By Sarah Martinez | San Antonio Current
As more events are canceled and public spaces make modifications, officials have announced an update on San Antonio’s most beloved event: Fiesta.
At a Friday morning press conference, Fiesta Commission President Jeanie Travis announced that the 10-day festival, attracts hundreds of thousands of attendees annually, will be postponed in light of the coronavirus pandemic.
Rather than get underway on April 16, Fiesta 2020 will run November 5-15.
“Our primary goal is to have a safe Fiesta that poses no risk to our attendees, our participants or our volunteers,” Travis said. “The tradition of Fiesta must continue, but at a different date.”
Mayor Ron Nirenberg said the fall dates were selected to allow time for the coronavirus pandemic to be resolved, while not overshadowing other scheduled public events. This year’s Fiesta will come right after Halloween and Dia de los Muertos celebrations, and not long before Christmas festivities.
“Is San Antonio not the kind of town that can have more than one party going on at a time?” Nirenberg rhetorically asked a reporter who questioned the timing.
Fiesta Commission Executive Director Amy Shaw said her group will meet with the various organizations and leaders involved in the festival to transition to the new date.
The announcement came after a separate press conference at which Nirenberg announced a public health emergency. As part of that action, gatherings of 500 or more people are prohibited for the next seven days, although that time span could be extended by a council vote.
This article is republished with permission from the San Antonio Current.
The San Antonio Current, San Antonio’s award-winning alternative media company, has served as the city’s premiere multimedia source of alternative news, events and culture since 1986.
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