I do feel that the answer to this question weighs more heavily than it might appear…
If only because any route of alternative funding equally could be cancelled “tomorrow”…
Grants are great but having just annoyed the local community where the chances are someone from the event you messed around also sits on the board of Lion’s/Rotary/Mason’s doesn’t really sit well.
I know on a previous unit where we helped on a Christmas town event volunteers for that organisation were so impressed they our in a good word and the Rotary club offered us money…so hardly a stretch to suggest that the opposite could happen too.
My worry is if volunteer car parking a staple for many has been banned what is next for the chop? What keeps senior management awake a night…the “unknown unknown” is great…until it gecones known and banned.
Alternative funding sourcing? Yeah sure…but it will take 2-3 years of reputation damage fixing to sort out and maybe the same again to build the trust and to a level that sees the same funds coming in again…only to find out that volunteering at the town’s fireworks display working on the entry gate (or insert other event) is now not viable…
If these “alternatives” were easily topick up in the place of car parking chsncesare we’d already be doing it…i know our unit does a handful of different activities in the community already. We’re not turning away offers or invites to help out at events