While Canada Day events will be taking place in some communities in the municipality, Chatham will not be among them.
Organizers of Chatham Canada Day have announced the cancellation of the event due to a lack of sponsorship interest and rising event costs.
“We ran into some issues where the municipality had added some additional costs and it limited us from trying to make any money back,” said organizer Chris Glassford with Summit Shows Canada. “There are additional infrastructure costs now, including security guards.”
Glassford said he hoped to recoup some of the losses through a one-day beverage garden and local entertainment, however, the associated expenses have doubled compared to previous years.
Due to ongoing construction around Tecumseh Park in downtown Chatham, the event was expected to be held at the Thames Grove Conservation Area.
Glassford said the change in venue also played a role in the cancellation.
“Obviously Thames Grove is a nice site we can use for events and stuff but it’s not Tecumseh Park and it doesn’t have the infrastructure to do these really cool things we want to do in the future,” he said.
Glassford added Art in the Park, which was planned to be part of this year’s Canada Day event in Chatham, will be postponed for another day later this summer
Summit Shows Canada, which is run by Glassford, has organized two Canada Day events in the past — one in 2017 and another following the pandemic in 2022.
Glassford said he’s hopeful the event can return to Chatham next year in one form or another.
In the meantime, Canada Day events have been planned for Wallaceburg and Blenheim, with fireworks displays to be held in Blenheim and Bothwell.