Dear supporters and attendees of the 2019 Whoop & Hollar Folk Festival:
It's official, folkies! We will remain a weekend festival, as a solution has been found!
As you may have heard in the news recently, our festival has been facing unprecedented zoning bylaw issues with our local rural municipality and planning district.
This is in regards to the festival's expansion to a three-day event this year and the planned addition of an RV campground within walking distance of the festival site.
The 2019 plans for Whoop & Hollar were presented before the RM council and planning district in September.
However, it was only brought to our board's attention in June that the RM's interpretation of our conditional use permit did not allow the festival to run a three-day program on the festival site of the past six years, nor a small RV campground on a nearby property.
Ironically, Whoop & Hollar Folk Festival has been endorsed by the RM of Portage la Prairie as its signature event for the past ten months.
The festival's subsequent requests to RM council were turned down, and as a result, we were forced to make some changes to this year's program.
The 2019 Whoop & Hollar Folk Festival will now take place over two days at two locations, just 10 minutes from each other (by car). A shuttle service will be arranged on Saturday and Sunday.
The program on Saturday, August 24th will run from noon to midnight at the original festival site with two nights of free tent camping (Friday and Saturday) for weekend pass holders.
The program on Sunday, August 25th will run from noon to 10:00 pm at Island Park's east stage in Portage la Prairie. Directional signage and details on the festival website will guide you to both locations.
Friday night (August 23rd) will feature acoustic bonfire jam sessions and an open mic night, open to the public from 7-11 pm, by donation.
Tent camping (for weekend passholders only) will open Friday afternoon at 4:00 pm and close Sunday afternoon at 4:00 pm.
Those who purchased Friday and Sunday passes will be fully refunded.
Saturday and weekend passes will remain the same price and get you the same amount of music and workshops planned from the start (2019 schedule will soon be posted at www.whoopandhollar.com)—you can still enjoy half a dozen daytime workshops and 25 musical acts!
If you need to refund your weekend pass because free RV camping is no longer included with that, please email info@whoopandhollar.com as soon as possible. However, please note that two nights of tent camping and two days of music are still available with the amazing price of just $50!
Reserved festival RV Camping is available for $30/night serviced ($20/night unserviced) at PortageX Campground, located right beside Island Park in Portage la Prairie (where the festival will take place on Sunday). Another nearby RV campground is Morrison Sports Park in Oakville, with spots available for $15/night serviced and $10/night unserviced.
As a result of these last-minute changes, the early bird ticket deadline will be extended to August 22nd. Tickets (with updated prices) can be purchased here.
Thank you all for your patience and understanding, and we apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to email us at info@whoopandhollar.com or call us at (204) 428-6800.
We look forward to seeing you at Whoop & Hollar 2019, August 24-25th, for the best celebration of music, art, nature, and community yet!! Whoop, Whoop!
Peace and warm regards,
Whoop & Hollar Folk Fest Committee
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