Winter chill kills Frosty Fest in Gurnee
Frigid winter weather will get the best of Gurnee's Frosty Fest this year.
Gurnee Park District officials announced that Friday night's winter extravaganza at Bittersweet Golf Club has been canceled due to bitterly cold weather that's predicted. Frosty Fest had been set for Jan. 9, but was postponed to Friday under the premise the weather would be warmer by now.
Friday's high for the Gurnee area is projected at 15 degrees with sunshine, according to the National Weather Service. The nighttime low is expected at 3 degrees under partly cloudy skies.
It would have been Frosty Fest's seventh year on the Gurnee social scene. It was supposed to feature ice carving, horse-drawn carriage rides, dog sledding, ice sculpting, snow golf on the Bittersweet links, s'mores and the dog-sled team. Park officials said they plan to try again in 2016.
Park district special events manager Kristi Murray said organizers needed to be concerned about the safety of guests, roughly 60 workers and at least 10 animals that would be been part of Frosty Fest. Chores for the festival typically include overseeing games, activities, traffic control and shuttle buses.
“There isn't a definitive temperature for cancellations, but many factors are considered including temperature, wind chill, actual wind speeds, if it is actively snowing and if it safe to drive,” Murray said. “Warnings from weather providers are also a consideration. When the National Weather Service says ‘Frost bite can occur in a matter of minutes,' we have to take those warnings seriously when offering an event that is 2½ hours long and mainly outdoors.”
Gurnee parks spokeswoman Jennifer Gilbert said no complaints were received after the Jan. 9 postponement. She said it's difficult to speculate if officials will try to devise modifications to Frosty Fest so it doesn't succumb to winter weather in the future.
“Of course, any cancellation comes with its share of disappointment, but we have had an outpouring of understanding from sponsors, vendors and participants alike,” Gilbert said Monday.
An estimated 1,500 people attended the 2014 Frosty Fest on a day when the temperature reached a high of 21 degrees and 13 for the nighttime low.