08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hamilton Spectator
City mulls bringing back Children's Festival
The Children's Festival could be returning to Grande Prairie next year.
Additionally, the city will also be adding and expanding events, such as a Stompede Pancake Breakfast and enhancing cultural engagement during its Heritage Day event.
'During the 2025 budget deliberations, administration conducted a review of the city's event calendar and community feedback to identify potential new events that enhanced resident experience and address gaps in programming,' said Catherine Ridgeway, city events and programming director.
City administration found three main gaps in its review: A seasonal imbalance of events with limited spring events, a need for cultural engagement opportunities to better reflect the city's growing diversity, and a demand for a children's festival.
If approved, the Children's Festival would launch in April 2026.
'The festival will provide safe, inclusive and educational experiences for children and families, featuring arts, science and cultural activities developed in collaboration with local schools, artists, businesses and community groups,' said Ridgeway.
The costs of the festival will be presented to council during the 2026 budget deliberations, with scalable options, said Ridgeway.
Coun. Chris Thiessen said that when he helped run the festival previously, the event cost between $86,000 and $115,000.
The Children's Festival previously ran in 2017 and 2018 and was not run by the city.
Ridgeway said the city is also in contact with St. Albert because of its successful Children's Festival. 'I think it's one to aspire to,' she said.
Coun. Grant Berg noted the Youth Advisory Council wanted to see a children's festival return to the city, including programming for teenagers.
'It is certainly focused on a younger demographic, but we could bring in some additional teen offerings,' said Ridgeway.
Ridgeway said a new event that residents can expect would be a Stompede Pancake Breakfast at Bonnetts Energy Centre on May 28.
Additionally, the city will partner with the Hindu Chariot Festival and Grande Prairie International Association to add cultural experiences to the Heritage Day festival in August.
The city's event calendar includes about 24 community events the city is hosting this year.
The city's event budget is about $346,000 in 2025.
