Rideau Canal festival suspended indefinitely

Funding cuts from the federal and municipal governments and no major sponsor have caused a suspension of the Rideau Canal Festival.

The festival, an annual summer celebration, has run for the past five years during the August long weekend.

Festival officials estimate more than 500,000 people have attended the festival since 2008.

The board of directors said generating corporate sponsors has been a challenge, especially in the midst of tight economic times and mounting job cuts.

"We strongly believe that this UNESCO world heritage site, the only one in Ontario, is worthy of celebrating but unfortunately the funding reductions make it simply unsustainable," Richard Patten, chairman of the festival’s board of directors said in a statement.

The Rideau Canal, the centrepiece of the festival, became Ontario's only UNESCO world heritage site in 2007.