Latest news with #RobRohatyn
CTV News
05-08-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Heritage Festival wraps up ‘phenomenal' weekend
The final attendance numbers aren't in quite yet, but executive director Rob Rohatyn said this year's Edmonton Heritage Festival has been going 'really, really well.' With three pavilions making a return from hiatus, reasonable weather and large crowds on a long weekend, Rohatyn said he's been grateful to see 'that community support for our festival.' 'It's been really exciting to celebrate multiculturalism with Edmonton this weekend,' he said. This was the last year the festival took place at Borden Park. It will return to its original home, Hawrelak Park, in 2026. 'It's been a great three years in this temporary space, but we're looking forward to returning,' Rohatyn said. This year saw 67 pavilions, each representing a different country. Japan, Portugal and Liberia returned after a brief time away from the festivities. Newcomers included Senegal and Somalia. On Sunday, officials went around handing awards to countries with the best food, drink and more. A full list of award winners can be found on their Instagram. 'What makes a good pavilion is multiple components,' Rohatyn said. 'We really want to create an environment where our pavilions can engage with our attendees and educate about their culture.' The main components to a country's pavilion are food, entertainment, cultural display and art. Alex Amaglo was with Togo's pavilion, which won first place in 'best main' for their plantain and beef skewer. 'Everybody was happy, it was really nice … it was so beautiful,' Amaglo said. He added that he enjoys the Heritage Festival because, despite the rain, people still attend. Gloria Caceres, from El Salvador, was touring all the food she could. She said she loves the festival because 'it's like travelling one day around the world.' Carolina Ford-Conde visited the festival two days in a row with her kids. 'I think we're very lucky to have so many cultures in Canada, and I want them to be exposed to different cultures,' she said. Rohatyn said he feels that attendees all agree that the festival is important, based on the 'strong crowds' on Sunday. 'We're really excited about the cultural groups that support our festival and believe in our mission,' he said
Edmonton Journal
01-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Edmonton Journal
Heritage Festival is back this August long weekend. Here's what to expect and the best way to get there.
Edmonton's beloved three-day multicultural festival is gearing up to welcome visitors this August long weekend, and amid the very hot forecast, attendees can expect the return of some beloved pavilions that've been on hiatus, performances and plenty of food. Article content The festival will be held from Aug. 2-4 at Edmonton Exhibition Lands and Borden Park for the third and final year, set to return next year to Hawrelak Park, which is currently under construction. Article content Article content Article content Rob Rohatyn, executive director of the Edmonton Heritage Festival Association (EHFA), said the organization knew the transition would be temporary and said they are ready to return to the festival's home next year. Article content Article content 'We've been able to collaborate with many groups to make this happen…(There's been) a lot of good feedback in terms of the space, certainly some challenges, but that comes with any space, but we're looking forward to going back.' Article content This year, there will be 67 pavilions at the Heritage Festiva,l with each offering a slice of their home for attendees to experience. Article content Rohatyn said Senegal and Somalia will be brand new this year, both under the newcomers pavilion, which was introduced in 2024 to give new groups the opportunity to participate in the festival. Article content Article content Returning groups that have been on hiatus for a few years, but are now back include Japan, Portugal and Liberia. Article content Article content In 2024, a devastating storm on the Sunday of the festival, forced organizers to make the call to shutdown the final day. The storm inflicted major infrastructure and electrical damage to several pavilions. Article content But despite the unexpected end to the 2024 festival, Rohatyn said it shows how resilient the pavilion groups are and the majority of them are back from last year. Article content 'There were a few (groups) that did have to step away, and they were very transparent and said (they) struggled and are going to need some time to recover, but hope to come back in the future,' Rohatyn said. Article content Edmonton and most of northern and central Alberta are under a heat warning from Environment Canada. Article content Friday temperatures are expected to be a high of 32 C and are expected to exceed 30 C on Saturday until a predicted break on Sunday.
