Spraoi and Waterford Harvest Festival have announced that this year's festivals will not be taking place next month.
The International Street Arts Festival had to cancel its traditional August Bank Holiday Weekend event due to Covid-19 restrictions, but was it was set to go ahead on September 4th-13th.
But the organisers have announced this morning that the new guidelines mean its programme for this year's event is "no longer feasible".
It's the first time in 26 years that the Spraoi festival won't take place.
A joint statement was issued by the organisers for both Spraoi and Harvest this morning:
Due to updated COVID-19 government guidelines, organisers of both A Celebration of Harvest and
Spraoi Time 2020 programmes have announced their cancellation.
Teams at Spraoi, Waterford Harvest Festival and Waterford City and County Council had worked to
reimagine both festivals. However, new guidelines instructing cafes, restaurants and similar venues
not to host formal or informal events, as well as tighter restrictions on capacity for outdoor
gatherings before September 13th, means that these programmes are no longer feasible.
The news will come as a huge disappointment to the public and local businesses. However, Spraoi
aims to install a series of decorative pieces at various city centre locations to add colour and novelty
to streets and squares during the original festival dates (4th - 13th Sept). Meanwhile Waterford will
continue to offer incredible experiences at an array of restaurants and cafes, and local producers will
continue to stack the shelves of your shops with quality Déise foodstuffs.
Harvest Festival Director Tommie Ryan stated “It is a huge disappointment to everyone involved,
however it is the right and only decision. What is key now is that people continue to keep their
promise to support local businesses whenever they can”.
Spraoi Director T.V. Honan added, “I am very proud of our board, management, staff, artists,
volunteers, funders, sponsors and stakeholders. Each gave everything they had towards the goal of
staging Spraoi Time 2020, as did Harvest and Council teams. Sadly in the end it wasn’t enough. It’s
fair to say we’re gutted.”
While the news is disheartening for so many, the teams are united in the belief that safety for all
involved is paramount, and this is a perfect opportunity for the people of Waterford to show their
solidarity and support businesses in the area. The message is clear, Stay safe, Shop Waterford
Support Local.
