Taste of Bragg Creek (TOBC), a signature event for the hamlet, has been cancelled due to concern around COVID-19.
“We just thought it was too risky,” said Jennifer Jurkowski, marketing and public relations specialist with Bragg Creek and Area Chamber of Commerce. “It is a lot of work for the committee, volunteers, restaurants, distilleries and breweries.”
According to Jurkowski, the annual event was initially set to take place in April, but organizers decided to postpone the event to September only a few days before the Alberta government halted public events in March.
As COVID-19 cases in the province continue to fluctuate, Jurkowski said it wasn’t worth going through the whole set up process just to reschedule the event again.
“Even if we did get creative so we could continue to have the event in September, there was no guarantee that there would be people that would be comfortable coming out in this climate,” she said. “It may have not been a success anyway, even if there weren’t more restrictions put in place.”
The event has been a favourite in the community since its inception in 2013. According to tasteofbraggcreek.ca, restaurants prepare and serve food at booths in the Bragg Creek Community Centre. Attendees are also given maps of the hamlet’s restaurants and have the opportunity to tour and taste their offerings. Liquor purveyors, local shops and retailers also participate by offering in-store promotions.
Charlie Holschuh, owner and chef of The Bavarian Inn restaurant, created the event. In a promotional video, Holschuh said, “The event brings all of our foodservice providers together to showcase their specialties and talents to people from Bragg Creek and surrounding areas.”
With TOBC being the best event Bragg Creek puts on, Jurkowski said the decision to cancel wasn’t easy. The event is popular among both locals and residents of surrounding communities, and is also a major fundraiser that supports the local economy.
“It was a tough decision,” Jurkowski said. “We want this to be a great event for everybody involved, but things were too uncertain at the time of the decision.”
According to Jurkowski, 27 businesses signed up to take part in the fall event. TOBC had a committee of six people working on the event, and 120 volunteers were needed to ensure everything went according to plan.
“It takes a lot of man-power for this event, but it’s worth it,” Jurkowski said. “It is Bragg Creek’s best event that we hold.”
Jurkowski said people have been understanding of the decision to cancel the event.
“In the very beginning people were disappointed,” she said. “We are all living in this now, so people are starting to understand [these decisions].”
With this year’s iteration mostly planned already, Jurkowski said organizers would have plenty of room to be even more creative and add more to TOBC for 2021.
“We plan on full steam ahead for April 16,” she said. “We can get through this to make sure this event happens. It will be bigger and better because we have most of the planning done already.”
Jordan Stricker, AirdrieToday.com
Follow me on Twitter @Jay_Strickz
