For 3rd straight year, Santa Rosa Cinco de Mayo festival canceled

SANTA ROSA, Calif. (KGO) -- Walk around a Santa Rosa parking lot just off of Sebastopol Road around the first week of May, and it would normally look a lot different than it does currently.

What's now filled with food trucks and other vendors, would instead be the site of the city's annual Cinco de Mayo celebration - a party that's been canceled for the third year in a row.

"We normally start the planning in January and, obviously, in January the whole community was in the omicron surge. And so we did not have enough time to plan it," said Sylvia Lemus, one of the event's organizers.

Since the start of the pandemic, COVID-19 has disproportionately hit the Latino population.

VIDEO: 7 Bay Area counties in CA's COVID red zone facing high levels of community transmission

COVID cases throughout the Bay Area have been increasing for the past two weeks with the majority of the region in the red.

Lemus says while the decision to cancel was not an easy one, it was made with the safety of the community in mind.

A loss for many across the entire Bay Area.

"We draw a lot of people from different cultures to come and celebrate. And even though it's a Mexican holiday, it's been a multicultural celebration," Lemus said.

With the celebration canceled once again, local law enforcement says they'll be on the lookout for other events popping up instead.

Lieutenant Janine Kucker of the Santa Rosa Police Department says without the festival to draw people, her department will up its presence on the streets.

VIDEO: Wastewater data shows how fast COVID is spreading across Bay Area

As COVID-19 infections grow across the state, all eyes are on our wastewater, including the Bay Area, where COVID cases have been increasing rapidly.

Prepared for any potential illegal activity, with things like sideshows top of mind.

"They're really not safe for our community members to be at and engage in. You know a lot of people get hurt at these sideshow events," Kucker said.

But for those left wondering when the festival might come back again, Lemus says next year will be a go.

Making its grand comeback, bigger and better than ever before.

"2020 would have been our 15th year. It would have been our quinceañera. And we weren't able to celebrate our quinceañera and we were going to do it big. So we look forward to next year," Lemus said.

VACCINE TRACKER: How California is doing, when you can get a coronavirus vaccine

Having trouble loading the tracker above? Click here to open it in a new window.

RELATED STORIES & VIDEOS:

• Which Bay Area airports, public transportation still require masks? List here
• Never had COVID? Expert explains chances of getting it now
• California postpones COVID-19 vaccine mandate for schools until 2023
• Pfizer to seek COVID-19 booster for healthy 5- to 11-year-olds
• New studies shed light on how to treat BA.2 COVID variant, how long it survives on surfaces
• Map shows COVID-19 community levels in your area, where masks are recommended indoors
• Americans can now order another round of free at-home Covid-19 tests
• Coronavirus Timeline: Tracking major moments of COVID-19 pandemic in San Francisco Bay Area
• California drops indoor mask mandate: What to know, what's different in the Bay Area
• Here's how to take a rapid COVID-19 test accurately at home
• Data tracker: Coronavirus cases, deaths, hospitalizations in every Bay Area county
• Get the latest updates on California EDD, stimulus checks, unemployment benefits