Fish Day cancellation another pandemic blow

Decision to scrap festival for second year because of Covid-19 sends shock waves through city hoping for a normal summer

FISH DAY DRAWS thousands of people to Port Washington’s lakefront on the third Saturday in July each year, but the festival has fallen on hard times in recent years. It was largely rained out two years ago (above) and was canceled last year due to Covid-19. Organizers announced last week the festival will again be canceled this year due to issues caused by the pandemic. Press file photo
By 
KRISTYN HALBIG ZIEHM
Ozaukee Press staff

Port Washington’s signature festival, Fish Day, which draws tens of thousands of people to the city on the third Saturday in July, has been canceled for the second consecutive year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The news, which came as a third Covid-19 vaccine was approved by the federal government, struck a chord with area residents, some of whom criticized the decision as an overreaction to a waning pandemic while others called it a responsible move during a continuing health crisis.

“It was an incredibly tough decision,” Fish Day President Toni Brown said. “There are just too many unknowns with Covid-19 and social distancing and safety protocols for a large festival like Fish Day.”

The decision to cancel the July 17 event, recommended by the Fish Day Committee and approved by its Board of Directors about a week ago, also reflects the fact that many of the businesses that sponsor Fish Day are struggling for survival, Brown said.

“With the economic hit that so many businesses took in the last year, the funding just isn’t out there,” she said. “We spend the entire year fundraising for a one-day event.”

It’s a decision that will have far-reaching implications.

After all, Fish Day is a major fundraiser for the many civic organizations that operate fish and chips stands and use the proceeds to finance philanthropic ventures throughout the community — everything from scholarships to public improvements such as parks.

Dave Mueller, a member of the Port Washington Lions Club’s Fish Day committee, said the group’s stand “was absolutely our No. 1 fundraiser.”

“There were many, many years our stand would bring in $50,000 for the day,” he said, netting the club close to $20,000 after expenses.

“It’s a huge fundraiser for us,” he said.

Now, he said, the club will have to depend more on Lions Fest and its beer garden.

Since the announcement was made, Mueller said, he’s been looking into the possibility of holding a beer garden that weekend or perhaps moving Lions Fest to that weekend.

“We’re planning on still doing our festival to make up for some of the monies that will be lost,” he said.

Robert Fechner, the Port Washington-Saukville Rotary Club’s Fish Day chairman, said the club’s Fish Day stand is one of the group’s major fundraisers.

“It certainly will have an impact,” he said. “We will certainly have to come up with other things to help make up for the money we usually get from Fish Day.”  

But Fechner said he understands the reasons behind the decision.

“What can you do?” he asked. “We understand where they’re coming from. You can’t force it.”

The cancellation may affect no group more than Portal Inc., which hosts an annual 5k run/walk to kick off Fish Day. 

The Fish Day Run/Walk is the agency’s largest fundraiser of the year, Human Resources Manager Caroline Buser said, noting the money it makes on Fish Day helps fund the services Portal provides to its clients.

“Not having that last year (when Fish Day was also canceled) was huge,” Buser said. “It was definitely a loss for us.”

Portal held an online run/walk last year, she said, but it brought less than half the money that the in-person event typically does.

This year, Portal will again hold an online run/walk, she said, adding the agency is looking for ways to increase participation.

“We support the decision of Fish Day,” she added. “We told them, when you’re back, we’re back.”

Like the civic groups, Fish Day organizers are looking at additional fundraisers to hold this year, Brown said.

“We do want to pursue some smaller fundraising activities and we would love to involve them in that,” she said. “They all do such great work that we’d hate for them to miss out. Fish Day, in the end, is about them.”

It’s especially important since the groups will miss out on Fish Day for two years and the previous year the festival was largely rained out, Mary Monday, chairman of the Fish Day Board of Directors, said.

While it may seem to some that the decision should have been made later, when Covid vaccinations and infection rates are more clearly defined, the Fish Day organization couldn’t wait any longer, Brown said.

“It was coming down to the wire where we had to sign contracts or cancel Fish Day,” she said. “We felt the best course of action was to cancel.

“This is definitely not a decision we wanted to make. It’s a heart-breaking decision, but we had to do what was best for our organization and the safety of the community.”

Although some have speculated the lakefront construction, particularly the Newport Shores project, played a role in the decision, Brown said it was a minor role at best.

“If that was the only obstacle, we would have figured out a way around it,” she said. “That by itself would not have stopped us from holding Fish Day.”

Monday noted, “We’ve lived through construction down there before. We adjusted. That really wasn’t a factor.”

The board and committee went through every option before making the decision, she said.

“We went down the line to see if we could manage it,” Monday said. “It came down to one question — how? How do you social distance? How would you be able to maintain that? And what if a whole bunch of people who attended Fish Day came down with it (Covid-19)?”

That’s especially important, she said, since many of the people who staff the stands are older.

“That’s not the population you want to put at risk,” she said.

“We feel terrible the community will not be able to have the festival it loves, but we feel very comfortable with our decision. We put a lot of thought into it.”

Fish Day will return on July 16, 2022, Brown said, noting the organizers have already pivoted from this year to next.

“We are moving full steam ahead for 2022,” she said. “We have a lot of new members and fresh ideas. We’re looking to change some things up.”

And, she said, with the development at the lakefront, “it’s the perfect time to change things and make it fresh. It’s definitely time for a facelift. We have some ideas floating around that will make it exciting for everybody.”

Fechner said the Rotary Club is looking forward to Fish Day 2022.

“I’m pretty sure next year’s Fish Day is going to be very successful,” he said. “Everything outside of this year is going to be bigger and better.”

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