San Antonio – Though later than normal and smaller than usual, San Antonio’s biggest party, Fiesta, is carrying an extra bit of significance this year.
Canceled in 2020, like so many other traditions and hallmarks of a normal year, organizers and city leaders see the return of Fiesta as a milestone in the city’s fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The one thing that Fiesta does like no other event in this city - other than the Spurs playoffs - but it brings this community together,” Fiesta Commission President Baltazar Serna told city council on Thursday. “And this community sorely needs it after this horrible pandemic that not only, you know, we lost our lives here in San Antonio, but across the world.”
Now San Antonio is officially getting the return of one of its favorite traditions. The city council voted Thursday to approve several street closures and other administrative matters that pave the way for Fiesta to occur on June 17-27 as planned.
It will, no doubt, be a different kind of Fiesta. It has already been delayed from the normal April time frame, and Serna estimates there will only be about 50 Fiesta events this year, instead of the usual 110.
Big street parades like the Battle of Flower and Fiesta Flambeau are among the events that will be foregone, but Serna said the Texas Cavaliers River Parade is “probably going to be one of the biggest river parades you’ve ever seen.”
The mere fact the event is returning, though, is enough to excite city leaders.
“It’s time to not just celebrate another party - another ‘party with a purpose’- but the work that’s gone in getting us to this point,” Mayor Ron Nirenberg said.
The mayor was adamant that the pandemic is still not over, however, and Serna recommended attendees get vaccinated to make events as safe as possible.
Some events may even have vaccinations available on site, he said.
Serna said the events are approved for full capacity, but their individual organizers may choose to set lower levels. Those organizers can also determine what their masking protocols are, he said, though he didn’t know of any that would be requiring them.