A Message To St. James Town Festival Organizers

You want to have the permit fee put aside and to get more $$$$ support from the mayor and the premier? Arrange to have a couple of gang shootings in your area.
Municipal hypocricy at work..........

The festival must go on
St. James Town undeterred by $1,416 city fee with 5 days to go
By JAMIE NGO, SUN MEDIA

A last-minute fee demanded by the city isn't enough to stop the St. James Town Festival from going ahead.

The festival, which starts Sunday, has been struck with a $1,416 fee -- the first time volunteer organizers have had to pay the City of Toronto with such short notice, according to some board members.

'TIGHTLY BUDGETED'

"They informed us just a few days ago, giving an official city invoice on June 5 telling us that we owed them, with limited use of space this year, inside and outside the building," Kevin Moore, a St. James Town Festival board member, said yesterday.

"We are very tightly budgeted, and we operate on a shoestring every year."

But despite the fee, Moore said the third annual festival will go ahead as planned in the Wellesley Community Centre area.

"We're committed to proceed with the event. It's too late to cancel," he said.

Organizers said the city approached them three years ago with the idea of having the local festival to boost exposure for the new community centre, Moore said.

"We need the support of one of our partners to put on an event for the city, and we consider the city one of our partners," he said.

"Now we seem more like a client than a partner."