These SLO County events have been canceled due to coronavirus
San Luis Obispo County has three confirmed cases of coronavirus, and the threat of a COVID-19 outbreak is having an impact on local events and gatherings.
On March 9, the San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department urged event planners and organizations to consider plans for “social distancing” and to be prepared to potentially have to alter timelines for upcoming gatherings.
On March 12, following direction from Gov. Gavin Newsom to restrict gatherings of more than 250 people, many large events began announcing closures or postponements.
Here’s is a list off all the local events that have so far confirmed plans to cancel or postpone.
This list will be updated if and when more events are impacted.
Fremont Theater concerts
The Fremont Theater in San Luis Obispo announced March 12that it’s postponing all upcoming events through the end of the month.
“We will announce the new dates as soon they become available,” the Fremont Theater said, noting that all tickets will be honored for the rescheduled dates.
Among the postponed events was a concert by singer-songwriter Robert Earl Keen, originally scheduled for March 14.
According to a Fremont Theater Instagram post March 10, the singer is postponing his March concerts, including his San Luis Obispo stop, to an indefinite date.
Inspired Health and Wellness Expo
The Inspired Health and Wellness Expo in San Luis Obispo on March 21 has been postponed.
In a statement on their website, organizers cited a “large number of our attendees being in the category that the California Department of Public Health considers high risk,” as a reason to postpone the event.
The group noted that vendors and attendees to the event, held at the Alex Madonna Expo Center, travel to and from areas of California with confirmed cases of COVID-19.
Participants will be notified as soon as a new date is selected.
Salt + Soul conference
Central Coast Women’s Events will postpone its upcoming Salt + Soul women’s conference in San Luis Obispo due to concerns about coronoavirus.
The faith-based conference, originally scheduled for March 28, was set to include keynote speaker Ruth Chou Simons, as well as live music and a local pop-up shop and refreshments, according to the release.
The event will be held at the Alex Madonna Expo Center in San Luis Obispo at a date sometime this fall, the release said.
Spartan race
The Spartan race — a massive obstacle course race that was expected to draw thousands of visitors and participants to Santa Margarita on March 14 and 15 — has been postponed.
Race organizers postponed the race at the advice of the San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department.
The race organizers are expected to announce a new date for the event later this week.
San Luis Obispo International Film Festival
San Luis Obispo’s International Film Festival has been canceled, which could spell big financial trouble for the major annual event.
In a March 12 news release, the organization announced it will cancel the festival, originally scheduled for March 17 through 22.
Because the cancellation could create a “significant financial loss,” festival organizers are asking eventgoers to convert their passes and tickets to donations. All 2020 passes will be honored next year, however.
Downtown SLO Farmers Market
Downtown San Luis Obispo won’t be nearly as busy Thursday nights this month.
Organizers announced they will suspend the weekly Downtown SLO Farmers Market through the end of March, starting March 12.
The farmers market will resume operations on April 2.
Cayucos Sea Glass Festival
The Cayucos Sea Glass Festival to be held March 13 through 15 has been canceled due to Newsom’s recommendations to prohibit gatherings of more than 250 people, according to a statement on the organization’s website.
SLO Performing Arts Center shows
The Performing Arts Center in San Luis Obispo has canceled all shows at the Cal Poly venue through March, including a performance by Celtic band Cherish the Ladies, which was scheduled for Thursday.
Regular shows are expected to resume on April 1, though Cal Poly Arts shows will resume April 3, according to PAC and Cal Poly representatives.
Hearst Castle Tours
Hearst Castle in San Simeon is closed and all tours and events are suspended starting Monday, March 16 due to the coronavirus, according to a California State Parks news release.
Full refunds will be given to visitors whose tours have been canceled, the agency said.
The Hearst Castle visitor center, including food services and gift shop, is also closed, State Parks said.
Hospice du Rhône
The Hospice du Rhône wine event scheduled for April has been delayed to 2021, organizers say.
According to a news release, the Paso Robles event has been rescheduled because of the European travel ban, as well as the state’s advice against large gatherings.
All visitor and exhibitor tickets, as well as sponsor partnerships, will be valid at the event next year.
San Luis Obispo Repertory Theatre
The San Luis Obispo Repertory Theatre has canceled or postpone all performances through May 11, according to a news release.
Readers theater performances of “The Designated Mourner” were canceled, as well as productions of “The Laramie Project” and “Mr. Burns: a post-electric play.” The San Luis Obispo theater company is also canceling Academy of Creative Theatre spring classes and spring break camp.
San Luis Obispo Repertory Theatre’s production of “Every Brilliant Thing” was rescheduled to run May 12 through May 24, according to the release.
Peoples’ Self-Help Builder Games
Peoples’ Self-Help has postponed its annual 2020 Builder Games event, originally scheduled for May 9 in Avila Beach.
“At this time we would like to thank all those who have already committed support through generous sponsorship, donations, and ticket purchases,” read a statement on the organization’s Facebook page. “We will be contacting you in the near future to share our plans for this event.”
