The board of directors of the nonprofit group organizing Balboa Park’s 2015 Centennial Celebration voted Tuesday to disband and transfer all authority for organizing the event to the city.
In a statement posted on the website of Balboa Park Celebration Inc., co-chairs Ben and Nikki Clay, said “there is not adequate private funding needed” to have “the yearlong celebration of global significance that had been envisioned.
The vote follows a report by U-T San Diego that Balboa Park Celebration Inc. missed key deadlines, brushed off community groups that wanted to be involved and exaggerated in funding applications about having “key partnerships” that didn’t exist.
Mayor Kevin Faulconer said he plans to work with Council President Todd Gloria, whose district includes Balboa Park, “to move forward with a more practical and realistic celebration that recognizes the character and history of Balboa Park.”
The revised celebration “would focus on the existing cultural institutions within the park,” Faulconer said.
Faulconer and Gloria said they expect to provide more details on the new celebration plans in the coming weeks.
—City News Service