Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : City Lauds Cowboy Poetry Fest’s Bottom Line

City officials are heralding the three-day Cowboy Poetry, Music and Film Festival as a “huge success” because it cost the city under $2,700 to sponsor, tens of thousands of dollars less than originally anticipated.

“We think that if the earthquake hadn’t happened, we would have made money on this,” said spokeswoman Gail Foy.

City staff originally estimated that the event, held the weekend of March 25, could cost the city as much as $43,000 to sponsor. Following the Northridge earthquake, expenses were expected to rise when the location had to be switched from the quake-damaged Hart High School auditorium to Melody Ranch, which cost $15,000 to rent.

City officials are expecting to receive $22,500 in FEMA funds to help offset the additional costs incurred due to the quake, which will leave with a $2,697 bill for the event, Foy said.

Foy also said that 3,255 festival tickets were sold out of a possible 3,625.

City officials estimate that the event pumped $244,000 into the local economy, with the average festival-goer spending more than $81 in the Santa Clarita Valley.

Festival organizers had wanted to create a large-scale tourist event that would bring visitors to Santa Clarita to strengthen the 6-year-old city’s economy.