COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Taco Fest closed early Saturday after fights threatened the safety of attendees, organizer Hugo Albornoz confirmed.
Albornoz, founder and executive director of Taco Fest, said the event at Goodale Park was shut down before it’s scheduled 10 p.m. end for the safety of guests. Albornoz said people with tickets left from Saturday will be able to use them Sunday, although the festival will operate under different guidelines.
Albornoz said for Sunday’s event, only attendees older than 21 or under age 10 with immediate family will be admitted. He said they will also add more security to protect attendees. The festival had already required all minors to be accompanied by adults, but the new regulations bar pre-teen and teenage attendees entirely.
This is the second year in a row the Saturday of Taco Fest has had to shut down early due to fighting. Last year, Taco Fest was shut down after large groups of teenagers got violent, with radio runs describing a “20 to 50 person fight.” Last year, the fighting led organizers to enact an 18-and-up age restriction after 7 p.m. on the Sunday of the festival.
Two blocks away on North High Street, two people were shot around the time dispatchers said Columbus police were trying to shut down the festival. Dispatchers did not confirm a connection between the two events, and Albornoz said he knew nothing about it as it did not happen on-site.
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Taco Fest, Hugo Albornoz, attendees, Albornoz
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