Letter to the Editor

Dear editor,

Your March 31 editorial (Building brand awareness through community sporting events) asked why there’s no Culver City 5K. There is. More precisely, there was. Unfortunately, this year’s event won’t be produced because its primary sponsor, Sporteve, is struggling to stay open.

This popular event has grown every year for three years and last year raised $10,000 for the Culver City Education Foundation. According to what I learned from the owner at Sporteve, it costs about $20,000 to put on, not including the hours spent advertising, organizing and gaining the cooperation of the City. Because the gals at Sporteve have done much of the earlier organization and know the mechanics of setting up an event, the City, Chamber of Commerce or a private group might be able to tap into their expertise and the groundwork they have already laid to keep the Culver City 5K alive and make it a citywide tradition.

It seems to me that the City would benefit from supporting and/or sponsoring an event that brings hundreds of runners and spectators to downtown Culver City, promotes our city and benefits our businesses. A race in association with the La Ballona Festival might be great timing and a boon to the Festival and the City.

Terry Keelan,

Culver City