SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Salt River Fields at Talking Stick has cancelled or postponed all its scheduled events for October after a recent rise in the state's COVID-19 cases.
The facility was planning to host its annual Spooktacular Hot Air Balloon Festival on Oct. 29 but the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community announced on Tuesday that the event would not return until 2022.
The 11th annual Arizona Taco Festival, which was scheduled to take place on Oct. 23, has been postponed to April 9-10, according to the tribe's press release.
Increased public health concerns among the facility's managers prompted them to delay some of their fall programming until Arizona's infection rate for COVID-19 started to come down again.
“In response to rising COVID cases across the community and state, and the new health and safety protocols implemented by the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, we have had to make this difficult decision to change our upcoming schedule of events, said Dave Dunne, general manager of Salt River Fields.
Events scheduled in November are expected to go on as planned since they're all outdoor, open-air activities.
"We are working with our event partners to move forward with an exciting lineup of socially distanced events, and look forward to announcing new dates, plus several all-new events, planned for later this year and into spring of 2022,” Dunne added.
The Arizona Taco Festival is already planning to return to Salt River Fields in October 2022.
The tribe's announcement comes as the coronavirus delta variant surge continues. The number of COVID-19 cases in Arizona is on the rise once again and has crossed the 1 million cases mark in the state.
All tickets purchased will be honored on the new event date, according to the release. More information, including information for refunds, will be sent to all ticket buyers by Aug. 31.
What: Arizona Taco Festival
When:
Saturday and Sunday, April 9 - 10, 2022 and Oct. 22 - 23, 2022
Where:
Salt River Fields, 7555 N Pima Rd, Scottsdale, AZ 85258
For more information, visit https://aztacofestival.com/.
