The Crab, Seafood & Wine Festival will be held virtually in April, marking the second year the festival has been impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
On Wednesday, the Astoria-Warrenton Area Chamber of Commerce announced the festival will be held virtually from April 23 to April 25.
The Crab, Seafood & Wine Festival will be held virtually due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“This year we are taking a more unorthodox approach. To ensure the safety of our vendors, attendees, and volunteers the 2021 festival will take place virtually ... The festival has a large and loyal following and this year we’ll be able to accommodate fans from the safety of their own homes,” the chamber said in a statement.
The festival is a major fundraiser for the chamber, which typically raises money through ticket sales. The gathering is regularly attended by more than 10,000 people, which earns the chamber about $100,000. The Astoria Rotary Club relies on the festival to fund about $10,000 in scholarships to local high school students.
“It’s a big fundraiser for us every year,” said David Reid, the chamber’s executive director. “We took pains to find out who are the stakeholders in our festival to find a way to get them engaged, including nonprofits and hotels. In a normal year, crab festival is at least a million dollar impact to our economy.”
The festival will be held through a virtual platform, Event Hub. During the festival, attendees can watch virtual performances from local musicians, chefs and artists. Attendees can learn about local nonprofits, make donations to organizations and purchase vendors’ products through a virtual marketplace from April 23 to May 23 at astoriacrabfest.com. Vendors will be available to talk to customers through video calls and instant messaging during the festival.
“We’re very pleased by what we’ve been able to come up with this year’s pivot. We don’t feel like it’s a compromise. It’s going to be a fun festival,” Reid said.
Last year's festival was also held virtually after large gatherings were discouraged to help contain the spread of the virus.
“Last year, we had sort of a vendor expo. This year we’re doing more of a festival on a virtual platform. It was not practical or safe for us to do a live event, given the COVID restrictions,” Reid said.
This year’s festival will be free to the public. While the festival will be virtual, the chamber plans to host some in-person events that will follow coronavirus guidelines.
“We’re creating a restaurant event during the festival and days following that’ll get people out to local restaurants and maybe some retail shops,” Reid said. “It’ll be a draw for people who want to come to town and stay safely in hotels.”
Vendor applications opened Tuesday, so the chamber doesn’t yet know how many vendors to expect.
“Some wineries have already signed up. We expect a similar mix of vendors as usual but the exact quantity and mix of vendors is still coming out,” Reid said.
February 25, 2021 at 03:30AM
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Crab, Seafood & Wine Festival to be held virtually because of virus - Daily Astorian
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