The last time the street festival went ahead was October 2019, where Inner West Mayor Darcy Byrne vowed to celebrate the official baptism of Little Italy in Sydney.
A few months later, COVID-19 made its debut in Australia, and the avowed celebrations were put on the backburner.
While the Italian Festa did not take place in 2020 due to the lockdown, there was hope that the 2021 event, scheduled for October 31, would go ahead.
“NSW Health have advised that we are just too big to run this October in the current COVID-19 uncertainty,” festival organisers stated.
“As arguably the largest street festival in Australasia, with up to 200,000 people attending on the one day, there is no way we could guarantee or enforce the physical distancing rules.”
It is estimated that NSW will have 70 per cent of its population fully vaccinated by October, and that many restrictions will be lifted.
The uncertainty surrounding this prediction, along with what freedoms the NSW government will actually allow, prohibits event-planning.
The logistical planning for the event, inclusive of COVID-safe strategies, requires clarity that the state government has not yet provided.
The popularity of the Italian festival means that the event would have to run at a reduced capacity in order to comply with social-distancing rules.
“We are devasted, as this event has grown in every way year on year to be what visitors, sponsors and stallholders say is the best street festival in the country,” festival organisers stated.
“We will definitely be back as usual in 2022 on Sunday October 30.”
Given the changing nature of COVID-19 restrictions in NSW, festival organisers are hopeful that the 2021 Italian Festa may run sooner than previously thought:
“We are looking at options of dates for alternative events including: a series of smaller more controllable events, a Festa in a new format with a virtual component, or a rescheduling of the 2021 Festa to a new date in March 2022!”
If the March event goes ahead, Sydney will have two Italian Festas in the same year.
