-Submitted photo
Between 6,700 and 6,800 people turned out to Harlan and Hazel Rogers Sports Complex at Shellabration 2019 last June to see Sammy Hagar and The Circle perform.

Shellabration and Downtown Country Jam are the next victims in a growing list of summer events canceled due to COVID-19 concerns, according to a Monday announcement from Shellabration Inc.

“With the ongoing public health threat due to COVID-19 unlikely to subside any time soon, canceling the event was both the responsible and conscientious thing to do,” said President Jim Reed, emphasizing health and safety of all parties as a top priority.

Reed said that even if large events were permitted later in the year, social distancing requirements would stifle efforts with thousands of attendees, making planning and execution “untenable.”

Shellabration said that in addition to health concerns, significantly lower revenue than expected this year, in the economy posed by COVID-19, could threaten the future of the Shellabration if this year’s event moved forward.

“With significantly lower sponsorship and ticket sale revenue due to the current economic climate, we would be putting our ability to stage future shows at risk,” said Vice President Ted Bodensteiner. “While we could cover the loss with our cash reserve in this short term, to jeopardize everything we’ve built in the last 19 seasons was a chance we weren’t willing to take.”

The organization said that all artist events scheduled this year will be rescheduled for 2021. Next year’s event in July will feature Cheap Trick with special guest 38 Special plus Saucy Jack.

Next year’s July 2 event also has the added bonus of falling on a Friday.

“We’re incredibly excited to keep our lineup intact,” Reed said.

All tickets purchased to this year’s event through TicketWeb will automatically be refunded to the credit card used to make the purchase. No customer action is required.

Physical tickets for 2020 cannot be used in 2021. Ticket holders will need to purchase new tickets for 2021 with their refund. Tickets for next year’s event are tentatively scheduled to go on sale Feb. 27, 2021.

“We hope the public will respect and support our decision to cancel and live for another day,” Reed said.

Having survived severe weather that impacted events over the years, Reed said they never could have imagined canceling an event due to a pandemic.

“That said, we’ll learn from this circumstance and continue working dilligently to produce the highest-quality shows possible for the greater Fort Dodge and Northwest Iowa area,” he said. “Fort Dodge rocks.”