Harrisburg prepares for 110th Kipona Festival as vendor application period closes

The City of Harrisburg is preparing to host the 110th annual Kipona Festival from Sept. 5-7 at Riverfront Park and City Island, following the July 24 deadline for multicultural vendor and cultural-activity submissions.

The planned Labor Day weekend event brings together cultural programming, including music and dance performances, cultural food, a multicultural festival area and arts vendors. The city describes the event as continuing a festival tradition that dates to 1916.

While the application window has closed, the city’s materials do not identify a final performer lineup, vendor count, attendance estimate or public operating hours. The closing of the application period also does not establish which applicants will be selected to participate.

Free space option for nonprofit cultural activities

Registered nonprofit organizations may receive vendor space at no cost if they offer a free cultural activity or experience for festival attendees. The provision connects free public-facing activities to the festival’s vendor-area programming and gives nonprofit organizations a route to participate alongside food, arts and performance offerings.

The festival’s planned format places cultural groups, performers, vendors and community organizations in the same public event across the Riverfront Park and City Island sites. That shared format is the civic purpose outlined in the city’s materials: a setting for cultural activities, performances and food offerings during the three-day festival.

Next deadline is Aug. 16

Participants accepted through the multicultural vendor and cultural-activity process must submit insurance documentation naming the City of Harrisburg as additionally insured by Aug. 16. The city materials describe that date as the deadline for insurance and other requirements after acceptance.

For-profit vendors also must obtain or renew an annual city vendor license, which costs $50. The license requirement is separate from the free-space option available to eligible registered nonprofits providing a free cultural activity or experience.

The city’s notice includes a cancellation date also listed as Aug. 16, but does not explain whether that date is a typographical error or applies to a particular vendor category. It does not alter the stated Aug. 16 insurance and compliance requirement for accepted participants.

With the submission deadline past, Aug. 16 is the next identified date in the city’s materials for selected participants. Kipona is scheduled to open Sept. 5, with programming planned through Sept. 7 at Riverfront Park and City Island.