Work on Elk River festival continues

Elk River Star News

The Elk River City Council continues to think about the possibility for a summer festival in downtown Elk River.

The festival, which has yet to be named, would be held on July 7. Fireworks normally set off for the Fourth of July would be held off until the festival. There would also be contests, games, music, art, crafts and food vendors.

Councilwoman Jennifer Wagner said she was concerned about the timeline for having the festival in 2018 during a council work session on Feb. 5.

“That should be on people’s calendars already,” Wagner said. “I struggle with doing this too fast. We do not want to do a bad job the first time it comes out.”

Wagner said she believed the event could be done, but might not necessarily be well attended due to the time of the year and the speed of the planning.

“You’ve chosen one of the busiest weekends of the year for people, and Elk River, quite frankly, vacates on the Fourth of July weekend,” Wagner said. “I worry about if that’s the right weekend. I know the thought is taking the fireworks and bundling with this, and I think that makes sense to me.”

For the first year, the city could start small, Wagner said.

“If this were to happen in 2018, there’s something to be said for having a small start to garner attention and momentum for the subsequent years,” Wagner said. “I’m just not 100 percent sure I think that’s a good idea to start this year because of the time frame.”

Overall, there are still many questions in regard to the festival, Wagner said.

The City Council did not reach consensus about when to hold the first festival. The Elk River Park and Rec Commission was expected to discuss the matter this week.

The money for the festival would come from previously budgeted items like the Riverfront Concert Series and possibly group and business sponsors.