April 20, 2011 9.19 am This story is over 155 months old

City Council hikes Christmas Market prices

Increase: Park and ride, stall and coach parking charges will increase for the Lincoln Christmas Market 2011.

The City of Lincoln Council agreed on Tuesday at a full Council meeting to increase the fees and charges associated with the 2011 Christmas Market.

The increases will be up to £45 per stall, plus £15 increase in surcharge for food traders and an extra £5 for the alcohol levy.

Park and ride fees will go up by up to £3 (from £12 on Thursday to £15 on Saturday) and coach parking fees will increase by £5.

The 2011 charges are influenced by the cancellation of the 2010 market, and by stallholders and coach operators who were able to bring forward their bookings at last year’s prices.

More than half of stallholders left their 2010 fees with the council and are cushioned from any increase in 2011.

This means the council had to recover the extra income through an increase in stall rents from the 50% of stalls who will apply for the 2011 market.

But by increasing the stall charges with the RPI pegged at 4.2% instead of the 6% needed to hit its profit target, £3,500 will be lost on income from stalls.

Like stalls, it is anticipated that any losses in coach income would be recovered through other income strands, namely park and ride.

The City of Lincoln Council expectes the 2011 Christmas Market to generate a total income of over £506,000.