Threatening skies on Saturday morning forced the cancellation of the 20th Anniversary of the Prince Albert Downtown Street Fair.
PADBID Executive Director Rhonda Trusty said they decided to cancel the popular annual event after looking at the early morning forecast, and considering other extenuating circumstances.
“The reason to cancel Street Fair was made based on the current conditions when I woke up and the forecast of the lightning and thunderstorms,” Trusty said.
“It was very difficult. The night before I had vendors cancelling, I had children’s activities cancelling and so we can’t have our inflatables operating in the rain. Street Fair just isn’t one element it and it has multiple moving parts to it.
“With the forecast the way it was, it was just too much of a risk,” she added. “I am the one that was responsible for the decision, and so it was a challenge, but we got through it and we are going to be looking at rescheduling the event.”
Trusty said they’ll decide on a future date after holding meetings later this week.
The day ended up overcast after the initial pour down in the morning before the rain and thunderstorm arrived around 4 p.m.
“When you look at the rain, when I woke up it was coming down fairly heavy,” Trusy said. “We had a contractor that was already in the downtown around 6 a.m. and he said there was ankle deep water on Central Avenue.”
Vendor cancellations were one factor in the decision. Trusty said she was also worried attendees wouldn’t enjoy the fair if the weather was bad.
“We want it to be an enjoyable experience for the children, for the vendors, for the animals that we were bringing in, (and) for the musicians,” she said. “There’s multiple aspects that I have to consider when looking at how everything will play out.”
Trusty said the City of Prince Albert’s emergency response plan also impacted the decision. Trusty said PADBID has to fill out a response plan to the best of their ability, and try to honour it.
“Even though it was a tough decision, I feel that it was the right one,” Trusty said.
“Once we have a date, we will be moving forward with having street fair for 2025,” she added.
Trusty said it was unfortunate the circumstances dictated that Street Fair had to be shut down.
“Street Fair is a beloved event (to) the people who come out and support our downtown businesses and our vendors and take part in the children’s activities,” she said. “We will be moving forward with it and I hope they have the ability to come out and that we have sunshine and smiles on our new date once it’s selected.”
michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca
