Officials with Exhibition Park have announced the 2020 edition of Whoop-Up Days, scheduled for Aug. 18-22, has been cancelled.
The decision comes after Alberta’s chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw announced Thursday a ban on all mass gatherings, including festivals and outdoor events, for the remainder of the summer.
The announcement comes one day after both the Calgary Stampede and K-Days in Edmonton were cancelled.
The 2020 Taber Cornfest Committee is also currently in the process of formulating a formal announcement on the cancellation of its free, three-day family festival.
“We were kind of hoping this would be something we could have near the end of summer,” said Taber Cornfest Co-Chair Jared Bell.
“It just means 2021 will be even better.”
Exhibition Park in Lethbridge contributes around $70 million to the economy and welcomes an average of 800,000 people to its events each year.
Whoop-Up Days alone brings in 30,000-40,000 people.
“The Alberta Health Services decision is one that we fully support, as it is in the best interest of the health and safety of the residents of our community” Exhibition Park CEO Rudy Friesen said.
“Even though we are in the business of mass gatherings, now is not the time.”
The annual five-day summer festival in Lethbridge saw its 2019 attendance numbers grow by 20 per cent over the previous year, and surpassed what was a record year for attendance in 2017 by 3.3 per cent.
Friesen says it’s been several decades since Whoop-Up has been cancelled.
“This facility was used for other purposes both in World War I and World War II,” he said of the park’s grounds. “Those are the only times, to my knowledge, that there’s not been a Whoop-Up Days.”
Facilities at Exhibition Park will also remain closed, but one potential exception is the farmers market.
With the food portion of the market considered to be an essential service, officials are exploring a weekly food-only market that could adhere to the limit on gatherings, including a maximum of 15 people and maintaining the two-metre physical distancing.
Further details on the market are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
The City of Lethbridge also announced Friday the cancellation of its Canada Day celebrations.
“I encourage our residents to have fun and creative Canada Day celebrations in their own backyards while still observing proper social and physical distancing practices and by adhering to mass gathering restrictions,” Mayor Chris Spearman said.
“As Alberta Health has said, we must do everything we can to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Festivals and large gatherings hold the potential to be super-spreader events. So, for Canada Day 2020, let us celebrate our strength, our resilience and our values. Let’s join with the rest of Canada and show our true Canadian spirit from the comfort of our homes.”
The city says more specifics will be provided closer to July 1.
Comments