Dear RNRA Friends and Neighbors,

 

It is with a heavy heart that I must inform you of our decision to cancel the 2021 Taste of River North and issue refunds to all those who purchased tickets in advance.

 

On behalf of our board members and our Executive Director, Mickie Gordon, I would like to thank Duff Entertainment, theMART 

management team, and our valued sponsors, who have been working tirelessly to create an entertaining event at an exciting new River North location, River Park at theMART. 

 

Despite everyone’s passion and dedication over the past few months, the inescapable fact is that much of our wonderful hospitality community has not yet recovered sufficiently from the pandemic and its consequences to their operations. Many River North restaurants would love to participate, but their depleted resources are understandably dedicated to keeping their businesses up and running as best they can. Trying to accommodate a large public event is just not possible at this time.

 

In addition to the food service capacity challenges, we are also mindful of worrisome trends in the public health sphere with the rise of the more virulent “Delta" variant. We don’t know how serious this will get, or how city and state policies about large public gatherings may change in response, but the last thing we want is to inadvertently create health risks in our community.

 

We reached the difficult, but correct conclusion that we could not, in good conscience, move forward with this year’s event. The good news is that we remain enthusiastic about the prospect of holding the Taste of River North in this exciting new venue and pledge to continue working creatively to put on a safe and enjoyable event next year for our members, partners and guests.

 

I want to encourage everyone to patronize our local River North hospitality establishments and help them to regain their strength and momentum after the ordeal of the past year. Let me also express our deep appreciation, as always, for your steadfast support of RNRA. No matter what happens, we will get through this together and emerge a stronger, more vital community.

 

Sincerely,

 

Mike Riordan

President

River North Residents Association

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