KITCHENER — Kitchener-Conestoga MPP Michael Harris is questioning whether Big Music Fest should return some of the $270,000 it received from the province, now that it is putting on a smaller show than it promised when it applied for the funds.

Harris, a Conservative, wrote to Tourism Minister Michael Coteau on July 3, asking for clarification on whether funding would be reduced for events that change after funding is approved.

Organizers for the festival announced last month they were cancelling the Sunday concert, which was to feature Rod Stewart and Blondie. The festival will still run this Friday and Saturday at McLennan Park in Kitchener, with free acts on Friday and a full roster of acts, including Soundgarden and Jane's Addiction at the ticketed event on Saturday. As well, the festival includes four days of free events this week at Carl Zehr Square in downtown Kitchener.

"Celebrate Ontario gave the festival $270,000," Harris said in an interview. "An entire day was eliminated from the lineup. I'm just asking what mechanism they have to review a grant like this when a substantial portion of the program is wiped out."

The grant was announced in April, about two months before news broke that Stewart and Blondie were not performing and that the Sunday events were being eliminated, Harris pointed out.

"They (organizers) would have had to provide a whole budget, a plan that would qualify them for this grant," Harris said. "That plan would have comprised the three days and included Rod Stewart. Now that's no longer there, and there isn't that cost."

There's a possibility the grant could be reduced, according to a statement from Mark Smith, a ministry spokesperson.

"Funding recipients must provide a final report after their events have occurred, detailing performance measures and results achieved, and outlining any changes that may have occurred in carrying out the Celebrate Ontario-funded project as outlined in their successful applications. In some cases, final grant amounts can be reduced as a result of this final reporting and funds that may have been provided up to that point could be refunded," the statement said.

The grants are a way to support festivals, which "attract tourists, create local jobs and grow our economy year after year," the statement said. They also allow festivals "to grow by attracting more tourists and increasing visitor spending."

Harris said he believed there was some justification for some of the grant to be returned, since this year's concert isn't likely to have the same draw without Stewart or Blondie as marquee acts.

"They gave people's money back for tickets on the Sunday," Harris pointed out. "I think it's appropriate that a portion of that $270,000 go back to the treasury."

But promoter Mark Higgins had a different view.

Asked if he felt Big Music Fest was still entitled to the full $270,000, Higgins responded, "Of course I do."

The festival went from three days to seven days, when the free downtown events were added, Higgins said, and then down to six days of events when Sunday's lineup was cut, he said.

Last year was the first time the promoter brought the music fest to Waterloo Region. The three-day event, with rockers such as Aerosmith, Bryan Adams, Slash and Styx, was a huge success, drawing 50,000 people and bringing nearly $7 million to the local economy. The festival received $272,250 from Celebrate Ontario in 2014.

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

Harris made it clear he supports Big Music Fest, which is held in his riding, and that he supports the Celebrate Ontario grants program. He simply wants clarification about whether recipients are entitled to the original grant if they don't deliver the program they presented on their original application.

He said a few constituents had raised the issue with him.