Pompano Beach Seafood Festival Comes to An End
The Pompano Beach Seafood Festival’s thirty-eight-year run has come to an end. The festival’s Board of Trustees recently made the tough decision to cancel the event in the light of increasing challenges and changing times.
“I cannot begin to express the feelings of all the people who have made this such an iconic South Florida event,” said Festival Manager John Good.
“It is hard to believe that the memories and experiences, the hundreds of thousands of dollars raised for so many local non-profits, the great food and the music has come to an end, but our formula that worked so well for so long just does not work anymore.”
The festival has faced significantly increasing expenses, while revenues, including sponsorships, vendors and ticket sales have been sluggish. Like many other non-profit events the festival has seen a decrease in the essential volunteer base needed to operate.
The cost of national music acts has skyrocketed. Even top local and regional acts are costly and many of these popular bands play in city-sponsored concerts free to the public.
While the festival has never operated with a loss, it becomes a much bigger challenge every year. The Board of Trustees decided it was better to stop now rather than risk a negative outcome. “We all agreed the time had come to dissolve the corporation, distribute remaining funds to our non-profit groups, end on a positive note and look back with nothing but great memories,” said Good.
