Ridge Fest 2 is cancelled.
The festival, slated to bring Blue Rodeo, Jimmy Rankin, the Northern Pikes and Chilliwack to the Hants County Exhibition Grounds Aug. 5-6, was called off by the entertainment co-ordinator Kevin Brown Aug. 2, according to the individual in charge of the venue booked for the special event.
The head of the exhibition grounds, David Coombes, offered only one comment Aug. 3 when asked if the show would go on.
"As far as I know, he made the decision last night to cancel the show," Coombes told The Hants Journal.
In a press release issued by Coombes Aug. 5, he expressed his disappointment over the cancellation.
“We understand ticket sales were well below budget. This would have been our first outdoor concert on our grounds,” Coombes wrote. “We do know our site would have been perfect for such a mid-sized concert crowd. It is disappointing the show had to be cancelled and we have sympathy for Mr. Brown as he has spent considerable time and money to try and make this a wonderful show for concertgoers.”
Brown posted a press release Aug. 3, confirming the cancellation of the festival on www.ridgefest.ca after news broke of his decision to call it off.
“We regret that due to very low ticket sales, it is simply not feasible to stage the event,” he said in the prepared statement.
The statement did not explain how, or if, tickets purchased through any other means than T.A.N. Coffee could be refunded.
T.A.N. locations from Windsor to Greenwood were among several businesses selling tickets for the festival.
Lay Chin Tan, a part owner of T.A.N. locations in Windsor, Wolfville, Kentville and Coldbrook, says the company has been bombarded by customers seeking Ridge Fest 2 refunds but, at this time, they are unable to process direct refunds.
“We need some time,” Tan said.
“We will definitely take responsibility for the tickets we sold. We cannot do it at this time… until we hear from the Ridge Fest organizer because part of the money collected from tickets sold has been given to them.”
“At T.A.N. Coffee we will take responsibility as we will absorb the loss, but what about those people who bought their tickets from him (or other venues)? I have sympathy for those customers that purchased tickets from him, and I wonder whether those people are going to get their money back.” - Lay Chin Tan
Tan said she has been trying to contact Brown to retrieve the money he collected from T.A.N. for ticket sales, but she has been unable to reach him by phone and the emails she sends are returned, and marked undeliverable.
“At this point, the best we can do is have (ticket holders) drop off the ticket at the outlet they purchased it from, with their contact information, so we can let them know the outcome. This is due to administration and accounting complications, and interruptions to our daily operations,” Tan said.
T.A.N. Coffee paid $10,000 to be a major Ridge Fest 2 sponsor. Tan says the cancelled concert has caused a lot of undue stress for her business, and within the community.
“At T.A.N. Coffee we will take responsibility as we will absorb the loss, but what about those people who bought their tickets from him (or other venues)? I have sympathy for those customers that purchased tickets from him, and I wonder whether those people are going to get their money back,” Tan said.
In a phone interview Aug. 8, Brown said about 481 Ridge Fest 2 tickets were sold in advance.
“We would have had to sell over 1,100 tickets at the door just to make it work.”
Brown said the decision to cancel was a tough call, but one that had to be made. Ridge Fest 2 organizers are busy working on solutions for issues that arose when the festival went under, he said.
“We’re not avoiding anybody,” Brown said. “We’re dealing with it as best as we can.”
In an email, Brown said 50 per cent of the ticket purchases were made through a Groupon.com offer. These purchases, he said, can be refunded almost immediately through Groupon.
As for tickets bought through other means than T.A.N. Coffee or Groupon.com, Brown is asking the ticket holders to contact the Ridge Fest 2 crew at ridgefest2011@gmail.com for further instructions.
It's very unfortunate that people are blaming the town of Windsor. It was the promoters, and only the promoters, who canceled the event, much to the dismay of many who had put in a great deal of hard work. Police, fire fighters, local businesses, town officials and residents had all put in time and energy to help pull this event together, all doing exceptional work, and now are being blamed for the actions of a single person. Hopefully, this does not prevent the next promoter, one with a solid business and promotional plan, from seeing the great potential this area has to offer.