to change.
City Sponsorship
To be categorized as a “sponsored” event by the City, an event must meet the criteria set forth in the City Council Policy No. 2502 (Special Event Grant Program), confirming that the City is (a) participating in an official capacity in the planning, preparation or promotion of the event or activity; and (b) contributing 25% of the total estimated costs of the civic event or activity or at least $1,000, whichever is less. This contribution may take the form of funds, labor, staff time, materials, a coverage of fees, or any combination thereof.
The CCMC and Policy require conditions (a) and (b) to be satisfied. Additionally, City Council Policy requires that for an event to be considered a City-Sponsored event, the City Council is required to determine, by specific action, that the above criteria be met. This event would meet the criteria for City Sponsorship because the City will participate in the planning, preparation, and promotion of the event, and will contribute at least $1,000 in direct and in-kind services, as discussed in more detail in the Fiscal Analysis section of this report. As a requirement for event sponsorship, the organizers for the events must identify the City of Culver City as a sponsor of the event in all promotional materials.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
Since details about the event’s specific activities, design, operating hours, and attendance are still preliminary, there is uncertainty about the City’s final costs. Based on what is known at this time, staff estimates that hosting New Zealand’s hospitality house and Fan Zone for 19 days would result in a cost to the City’s General Fund of $717,763 (see above detailed breakdown). The City would incur these costs during Fiscal Year 2028/2029, so they would need to be included in that fiscal year’s budget.
Besides sponsorships and/or donations, hosting the New Zealand hospitality house and Fan Zone could increase City tax revenues by an estimated $225,600 and provide an estimated $452,000 in potential cost savings to the City:
Hosting the New Zealand hospitality house might positively impact the City’s sales tax revenues by attracting additional visitors that might not otherwise purchase food, beverages, or other items in Culver City. The City’s large holiday events (Sledtacular and the Drone Show) attract between 2,000-3,000 visitors for an evening event. Using the high end of that range (3,000) over the course of 19 days, approximately 57,000 visits to the Fan Zone are expected. The average daily spend per person for daytrip visitors in Santa Monica in 2024 was estimated to be approximately $40 (<https://sportetsociete.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Rapport-HRA-pour-SANTA-MONICA.pdf>). Assuming the same daily spend per visitor in Culver City, the estimated spend in Culver City by Fan Zone visitors during the 19 days is $2,280,000. With the passage of the ¼ cent transaction and use tax increase in August 2025, Culver City will receive approximately 2 cents of sales tax for every dollar spent in Culver City. So, the resulting sales tax generated for Culver City would be $45,600. This is an overestimate of the impact of the Fan Zone because it includes visitor spend that would have happened regardless of the Fan Zone taking place.
Hosting the New Zealand hospitality house might positively impact the City’s transient occupancy tax revenues by attracting additional visitors that might not otherwise spend the night in Culver City, and by increasing the average nightly rates. Culver City’s hotels will likely be full during the Olympics regardless of whether the Fan Zone occurs, so it is not anticipated that the Fan Zone will have an impact on TOT generated by hotels. However, TOT generated by short-term rentals may increase due to more people choosing to rent out their homes to New Zealanders or others interested in being near the Fan Zone. During the 2024 Olympics in Paris, short-term rental rates were estimated to be 85% higher compared to normal average rates (<https://sportetsociete.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Rapport-HRA-pour-SANTA-MONICA.pdf>). The City receives approximately $180,000 in revenue from short-term rentals during the month of July. A high estimated impact from the Fan Zone on TOT generated by short-term rentals would be for that amount to double Citywide and yield an additional $180,000.
Under the proposed agreement, New Zealand will be responsible for procurement, installation, and operation of items valued at an estimated $452,000: two large video screens ($200,000), additional seating options ($10,000), a stage ($60,000), a sound system ($114,000), lighting ($38,000), and theming/branding ($30,000) in Town Plaza. This is a potential cost savings, because it would eliminate the City’s need to pay for features which the City might want to have in Town Plaza during the Olympics even without the New Zealand Fan Zone.
ATTACHMENTS
1. 2025-09-29 Proposed Term Sheet
2. 2025-09-29 Olympics Policy and Program Ideas
3. 2025-09-29 Draft Site Map
4. 2025-09-29 Draft Site Renderings
MOTIONS
That the City Council:
1. If desired, approve an agreement with the New Zealand Olympic Committee for Exclusive Use of Town Plaza during the 2028 Olympics for a New Zealand Hospitality House and Fan Zone, as reflected in the Term Sheet attached to the staff report (with any modifications desired by City Council); and
2. Designate the New Zealand Hospitality House and Fan Zone as a City-Sponsored Special Event; and
3. Authorize the City Attorney to review/prepare the necessary documents; and
4. Authorize the City Manager to execute such documents on behalf of the City.