No Fun City? Another Vancouver street festival faces big funding deficits

Another of Vancouver’s favourite annual events is facing funding troubles.

On the second Sunday of every June, 14 blocks of Commercial Drive transform into a lively street festival featuring vendors, live music, and a fiercely competitive pasta eating contest. The Italian Day Festival Society has been bringing Italian Day on The Drive to Vancouverites since 2010, and the festival has cemented itself as a summertime staple for tens of thousands of residents who flock to the neighbourhood for the festivities each year.

This year, the city is set to be swarming with thousands of fans coming for FIFA games, the first of which falls on June 13, the day before Italian Day. The festival appoints a theme each year, and this year’s theme is Campione — the Italian word for champion. The society says on its website that the theme encapsulates “the spirit that unites passion, perseverance, and pride.” With a soccer ball adorning the logo, it’s no surprise the society has chosen to lean into the World Cup celebrations.

Behind the scenes, not everything is as celebratory. Revealed in a council motion submitted by Coun. Lisa Dominato, the festival is facing a funding deficit of $60,000. According to the motion, the delivery of large-scale international events like the World Cup has made securing necessary funds for Italian Day far more challenging. Traditional funding typically comes in the form of corporate sponsorships and fundraising, but with fewer businesses with funds readily available to support the festival this year, Italian Day is feeling the squeeze.

“One of the things that they’ve pointed to is that there’s a more competitive environment with sponsorship, particularly with FIFA coming to the city,” Dominato said. “But at the same time, I know that Italian Day on The Drive also welcomes FIFA. They’re very excited, very proud supporters of the sport.”

She explained that the society had applied for funds from the provincial government but was denied, leaving it in an increasingly difficult spot.

“It’s a more difficult time to get sponsorships and raise money,” Dominato said.

Other popular Vancouver street festivals have faced funding challenges this year as well. Car Free Days Vancouver announced in early March that it was unable to run its annual summertime events due to financial pressures including changes to grant funding and operational support. An urgent motion was unanimously passed by city council on March 10 that saw $30,000 go towards Car Free Days.

The loss of a long-standing festival like Italian Day would impact local businesses in a big way according to the Commercial Drive Business Society. Executive Director Nick Pogor said Italian Day has a huge economic benefit for businesses on the Drive and contributes to the culture of the vibrant neighbourhood.

“It’s a sign of the times,” Pogor said regarding the lack of funding. “There are so many components and so many pieces of the puzzle, and every one of those components, all of the costs for each of those have gone up substantially over the last five to 10 years.”

Italian Day is said to be the largest cultural celebration in Vancouver, and previous years have seen people from all backgrounds come out to stroll the street-turned-piazza. With a one-time injection of funding, Dominato believes the festival can thrive not only this year, but for years to come.

“This is really an extraordinary circumstance,” she said, “and the fantastic thing about Italian Day on The Drive is it really does bring people together in a safe way, in a celebratory way, and I think we need more of that in the city.”

The single-day festival is expected to take place on June 14, and the Italian Day Festival Society encourages everyone to come celebrate and live la dolce vita.