Vancouver Folk Music Festival cancelled for 2023, likely never to return

The Vancouver Folk Music Festival has been cancelled for 2023 and the beloved, summer event will likely never return to Jericho Beach.

In a statement Tuesday, the non-profit that puts on the festival says it was impossible to finance this year's event. The three-day music festival was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic.

"After two years of COVID-related shut-downs, we came back in 2022 to find the festival environment greatly changed," said the board's president Mark Zuberbuhler in a media release.

"Many of our service providers and suppliers had completely disappeared which necessitated herculean efforts and massively increased costs just to cover the basics of production, like stage, fencing, and tents. We had a great festival, but we did not break even.”

In addition to calling off this year's event, the board said continuing to put it on would cost an estimated $500,000 each year. Unable to see a way for the organization to keep up with the cost going forward, the board is recommending the non-profit be dissolved entirely.

"The Vancouver Folk Fest has been a part of the fabric of the city for decades, and it’s been an incredibly emotional and hard decision for the Board to recommend that the festival end," the board's vice-president FiL Hemming said in a statement.

"We looked for ways to continue, but in the end, none of the available options worked."

The society's membership will vote on a motion to dissolve the society at the Annual General Meeting on Feb. 1. If passed, the plan is to cease operations by March 2023. Doing this, according to the board, will allow the society to pay its remaining bills. If there is any money left, it will be donated.

The two full-time staff have already received notice that they will be laid off.

"The board knows that for a lot of us the festival is a highlight of every summer and the weekend has become a part of the fabric of our community. We understand that this will be heartbreaking news for many," a public statement on the festival website says.