Because of continuing concerns over COVID-19, the DuPage County Board Ad Hoc Committee on the Fine Arts voted Tuesday, Aug. 31 to postpone the planned Fine Arts Festival that was to take place September 24-26 at the DuPage County Fairgrounds.
Committee chair Lynn LaPlante said, “While I am disappointed that we cannot conduct the festival in September as we had hoped, there is nothing more important than the health and safety of our residents. I know we made the right decision on their behalf.”
DuPage County Health Department executive director Karen Ayala attended Tuesday’s Committee meeting and discussed the increased incidence of COVID-19 in DuPage County and the virus’ current “high transmission” in the County.
“We know that the delta variant is more contagious than previous strains of the virus,” said Ayala. “Although our community vaccination rate is very high, there are many individuals in our community who continue to be at high risk for infection, including children younger than 12 years old who are not eligible to be vaccinated. When community transmission of COVID-19 is high, we must prioritize maintaining essential community activities and services including health care and safe in-person learning environments in school for our children. For this reason, we support the Fine Arts’ Festival Committee’s decision to postpone their community event until a time when large groups of all ages can safely gather and celebrate the arts without risking further transmission of this dangerous virus.”
The Committee plans to hold the Festival in the Spring 2022.
— DuPage County government