The City of Carmel has canceled their annual holiday celebration due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The city announced Tuesday that Christkindlmarkt and ice skating at Carter Green have been canceled. The board of directors of Christkindlmarket and the City of Carmel made the mutual decision to cancel the events, the city said in a release.
Both events were scheduled to open in mid-November, with Christkindlmarkt, a German-themed Christmas market, closing on Christmas Eve. Ice skating on Carter Green typically runs into March.
Dan McFeely, president of the Christkindlmarkt Board of Directors, said the decision was made so early because of the work involved with setting up the market and creating the ice rink.
“It might seem strange to be making this announcement in July, but due to the great deal of advance work needed to install the ice rink and to work with Christkindlmarkt vendors and suppliers, we needed to act sooner, rather than later,” he said.
More than 300,000 people visited the two attractions last winter.
The city is still discussing options to hold winter-themed events in the area, but no plans have been announced at this time. Christkindlmarkt items may also be made available for sale online and at local retailers, the city said.
