Crisis ices over - Pride skates back to festival plaza
NEWS BRIEF / Organizers vow to host party around the construction
Noreen Fagan / Ottawa / Tuesday, June 14, 2011
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Capital Pride vows to return to the lawn in front of city hall - sharing space with construction work.

Doug Saunders-Riggins, chair of the Capital Pride Committee, says that after seeing construction plans for the Rink of Dreams at a meeting with city hall officials, they decided that there would be ample room for the festival to go ahead as planned.

"It's just a question of layout now. We just need to figure out where we are going to put the stage, where we are going to put the info fair and the beer tent," says Saunders-Riggins.

Google map image
Rink of Dreams - sketch

The construction area will be set off from the festival plaza by a diagonal pathway. Construction will be carried out on the canal side of the plaza; the festival site will be on the courthouse side.

"The festival grounds will have a different look to them this year. It will be a little more segmented," says Saunders-Riggins. "We are looking to put the stage to the Lisgar side because it might be more space for viewing... Then we are also going to have stuff inside city hall."

Saunders-Riggins says that the parade will not be greatly altered because of the new arrangement.

"The parade route will be a little extended. It may go down Elgin St a bit more," he says.




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Reader Comments


 
Glad the crisis has been averted!
It seemed like there was too little time to move the 2011 festival. I'm glad something has been worked out for this year's shindig. Now what do we do in 2012 and beyond? The Village on Bank Street? <3
Jenn Farr, Ottawa ON
06/14/11 2:43 PM EST
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