The City of Belleville and the Belleville Chamber of Commerce have announced that an events management contract between the two will not be renewed.
A joint release on Monday states that the chamber completed a strategic planning process that reaffirmed its primary focus to continue its commitment to advocacy work to support community prosperity.
The scaling back of events in 2024, as well as inflation, was also cited.
The deal had been in effect since 2007 and saw the chamber manage Canada Day, Waterfront Multicultural Festival, Family Fun Fest, and the Santa Claus Parade.
“I think from a historical perspective, these events were always community-led, and the chamber was so grateful to be able to engage with the community through the partnerships that we’ve developed over the years,” CEO of the Belleville Chamber of Commerce Jill Raycroft told council in a deputation.
“The work we’ve done together has been truly a gratifying experience. It’s a little bittersweet when we say that that’s not going to happen anymore, but we’re looking forward.”
Mayor Neil Ellis commented on the end of the events management contract at the end of the deputation.
“Seventeen years, it feels like I’m getting divorced,” Mayor Neil Ellis joked.
“Thank you from the bottom of my heart and the City of Belleville and council. Seventeen years is a long time for partnership. We watched each other grow, and it’s been a great relationship, but I totally understand where you’re coming from.”
While an events management contract will not be renewed, the city and the chamber have said they will continue their partnership when it comes to visitor services.
These include services associated with economic development as well as business and resident attraction.
City staff did provide council with an events management plan at its meeting on Monday.
In a report to council, Manager of Economic Development Elisha Maguire says the city is well positioned to run Canada Day, Family Fun Fest and the Santa Claus Parade.
When it came to the Multicultural Waterfront Festival, city staff met with event stakeholders as well as community members to gauge interest in transitioning the organization of that event to another organization other than the Chamber of Commerce.
They received feedback that the event was stale and needed to be reinvented. They have seen a decline in interest, including ticket sales for the midway.
Based on this feedback and timing, staff are recommending that the Multicultural Waterfront Festival in its current form be dissolved.
The city will look at inviting food village vendors to participate as vendors during Canada Day, and committing resources dedicated to activating the Pop-ups on the Bay program to support a micro Multicultural Waterfront Festival during the same July weekend.
This plan would not include the operation of a midway.
While staff say the festival, as a free community event, is not an economically viable business, they have received interest in looking at expanding the festival to include ticketed elements.
Maguire concluded that the change to event management will provide the city with an opportunity to see how a future festival will help align with the city’s Destination Development Plan and objectives of the Tourism Grant program.
Council voted to receive the report.
