File image of Dierks Bentley performing at the ENMAX Centre in 2017. (Lethbridge News Now)

By Karsen Marczuk

Live events industry given some hope, but not out of the woods yet

May 27, 2021 | 10:50 AM

CALGARY, AB- Live events may be possible this summer, but event professionals say for some, the province’s latest announcement has come too late.

Event professionals, suppliers, musicians, entertainers and venues were given the first sign of optimism in over 15 months since the meeting and live event industry came to a halt in March 2020. On Wednesday, Premier Jason Kenney announced the “Open for Summer Plan”, saying live events may resume in July if 70 per cent of Albertans receive their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

READ MORE: Province announces three-stage plan to ease restrictions

Tens of thousands of event professionals have been out of work with little guidance or support from the Government of Alberta over the past year. With the vaccination rate steadily rising, there is confidence that the live event industry can start to get back to work, bringing events, festivals, concerts, weddings and more back this summer.

The Alberta Live Events Coalition (ALEC) has been working with the Government of Alberta and Alberta Health Services to get the live event industry back open safely.

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“Yesterday was very good news for the event industry,” says Caitlin McElhone with ALEC and Event Professional in Edmonton.

“Yesterday’s announcement means that we know how to move forward with events over summer and into the fall, it means that we can take the guess-work out if we can hold an in-person event which is really good. We can finally plan for the future which is something event professionals haven’t been able to do for over 15 months.”

However, ALEC is cautioning people not to get too excited about “the best summer ever” that the Premier has promised Albertans. With just over six weeks until the Stage 3 bench-mark in early July – when Premier Kenney said restrictions and capacity limits can be lifted – many producers of major festivals, concerts, fairs, exhibitions and more believe the province’s announcement has come too late, with many pulling the plug on events already.

“The reality is many of the summer events and festivals that Albertans love cannot be put together in six weeks, some take eight to 12 months to coordinate and execute as many factors come into play for an event to come to lige and for it to be safe for guests to attend; including risk management planning, marketing, sponsor partnerships, rehearsals, registration and website building,” says Lesley Plumley, Founder of ALEC and Calgary Event Professional.

“So unfortunately, summer isn’t going going to look the same as it usually does and the events industry needs time to build businesses back up, hire back and train staff and start the planning process.”

The live events industry was the first to close last March when pandemic restrictions first came into effect and thousands of peope lost their jobs. The ripple effect caused an estimated $4 billion in lost revenue that the live events industry produces each year.

As for live events in Lethbridge, organizers are still collecting all the details and are in the planning stages for the summer. Whoop-Up Days is still being discussed by officials at the Lethbridge and District Exhibition, with a plan expected to be released in the coming weeks.

READ MORE: Exhibition Park encouraged by restrictions plan, but planning summer events will be a challenge

ALEC is encouraging anyone who is planning an event this summer to hire a professional as they focus strictly on events and have already created plans to keep guests safe while they celebrate.

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