For the second year in a row, Dover Days is canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The festival is usually held on the first weekend of May.
Organizers decided to cancel rather than postponing until later because they didn’t want to potentially call it off twice in the same year.
Dover Days Committee president Chris Cooper explains what went into their decision-making process.
"All the uncertainty that surrounds the governor's state of emergency and ability to plan an event the size of Dover Days makes it quite difficult to move forward," said Cooper. "We expected to get roughly 10,000 people at Dover Days and we're not allowed to have anywhere near that number of people gather under the current situation. So, it makes it very tough to plan."
Cooper concedes the move deals the area another financial blow.
"It's a huge event. People come from all over and it used to be an event that was run by Tourism up until a couple of years ago. So, it's certainly something that draws a lot of people and brings a lot of people that are spending money at local restaurants and hotels and so on," said Cooper. "It's incredibly unfortunate that we've had to cancel it for a second year in a row."
Dover Days celebrates the state’s history and culture with a parade, traditional Maypole Dancing, games, tethered hot air balloon rides, a moon bounce village, craft and food vendors, music, and historic re-enactment groups.
Cooper notes the committee will meet soon to plan Dover Days 2022, which he promises will be bigger and better than ever. That takes place on May 7, 2022.
