Festival sur le Canal no longer cancelled; event to go ahead June 13 to 15

3 O'Clock Train performs at the Festival sur le Canal in Montreal. The festival in 2025 has been cancelled due to operational costs. (Wiki Commons)

After announcing earlier this month that the 2025 edition of the Festival sur le Canal had to be cancelled, organizers now say the show will indeed go on.

The festival announced on social media that the event is taking place June 13 to 15 as originally planned. Organizers had said on April 4 they had to call it off due to financial challenges.

“We are proud to continue this wonderful tradition by offering a free, family-friendly, and festive event in the heart of Montreal’s Sud-Ouest borough,” the festival wrote on Facebook Wednesday morning.

“This year, the Festival is facing a significant reduction in funding. More than ever, your contribution is essential to preserving the cultural and community mission of the event. Every donation, big or small, helps ensure the Festival’s future.”

Organizer Carl Comeau had told CTV News on April 4 that the 2025 festival coincides with Formula 1 Grand Prix in Montreal, which meant putting on the show was going to be more expensive.

The festival started in 2008 and operated along the Lachine Canal at the corner of Saint-Patrick and Pitt streets around the second weekend of June.

Comeau added that he was hopeful that a partner would step up to save the 18th edition of the family-friendly event.

The Facebook post on Wednesday thanked Sud-Ouest Borough Mayor Benoit Dorais, Carl Zimmermann of the IGA Notre-Dame and Mullins markets, the Caisses Desjardins du Sud-Ouest, and the office of Québec solidaire MNA Guillaume Cliche-Rivard for their support, saying it was “crucial” in making this year’s event a reality.

People can make donations to Festival sur le Canal by visiting their website.