The Hootenanny on Hunter Street in downtown Peterborough has been cancelled for 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 10th annual free musical festival, organized by the Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area (DBIA) for its third year, was scheduled to take place from 12 to 11 p.m. on Saturday, August 8th on Hunter Street West between George and Aylmer streets.
“It breaks my heart to have to cancel an amazing full day of music we had planned,” says DBIA executive director Terry Guiel. “It’s going to be a different summer downtown without all the festivals, but our focus right now is the safety of the community.”
Gueil adds that the DBIA’s priority for now is to work with downtown businesses to help them through the crisis, including helping them engage their customers online.
The DBIA is planning to keep the planned musical line-up for 2020 private, with the aim to bring all the acts already booked for this summer back to play the 2021 festival.
Hootenanny on Hunter Street was started by the late Jonathan “Jonny Trash” Hall, who passed away suddenly from a heart attack on March 22, 2019 just after his 44th birthday. The 2019 festival featured a tribute in his honour.
Along with live music, the festival normally features large licensed patios and downtown vendors and attracts about 10,000 people annually.
