The city of Sparks loses about $180,000 on special events every year, parks and recreation officials said Monday in a discussion of the city’s redevelopment agency budget.

Of the 15 special events that will come to Sparks this year, the city makes money from two: the Sparks Hometowne Farmer’s Market and the Arts in Bloom Festival.

“Those recover their costs because we have control,” Tracy Domingues, the city’s recreation superintendent, said of the city-sponsored events.

Of the seven major Sparks events, or those that attract more than 6,000 people, the city helps with the production of five. The two events that the city does not help produce, according to a report delivered at Monday’s city redevelopment agency workshop, are John Ascuaga’s Nugget’s Star Spangled Sparks and Nevada Hispanic Services’ Cinco de Mayo event.

“We are involved in all of them whether we produce them or not,” Domingues said. “We want to ensure the success of the event.”

After special event rules changed this year, event producers are now required to pay all public safety costs. At the same time, the city agrees to pick up the tab on public works and their parks and recreation department contributions. And this is where they lose the money, Domingues said. The public works services include electrical hookup and garbage collection and clean up. The parks and recreation department acts as the point agency on the event, providing input among other services.

As an example, public safety costs for The Best in the West Nugget Rib Cook-Off were about $60,500 in 2008, Domingues said. The event cost $20,300 in parks and recreation and public works. These costs will vary depending on the event, she added.

The event is the city’s largest, drawing about 500,000 visitors throughout the six-day event.

Although most events lose money for the city, Domingues said that the loss contributes to a greater good.

“If the event goes away there goes our tourism,” Domingues said.

The 15 events in the city of Sparks draw more than a million visitors to the area annually. Hot August Nights leaves about a $200 million economic impact, according to marketing officials from the event. In 2005, a University of Nevada, Reno survey found that the Rib Cook-Off funneled $95 million in non-gaming revenue to the region. The event’s impact with gaming revenue was closer to $135 million in 2005. According to Nugget spokesman Mike Traum, these are the latest scientific numbers the hotel and casino has.

The Sparks Hometowne Farmer’s Market made $160,000 for the city last year and the Arts in Bloom Festival made $28,000, Domingues said.