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Draper Days' movie night didn't start until dark, but plenty of families had staked out spots hours earlier in anticipation of the free flick and hot dogs.
The city estimates nearly 100,000 people attended Draper Days this year, the largest crowd yet. Cities around the state are noticing an increase in attendance at festivals, movie nights and other free activities as cash-strapped families rely more heavily on them for entertainment.
But those growing audiences are straining shrinking city budgets. And while some cities say they are criticized for spending money on fun, most believe the expense is a good investment.
"People are looking for entertainment options that are close to home, affordable and are fun," said West Jordan spokeswoman Kim Wells. The city has had to get creative with its budget for the annual Western Stampede, because attendance has gone up while the budget has shrunk.
For the past four years, the Stampede has averaged a $20,000 loss, said City Councilman Ben Southworth, who oversees the festival. That is unsustainable, Southworth said, especially as cities debate whether entertaining residents is the proper role of government in tight financial times. Some residents have been critical of the Stampede and other programs like movies in the park, Southworth said, believing government should be providing only services such as public safety, not entertainment.
Still, the council chose to fund the Stampede, now in its 57th year, believing it has a worthwhile purpose.
"There's a quality of life aspect, and that's something that we value," Southworth said.
The city made some major changes to its festival, cutting its fireworks display from three nights for $30,000 to one night at $15,000 and hiring an entertainment contractor to run the rodeo, held over the Fourth of July weekend. Based on early projections, the festival may actually make a small profit this year, Southworth said, though exact numbers are still being calculated.
Even cities that lose money on events believe they can be a good investment. Bountiful spent $20,000 on fireworks this year but had 30,000 people attend, said City Manager Tom Hardy. That works out to around 66 cents per person.
"It's a pretty good bang for the buck, no pun intended," said Hardy, adding that it's hard to put an exact price tag on the intangible value of such community events. "They'd feel like we were maybe a little less of a community if we didn't have those events."
Such city-sponsored events do yield additional revenue, Hardy added. A large event draws people from outside the city who come and eat at Bountiful's restaurants or purchase gas or snacks. Taxes from those sales return to the city, offsetting some of the financial loss.
Cities are increasingly relying on volunteers and corporate sponsorships to stretch those dollars even further. Bountiful partners with other organizations such as the Bountiful/Davis Arts Center to put on its annual Summerfest. Draper partners with the Draper Community Foundation to put on a week's worth of activities during Draper Days.
A fee is charged for some activities, said Draper Days chairman Glen Sisam, but most are free, including several concerts, movies and a pancake breakfast. Using the foundation to find corporate sponsors and volunteers to put on events cuts the city's bill dramatically, he added.
"I think [community events] are essential in terms of creating unity and building relationships with businesses and within the community," Sisam said.
Angela Christensen believes free events are a prime use of taxpayer dollars. Her home day-care business has taken a hit as parents can't afford child care, and even though her husband works two jobs, the family has a hard time affording fun activities.
"If it's not free, it's not going to happen," Christensen said at the Draper Days screening of "Megamind." "We're really relying on things like this."
Linda Wood traveled from West Jordan with her two sons and daughter to see the movie. The family has cut its entertainment budget, even eliminating home Internet service to save money. Even free or cheap events such as "dollar" movies or the city carnival can add up.
"We support events like this," Wood said. "Otherwise, we couldn't do anything."
Twitter: @Katie_Drake