Ottawa Filipino food and music festival postponed

An Ottawa Filipino food and music festival has been postponed due to logistics and safety factors. CTV’s Katelyn Wilson reports.

A Filipino food and music festival set to be held in front of Parliament Hill during the May long weekend has been postponed, due to “unforeseen developments related to logistics and safety factors,” according to organizers.

The first-ever Fun Philippines Ottawa Food and Music Street Festival was scheduled for May 17-18 on Wellington Street, from Elgin Street to Kent Street.

In a statement on its website, Fun Philippines Ottawa announced the postponement of the festival until further notice. The decision comes a week after 11 people were killed in a vehicle-ramming at a Vancouver Filipino festival.

“This difficult decision was made in light of unforeseen developments related to logistics and safety factors that are beyond our control,” organizers said in the statement.

“After careful consideration, and with the well-being of our vendors, performers, community, and attendees as our top priority, we have determined that moving forward at this time would not meet the standards of safety and preparedness we expect of ourselves.

“We also acknowledge the broader emotional climate following the recent tragedy in Vancouver and understand that this is a time of mourning and reflection for many in our community.”

A vigil was held on Parliament Hill last week to remember the victims of the attack at Vancouver’s Lapu-Lapu Day block party.

Tara Shannon, executive director for the Ottawa Festival Network Executive Director, says these sorts of events take months to prepare and the Vancouver attack has shaken the community’s sense of safety.

“It takes a lot of logistics to put on an event like that especially at Parliament Hill. There’s a lot of things to consider and a lot of organization that comes into play and sometimes not everything lines up in time to make the event happen,” Shannon said.

Former Ottawa Police Chief Charles Bordeleau says increased security at similar events has become more common.

“I recall Canada Day used to be done without any jersey barriers or officers with long guns at different perimeters, now it’s common,” he said.

“The general festivals in Ottawa and across Canada are fairly low risk. But the reality is that these events have to have to be considered, and I think with the recency of it, you’ll see most likely additional security measures layered on to events.”

Bordeleau says there are rigorous standards in place to ensure security.

“There’s always a rigorous assessment done on the safety and that is always their number one concern.”

With files from CTV News Ottawa’s Katelyn Wilson