The Committee of Letterkenny Live has announced that the event will not proceed this year due to funding issues and the time commitments of its members.
Letterkenny Chamber Chief Executive Toni Forrester
Letterkenny Live, which first was first held in 2011, aimed to deliver high quality free on-street entertainment and showcased talents such as Aslan, Bressie, Delorentos and Ryan Sheridan in the town.
While audience numbers varied over the three years it was clear that there is a demand for this type of event and that it could be built on.
However Letterkenny Live has been a big commitment for each individual concerned not just in terms of time as all have other full time jobs but also balancing the financial risk of the event. While lots of items were kindly sponsored the costs were still high and financial contributions have become more difficult.
Toni Forrester, Chair Person explains “Letterkenny Town Council funded the festival over the three years and also gave lots of in-kind support without which we could not have put ion such a professional show. It’s funding in particular allowed us to book bands and gave the seed funding to plan the event each year.
“As we all know the Town Council is being abolished in June and there is no indication of where this substantial funding would come from. In addition Failte Ireland has also provided marketing funding over the past three years but this is no longer available. This situation leaves us with no other option than to bow out.”
Ms Forrester said the committee members hoped over the years to attract others to the committee who had expertise to help them develop and grow the festival.
“While we had some willing volunteers for stewarding and bucket collections we felt that with such a small committee and very limited funding that it was impossible to go on. We still believe there is the appetite for a live music event or festival in Letterkenny during the summer but maybe it is time to pass the baton to others.
“I would like at this point to thank all who contributed to Letterkenny Live over the last three years especially my fellow committee members Siobhan Barrett Doherty, Darren Browne, Ciaran Martin and Jimmy McGinty as well as all the businesses that contributed financially and provided in-kind support. We would be delighted if another group of individuals were willing to run with an event and we would be willing to give them all the support we can.”