How the Edmonton Heritage Festival will go forward this weekend with health measures
The 48th annual Edmonton Heritage Festival is set to kick off on Saturday.
The three-day outdoor event will boast delicious food, creative performances and celebrate Canada’s multiculturalism.
“In a world that’s often in conflict because of diversity we should welcome and thank the Heritage Festival for bringing that diversity in light in such a positive way,” Marjorie Bencz, from Edmonton’s Food Bank, said.
Physical distancing and safety guidelines will be in place at the event and mask use will be strongly encouraged, according to Jim Gibbon, the executive director of the festival.
There will also be picnic tables spaced out and white circles painted onto the grass to direct visitors to designated areas to gather with their cohort.
Gibbon said there is about 45 exhibitors lined up for the event this year — about two thirds of the average roster.
The two major differences people will notice is timed entry passes, only allowing in 4,000 people per hour.
“We’re at almost a third of our historic visitors already registered,” Gibbon said.
“With a timed entry we’re anticipating our buses will be full,” Gary Lamont, the ETS supervisor, added.
The other big change is the festival is going entirely cashless and there will be QR codes at the entrances.
WORLD MUSIC WEEK
Starting Thursday night, World Music Week will also get underway as part of the festival at Hawrelak Park. It will feature drumming performances, DJs and Souljah Fyah to name a few.
Greg Davis, the organizer, said putting this event together came with some mixed emotions.
“A little bit nervous,” Davis said. “In terms of putting something like this together to see how the community reacts.”
And, “Proud that we were chosen to put this together for the first time as part of the Heritage Festival in our city.”
“We will sit back on Monday with a sigh of relief to say, ‘Wow we did something different, we did something special and let's do it again next year,’” he laughed.
Davis said it’s interesting not being able to bring in acts from outside of Edmonton, but it also provides room to highlight the wealth of local talent in our city.
“It’s a really cool opportunity to showcase what Edmonton has internationally, culturally, as well just here in the city that most of us aren’t aware of,” he said.
While the festival is taking place, the Heritage Food Drive is also in full swing from now until Aug. 6, the single largest summer food and fundraiser for Edmonton’s Food Bank.
Non-perishable food items can be donated in the bins at major grocery stores and secure donations can be made online or text FEDYEG to 20222 to give a $10 or $20.
“Events like this make the world a better, kinder place,” Gibbon said.
Heritage festival runs from July 31 to Aug. 2.
With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Carlyle Fiset
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Canada's most wanted fugitive arrested in P.E.I. in connection with Toronto homicide
A suspect in a fatal shooting in Toronto’s east end last summer has been arrested in Charlottetown, just one week after he topped a list of Canada’s most wanted fugitives.
BREAKING Federal employees will be required to spend 3 days a week in the office
Starting in September, public servants in the core public administration will be required to work in the office a minimum of three days a week. The Treasury Board Secretariat says executives will need to be in the office four days per week.
Concerns about plexiglass prompt inspections at some Loblaws locations in Ottawa
Inspections are underway at more than one Loblaws location in Ottawa after complaints were filed about tall plexiglass barriers.
OPP officer said 'someone's going to get hurt' before wrong-way Hwy. 401 crash
As multiple Durham police cruisers were chasing a robbery suspect on the wrong side of Highway 401 Monday night, an Ontario Provincial Police officer shared his concerns, telling a dispatcher, "Someone's going to get hurt."
Poilievre returns to House unrepentant for calling Trudeau 'wacko,' Speaker not resigning
An unrepentant Pierre Poilievre returned to the House of Commons on Wednesday to pepper the prime minister about his drug decriminalization policies after being booted the day prior for refusing to take back calling Justin Trudeau 'wacko' over his approach to the issue.
Five human skeletons, missing hands and feet, found outside house of Nazi leader Hermann Göring
Archeologists have unearthed the skeletons of five people, missing their hands and feet, at a former Nazi military base in Poland.
Toddler of Phoenix first responder dies after bounce house goes airborne
A two-year-old child died after a strong gust of wind sent the bounce house he was in airborne and into a neighbouring lot in central Arizona, the Pinal County Sheriff's Office said.
Plane overshoots runway at airport in St. John's, N.L., no injuries reported
Investigators from the Transportation Safety Board of Canada are headed to St. John's, N.L., after a plane overshot a runway at the city's airport this afternoon.
A teen was found buried in a basement in New York. An engraved ring helped police learn her identity two decades later
For more than two decades, the unknown victim was nicknamed "Midtown Jane Doe" because she was found in the Hell's Kitchen neighbourhood of New York City. But this week, investigators finally revealed her identity.