Cuesta College
All non-essential large events and gatherings at Cuesta College are canceled or postponed through April 12, according to a news release.
This includes the upcoming annual Jazz Festival, County Band Festival and concerts by the Cuesta Choirs, Cuesta Wind Ensemble and San Luis Obispo Wind Orchestra, according to the release.
All athletic events for the community college are also canceled.
Field of Light at Sensorio
The Field of Light at Sensorio will remain closed in Paso Robles until April 16.
Tickets to the attraction — which draws thousands of people to the fiber-optic-lit fields off Highway 46 — can be transferred to a future date, or can be refunded, according to the Sensorio website.
Central Coast Guitar Show
The Central Coast Guitar Show, which was scheduled to take place on April 4 in San Luis Obispo, has been canceled.
According to a statement on the show’s Facebook page, all ticket purchasers and vendors will be refunded.
The show is expected to return in 2021.
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Art After Dark
Arts Obispo, the San Luis Obispo County Arts Council, announced Friday that the April 3 Art After Dark event will be canceled due to concerns regarding COVID-19.
The free, monthly event features art exhibitions at venues across downtown San Luis Obispo.
“We didn’t want to be reactionary in a lot of ways, but we wanted to air on the side of caution,”Arts Obispo board president Neal Breton said.
Future Art After Dark events will depend on the public health department’s guidance at that time, Breton said.
Eroica California
Eroica California won’t return to Cambria in early April as planned, organizers said Friday in a news release.
The annual cycling event is being postponed “due to the high risk of the COVID-19 risk,” the release said.
“We are working with county authorities as well as our global sponsors to determine a new date later in 2020,” organizers said in the release.
Eroica California riders and vendors who have already registered for the event will be “immediately rolled over into the new date,” the release said, while ride participants who can’t attend then will have the option of attending in 2021 instead.
Vintage Paso: Zinfandel Weekend
The Paso Robles Wine Country Association is scaling back plans for its annual Vintage Paso: Zinfandel Weekend.
Organizers are canceling the Z After Party tasting event and Zinposium seminar, scheduled for March 20 at Allegretto Vineyard Resort in Paso Robles, according to the association’s site.
Other zinfandel-centered events are still on, including barbecues, barrel tastings and winemaker dinners scheduled for March 20 through 22 at locations throughout the Paso Robles area.
Wine lovers can also participate in wine-themed excursions, called Zinscursions, at various Paso Robles locations on March 22.
Adventures with Nature hikes
Hikes and nature talks organized by the Central Coast Stake Parks Association have been canceled due to coronavirus concerns, the nonprofit organization said in a news release Friday.
The group is canceling the remaining events in its Mind Walk Lecture Series, which would have continued through March.
Docent-led hikes in the Adventures with Nature series are canceled until further notice, the nonprofit said.
History Center of San Luis Obispo County
The History Center of San Luis Obispo County is postponing two upcoming events “to help ‘flatten the curve’ of coronavirus spread,” executive director Thomas Kessler said in a news release Friday.
The nonprofit organization will hold the Arlene Zanchuck Memorial Dance, scheduled for March 28, and the Spring Fling, scheduled for April 5, at later dates.
In addition, the history center’s San Luis Obispo museum will be closed for at least two weeks, through the end of March, the release said.
Clark Center for the Performing Arts Center
Most shows at the Clark Center for the Performing Arts Center in Arroyo Grande are canceled or postponed, the venue said.
“We are monitoring the current situation and working with the artists/producers/renters,” the Clark Center said.
People with tickets for shows that have been postponed or canceled can wait to see there is a new date, or opt to receive a refund or a credit/gift certificate to be used for another show.
Ticketholders can also donate their tickets to the Clark Center as a charitable donation.
Brown Bag concerts
The Brown Bag concert series, held the first Friday of every month at First Presbyterian Church in San Luis Obispo, is canceled “for now,” organizers said Friday via email. It’s unknown at this time when shows will resume.
Central Coast Craft Beer Festival
The Central Coast Brewers Guild beer festival, originally set to take place March 28, has been rescheduled to this summer. It will now take place June 20 at the Sunken Gardens in Atascadero.
Three Speckled Hens antiques show
Three Speckled Hens is canceling its Spring Antiques and Old Stuff Show, scheduled for May 2 and 3, the group said in an email to its customers. “We plan to resume activities for our Fall Antiques and Old Stuff Show” on Sept. 26 and 27,” the email read.
Festival Mozaic
The classical music festival is postponing its upcoming WinterMezzo concert series, scheduled for April 17, 18 and 19. “It is our current plan to have the same program and artists with us the weekend of Sept. 11, 12 and 13,” organizers said in a news release, noting that Festival Mozaic events slated for the summer will proceed as planned.
Basin Street Regulars
Basin Street Regulars canceled its March 29 jazz concert and dance after the city of Pismo Beach suspended all operations at the Veterans Hall and other city facilities. “We are hoping that we can resume our normal schedule in April, but it is too early to tell yet,” the music organization said via email.
This story was originally published March 11, 2020 at 3:13 PM.
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