Description
It's a busy weekend in the Queen City as the Cincinnati Music Festival brings thousands downtown, but the cancellation of Cincy Soul, an annual food festival highlighting Black-owned restaurants and food trucks, has sparked concern.
Even in the last few weeks, things were getting strange for Cincy Soul. It was moved from its usual spot at Fountain Square to a private parking lot on Eighth Street. Now, it has been canceled.
A city spokesperson says organizers were denied a permit when they applied in May, with special event permits for this weekend closed months ago. City Manager Sheryl Long says events should be coordinated with the city, saying, in part:
There is a permitted food and vendor event adjacent to Paycor Stadium, as well as many other events taking place throughout downtown and the city as a whole. Taken together, they will make this weekend a beautiful moment to lift up the Black community and show the world what Cincinnati is all about.
Cincy Soul organizer Jay Rodg acknowledges the denied permit in May, saying that led him to choose the private lot. But having done private events for years, Rodg says he should've been in the clear. Attendance would've been below max with no alcohol being served, but he claims even the lot owners were pressured by City Hall.
"We were on private property. Apparently somebody was butthurt that we figured out how to put some food trucks in a parking lot so that these vendors can make some money. And it's unfortunate that the city suffer right now because we've been out here all weekend, and it definitely doesn't look like what it's looked like in the past," Jay Rodg said.
The festival in the parking lot was already limited to just food trucks, but now those trucks are spread around the city. Herman Brunis III says his truck, We Do BBQ, was scheduled for Cincy Soul, but he says 3CDC reached out, inviting him to Washington Park.
Brunis says he's fortunate to be running multiple trucks, including at Fountain Square, but feels bad for vendors losing out on precious summer hours.
"So we plan months in advance to be in events. So for somebody that only has one unit to operate, I can see that being devastating. Planning for the weekend, a big weekend like this that's gone on for 40 years or more, and you think you're going to be a part of it and you're not," Brunis said.
Jay Rodg says this would've been the ninth year for Cincy Soul, which even made it through the COVID pandemic. He says the festival isn't going anywhere and hopes to file another permit for 2027.
Mayor Aftab Pureval also released a statement on the festival's cancellation, citing the city manager's response, but saying:
This is still a serious frustration and a significant financial burden for many Black-owned small businesses who believed this event would happen. ... Regardless of blame, it is important that we do what we can to make sure vendors aren’t left hurting from the investments they’ve made in the weekend. ... I have asked our administration to look into what we can do, and in the meantime, I hope impacted food trucks are still able and encouraged to come downtown.
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