Global News
30-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Global News
Edmonton Heritage Festival returns for 52nd year, last time at Borden Park
The Edmonton Heritage Festival is back at the Expo Centre Exhibition Lands and Borden Park this upcoming August long weekend. 'It's a festival that brings the world together — it brings the community together,' said Rob Rohatyn, executive director of the Edmonton Heritage Festival Association. 'It gives the community an opportunity to meet and engage with all of the cultures that make up Edmonton.' The Exhibition Lands (formerly Northlands) and Borden Park sit beside each other in central Edmonton, near 112 Avenue between 79 Street and Wayne Gretzky Drive. From cultural music and dances to arts, crafts and food — this year there will be 67 pavilions to experience from August 2 to 4. 'All of our cultural pavilions are made up of not-for-profit cultural organizations from right here in Edmonton, they put in countless hours volunteer time, as well as their financial support in putting their pavilions together,' Rohatyn said. Story continues below advertisement 'Our festival is a really great revenue generator for these groups. 'The funds that they raise from this festival help to support cultural programs through their organization.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "The funds that they raise from this festival help to support cultural programs through their organization." It will also be the last time for the event at the Exhibition Lands and Borden Park. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The festival was forced to relocate there in 2023 from Hawrelak Park, which has been closed since then in order to carry out an extensive rehabilitation of the park in the North Saskatchewan River Valley. Part of the heritage festival agreeing to relocate to Border Park for three years came with a number of expectations of the city, including a memorandum of understanding guaranteeing a right to return to Hawrelak Park, an agreement about incremental cost coverage and improvements to the site's egress. Story continues below advertisement The work should leave the massive river valley park updated for decades to come. 'Excited to return to Hawrelak in 2026,' Rohatyn said. 'It's been our home — we've been removed from it for the last three years, but it's going to be a beautiful space when we return.' Most of the infrastructure in Hawrelak was original to the park since its opening in 1967 and had exceeded its lifespan. The project is addressing the utilities, transportation, open spaces and facility infrastructure throughout the entire park. A large part of the work: digging up and replacing underground lines and pipes. The city is replacing the entire storm sewer, irrigation and water systems and upgrading power, gas and telecommunications. It is also expanding water service to provide fire coverage at several places of the park. Story continues below advertisement View image in full screen Hawrelak Park is temporarily closed between 2023-2025 for rehabilitation in Edmonton's river valley. Credit: City of Edmonton The main pavilion structure and plaza are getting updates to to finishes, fixtures, skate flooring, commercial kitchen, mechanical and electrical systems and adding gender-neutral washrooms. The Heritage Amphitheatre will also see several changes: new outdoor seating and finishes as well as lighting, structural, mechanical and electrical upgrades, along with adding family/gender-neutral washrooms and more storage. The green room and back of house access will also be reconfigured. In the park's open spaces, the playground and paddle boat dock will be replaced. The city is adding more lighting, bicycle parking and more shared-use paths connecting amenities, and repaving all roads. The city said it will also dredge the sediment from the bottom of the lake.
CTV News
30-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CTV News
‘A year of resilience': Edmonton Heritage Festival is back with high hopes
The 52nd annual Edmonton Heritage Festival hits the city this weekend with a renewed fervour and hopes for clear weather. This year will see 66 pavilions that represent different countries in a celebration of food and culture between Aug. 2 and 4. It's the final year at a temporary location, Edmonton Expo Centre and Exhibition Grounds has hosted the festival while its usual home, Hawrelak Park, closed for renovations. Rob Rohatyn, executive director of the festival's association, said he's excited to keep the festival going this year. 'It brings the community together. It gives the community an opportunity to meet and engage with all of the cultures that make up Edmonton,' Rohatyn said. hungarian dance edmonton heritage festival Rácz-Fodor Bálazs and his Hungarian dance group perform a sneak peek of one of their traditional dances on July 30, 2025. (Evan Klippenstein/CTV News Edmonton) Rácz-Fodor Bálazs is dancing at the Heritage festival this weekend and appeared at a kickoff event on Wednesday to give a preview of the celebrations. He and his group will be performing five dances from around different regions of Hungary. 'It's my first time here in Canada and it's my first time here in this festival. We're very excited,' he said. 'Getting to know different people from around the world could really open your view to many things, like food or traditions.' Ayantu Abduro is with the Oromo dance group for her third year of the festival. Oromia is a regional state of Ethiopia that Abduro said is a 'culture of many dances.' 'A lot of cultures are dying and new generations are not picking up traditions and whatnot,' she said. 'So when everybody can go around and see their culture … it's really impactful in the future.' Weather preparations Rohatyn said this was 'a year of resilience' after a massive storm last year forced the festival to shut down operations for a day. While they're hoping for three sunny days this year, Rohatyn said the damage their infrastructure took in the storm last year is something they're 'mindful' about. 'I wouldn't call [the storm] once in a lifetime, but my hope is that it's not an annual occurrence … and we do have emergency protocols in place if they do arise,' Rohatyn said. The weather so far is calling for a fairly sunny Saturday and Monday, but cloudy with a 60 per cent chance of showers on Sunday. Cultural considerations Another component Rohatyn wants to stay aware of is varying geopolitical tensions. 'We are not a political festival by any means. However, we have to be mindful of the heightened emotions that can come with that,' he said. Russia, for example, has not participated in the festival for the last few years. 'There's a lot that's required to be able to be successful at our festival,' Rohatyn noted. All cultures that submit an application the November before the festival must be prepared with at least two cultural components and a plan for their pavilion each year. This year, the festival runs Saturday, Aug. 2 12-9 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 3 10 a.m.-9 p.m., and Monday, Aug. 4 10 a.m.-8 p.m.
