Tonight’s Marine Avenue Street Party, part of Blackberry Festival, will be going ahead without fireworks.
Quality Foods sponsors the Festival of Lights, an impressive display of fireworks with bursts choreographed to music. Bruce Robertson, former Powell River Quality Foods store manager who now looks after future locations for the company, said there was a communications problem with the company in Calgary that supplies the fireworks. “There was a date mix-up,” he said. “They actually have it all set up and built, ready to be shipped, but we didn’t realize the problem until 3 o’clock yesterday. It’s dangerous cargo, so you can’t fly it. It has to come out on special delivery and there’s no way to get it here by tonight.”
Robertson came over to Powell River this morning from Vancouver Island to apologize to the community. “We’re feeling very, very bad about it, that’s for sure,” he said. “We always do things big and we really messed up big this time.”
The company is re-scheduling the show for Labour Day, Monday, September 2, Robertson said. “We’ll put on another show then,” he said.
The street party is an incredible event, Robertson pointed out, and the fireworks display topped it off. “Now Powell River will have two parties,” he said. “It’s a nice way to kick-off the end of the summer.”
The Marine Area Business Association (MABA) co-sponsors the street party with Quality Foods. Cathy MacDonald is the president of MABA. “It’s disappointing, but we have had the street party for 17 years without fireworks, so the party will go on,” she said.
The street party, which is scheduled from 6 to 11 pm, Friday, August 16, includes food vendors, musicians and other entertainment along Marine from the foot of Alberni Street to the bottom of Duncan Street. The street is closed to traffic while thousands of people stroll up and down the avenue.
