Town of St. Marys to test out new model for 2026 Stonetown Heritage Festival

2026 Stonetown Heritage Summer Series aimed at consolidating beloved summer events

Local musician Max Smith rocked the crowd as the headline musical act of the Stonetown Heritage Festival this year, performing on the stage set up at the intersection of Queen Street and Water Street.

By Galen Simmons, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The Town of St. Marys is hoping to better leverage its promotional efforts and partnerships with local organizations and service clubs by consolidating a number of beloved summer events, including the Stonetown Heritage Festival, into one, month-long Stonetown Heritage Summer Series next year.

At the Oct. 14 St. Marys council meeting, tourism and economic development manager Kelly Deeks-Johnson presented a brand-new approach to the planning of summer events in St. Marys next July. While she said this year’s Stonetown Heritage Festival on July 12 was a success with plenty of positive feedback from attendees and vendors alike, there have been issues that make the one-day festival traditionally held on the third weekend in July difficult to plan.

“Some of the observations that we’ve had over the last couple of years – I would say since the pandemic – have been that the festival is obviously very dependent on weather and it’s a one-day event. We have had that disappointment of weather postponing events and cancelling activities due to thunderstorms. We’ve also dealt with extreme heat now for two years in a row, which has shortened some of the vendor stays that we’ve had out on the street for the festival. So, it’s definitely been a challenge for us.

“This past year, one of the challenges we also faced was a lack of volunteer recruitment. We had quite a few events take place in St. Marys at the end of June and in early July this past year due to some changes with the Baseball Hall of Fame (induction weekend and) the hospital foundation gala was held this past year, which is held every other year. We had the Canada Day festivities, the first-ever Stonetown Triathlon was held and the Kinsmen Summerfest was moved forward this past year due to their midway contracts. So, we basically had all summer events wrapped up by July 12.”

To help mitigate that volunteer fatigue and ensure there are events going on throughout the month of July, Deeks-Johnson and events coordinator Morgan Easton have begun conversations with the Kinsmen Club, BIA and Rotary Club to develop a new vision for the Stonetown Heritage Festival in 2026.

Based on recommendations from a report on this year’s festival by Bannikan Travel and Tourism, the new vision is for a more collaborative approach to the Stonetown Heritage Festival by having the event collaborate with other community events. Under this approach, there will be an increase in smaller events and activations throughout July to enhance the town’s summer offerings for visitors and residents.

The plan is to develop a festival brand, such as “Stonetown Heritage Summer Series,” setting a seasonal and cultural tone for the month-long celebration. The series for July 2026 would encompass a diverse array of events and activities aimed at celebrating local heritage and fostering community spirit throughout the month. The program will culminate in the traditional annual summer festival event.

Planned components could include regular Heritage Bus Tours and walking tours during July, as well as a downtown musical performer series, smaller events, pop-up music performances, summer picnics with live music and the inclusion and joint promotion of pre-existing annual events like the Rotary Brews and Food Fest and the Lions Car Show.

The traditional heritage festival event will conclude the month-long series and would be planned in collaboration with the Kinsmen Club. Summerfest is scheduled for the end of July, and the town and St. Marys BIA will hold the annual Stonetown Heritage Festival Day on July 25 during Summerfest celebrations.

The Stonetown Heritage Festival Day will follow a similar format to past years, with the addition of activities at Milt Dunnell Field and evening music organized by the Kinsmen. Discussed activities for the day include a pancake breakfast during the Farmers Market, the Art Walk relocated to Milt Dunnell Field, a midway starting at noon and a street closure downtown during the day to facilitate merchant involvement, a kid’s zone, food trucks, a vendor marketplace and live music throughout the day.

The possibility of reinstating a trolley train service shuttle to connect Milt Dunnell Field and downtown is being considered, and a shuttle bus will operate from the Pyramid Recreation Centre and the west end of town to bring attendees downtown. Evening events would feature music at Milt Dunnell Field.

“The Rotary Club has typically done the fireworks. I will say there hasn’t been a full agreement amongst the club over their interest in fireworks,” Deeks-Johnson said. “So, I’m not sure if that’s going to be 100 per cent sponsored by them next year. What my proposal to them was that if they want to stick with fireworks, we would look at doing Canada Day fireworks instead because we wouldn’t be able to let off fireworks with the Kinsmen Summerfest going on in (Milt Dunnell Field) after the (Stonetown Heritage) Festival. So … if the community felt strongly about fireworks, we would do them at another time, and … I’ve given other options (to Rotary) for potential partnerships and engagement with the festival, including things like the trolley.”

With evening festivities happening at Milt Dunnell Field, one piece of the traditional Stonetown Heritage Festival Deeks-Johnson said likely won’t be returning is the annual Street Dance. Billed as a family friendly event, Deeks-Johnson said the Street Dance has not been well-attended in recent years and is not considered a big draw for tourism.

“My concern is going to be raised because the Street Dance is viewed as sort of a family event,” Mayor Al Strathdee said. “So … I understand we’re maybe going to enhance some of the children’s activities, but there will be no 6 p.m. or 8 p.m. Street Dance. I mean, the fireworks are disappearing. … There could be some disappointment in the community because … I’d take my kids to the Street Dance; I wouldn’t take them to the Kinsmen beer tent. … My concern is going to be raised because it’s viewed as a non-drinking family event and by eliminating it, it’s a big change.”

Just prior to council voting to approve the Stonetown Heritage Summer Series in principle, Coun. Rob Edney suggested the addition of a 90-minute magic show inside the Town Hall Theatre as a family friendly replacement for the Street Dance.

“A 90-minute magic show upstairs would be incredible,” Edney said. “They’re usually extremely well attended. Many of the festivals that I’ve played at, they’ve had that element to it instead of the dance.”

Council vote unanimously in favour of testing out the Stonetown Heritage Summer Series in 2026 with the intention of securing joint financial support from all involved parties as well as traditional sponsorship for each of the events in the series.