Cavendish council rejects music and culinary festival proposal following mixed reaction at community meeting
STORY CONTINUES BELOW THESE SALTWIRE VIDEOS
Councillors have voted to disclaim holding a proposed music and culinary competition in Cavendish this July.
On Feb. 27, the Resort Municipality council voted 3-2 to assist suggestions from the municipality’s planning board, which suggested in opposition to holding the competition in the course of the busy July 14-15 weekend.
Whitecap Leisure, organizers of the Cavendish Seashore Music Competition, had proposed holding the two-day music and culinary competition on July 14 and 15 – one week after the CBMF, which pulls tens of hundreds of individuals every year.
However many native tourism operators had opposed the dates for the competition which might come at a time when many lodge and cottage operators are already absolutely booked with household reservations.
A public assembly in regards to the live performance on Feb. 6 introduced out over 100 residents. Attendees had been a mixture of supporters and opponents. Many native operators raised considerations about holding one other music competition one week after the vastly widespread Cavendish Seashore Music Competition.
“Everyone was like, ‘pay attention, the dates do not work,'” Adam Lowther, co-owner of Fairways Cottages, advised SaltWire Community on Feb. 28.
“We’re not against the live performance. If you wish to run this in our shoulder season in June and even September, we’re all ears.”
Smita Prakash, proprietor of the Graham Inn on Cavendish Highway, additionally mentioned she would assist a brand new music competition within the shoulder season.
She, like different operators, fearful {that a} music competition would disrupt bookings that had already been made within the space by households who had not anticipated the crowds and noise that include a brand new music competition.
“Do it in a season after we are struggling and searching for stuff to occur,” Prakash mentioned in a cellphone interview. “He wanted to place this competition extra as a household competition.”
Through the Feb. 6 assembly, Whitecap CEO Ben Murphy had mentioned the July 14-15 dates had been proposed partly as a result of availability of 1 high-profile musical act. He mentioned reserving well-known performers was troublesome and that the success of launching a brand new competition usually depended upon the headlining identify related to it.
Murphy didn’t establish what high-profile act was accessible on the July 14-15 dates.
Plan B
On Feb. 28, Murphy advised SaltWire Community he was upset by the vote. He mentioned his desire was to carry the Sommo Competition in Cavendish.
“Our plan B could be to maneuver the competition,” he mentioned.
“We had a handful of municipalities attain out round Atlantic Canada which can be and would like to see the competition come.”
Murphy additionally mentioned he discovered the Monday night time council vote complicated.
“On the finish of the vote, I wasn’t positive what the vote was. The wording of the advice from planning – there was little doubt it was complicated within the room,” Murphy mentioned.
Murphy mentioned he had requested clarification from the municipality that each one councillors had been absolutely conscious of what they had been voting for.
SaltWire Community requested a replica of Monday night time’s decision however was advised by Resort Municipality employees it couldn’t be launched earlier than council accepted the assembly’s minutes.
Calls to Resort Municipality Mayor Matthew Jelley and deputy mayor Linda Lowther acquired no response by deadline.
Adam Lowther, who watched the assembly just about through Zoom, mentioned a number of the confusion on the assembly occurred when Resort Municipality deputy CAO misheard terminology. The vote on the planning board advice needed to be performed once more, Lowther mentioned.
“There was completely no confusion in any of the council members on what they had been voting for,” Adam Lowther mentioned.
