June 15th, 2020

​Dear Firefest Friends,
With a heavy heart, I’m here to announce that there will be no Firefest for 2020.
Like everything during the past few months, it is complex and difficult. Firefest is built on a vast network of vendors, artists, entertainers, sponsors, and volunteers. They are the pillars of Firefest and have all been deeply affected during the past several months. But to ensure there are more Firefests to come, we need to take a step back this year. We want to see this event, our business, vendors, volunteers, and crowd goers for years to come. That means making the difficult decision to cancel this year’s event.
The challenges we are facing right now are a lot. No one knows what it will look like – both financially and public health wise – at Firefest time. Sadly, decisions and planning are already months behind because, like everyone, we were taking a wait and see approach.  We need to make decisions now, based on what we know today, not how we hope they are this fall.
Firefest has always been a full-on celebration. That is why it is so special to so many. We owe it to you to give you the best Firefest every year, while making a safe environment and remain financial responsible for our non-for-profit organization, businesses, and vendors. It becomes clear this is the only decision. It is the right thing to do for everyone involved. The best thing we as Downtown New Haven Inc is helping the world recover and heal – in all the ways that implies.
In the meantime, we are working on making Firefest come back bigger, strong, better, safer, and smarter in 2021. We are excited for much-needed improvements in Downtown to be finished then and finding new events as well as improving long-standing traditions. We are working on smaller, yet still fun, fundraisers and get-togethers downtown and look forward to sharing those events with you as well. We appreciate your understanding and if you are interested in joining Downtown New Haven INC or Firefest, we are always looking for amazing volunteers.
Sincerely,
Tara Steffens
Firefest Director
Chief Operating Officer Pinckney Bend Distillery.