ANNA MARIA – The Anna Maria Island Chamber of Commerce’s 20th annual Bayfest celebration has been postponed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chamber officials hoped to host a two-day Bayfest event on and along Pine Avenue beginning with a parade on Friday, Oct. 16, concluding with the traditional Bayfest activities on Saturday, Oct. 17.
During Thursday’s meeting, the Anna Maria City Commission delayed the approval of the chamber’s special event permit request that had been previously and tentatively approved on June 11.
Mayor Dan Murphy prefaced Thursday’s discussion by noting that when the permit was approved in June, it was stated that the permitting approval might have to be re-evaluated as the Bayfest date drew closer.
Bev Kilpatrick and Cathy Pizzo represented the chamber at Thursday’s meeting.
Kilpatrick told the commission the chamber planned to take all necessary precautions to help ensure the safety of the Bayfest volunteers, chamber members, festival attendees and vendors. She said the precautions would include limited entry and exit points; mandatory masks for all attendees and participants, temperature checks for volunteers and chamber members, plexiglass partitions and 6-foot social distancing requirements.
Pizzo said approximately 40 vendors expressed initial interest in participating in Bayfest 2020.
Commission Chair Carol Carter asked how many people attend Bayfest at a time. Pizzo guessed there might be 1,500 people in attendance at any given time.
Commissioner Mark Short noted the city remains under a declared local state of emergency due to the ongoing pandemic. Murphy said the local state of emergency and the city’s indoor mask mandate would not preclude an outdoor festival from taking place.
Commissioner Joe Muscatello noted the city already canceled its Veterans Day parade scheduled for early November. Carter noted the city previously canceled its Memorial Day and Fourth of July celebrations and the Thanks-Living potluck dinner at City Pier Park is not taking place this year.
Carter said she was concerned about the impact a large gathering might have on the city’s elderly residents.
Commissioner Jon Crane said, “This particular chamber is one of best I’ve seen, but I’m very conservative about crowds. I’m really concerned about that. I’d love you guys to do well, but I don’t want my constituents to get sick.”
Muscatello asked if postponing Bayfest until early 2021 might provide the chamber with a more successful event in terms of fundraising. He was told Bayfest would be the third AMI Chamber fundraiser to be canceled this year, preceded by a food truck festival and a golf tournament. It was noted these three events account for a significant portion of the chamber’s event-oriented fundraising efforts.
“It’s a great event. The chamber is invaluable to the Island, but like Commissioner Crane, I do share the same concerns of having potentially several thousand people walking the streets of the city,” Short said.
Short noted mandatory masks and maintaining 6 feet of social distancing can be difficult to enforce at large gatherings and it would only take one carful of people coming into the festival without masks to create a chaotic situation.
“I have big concerns about the timing of the event, given we’re still not through the COVID issue at this point in time,” Short said.
Muscatello said he was sorry to make the motion to delay approval of the special event permit. He said he hopes the city will do all it can to help ensure that Bayfest is a success if held early next year. The commission voted 5-0 to delay the special event permit issuance.
Kilpatrick and Pizzo said they understood the commission’s concerns, appreciated the city’s support and want to continue the successful partnership that exists between the chamber and the city.
Last year’s Bayfest was held at The Center of Anna Maria Island due to inclement weather.
