If news reports prove accurate, it appears San Diego Comic-Con is going to be yet another event cancelled as a result of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. In a new piece by the San Diego Union-Tribune, San Diego Tourism Authority chief executive Joe Terzi says a final decision regarding whether the convention will take place this July is imminent. According to Terzi, it appears increasingly unlikely the world’s biggest comic convention will be able to take place in its current format due to expanding social distancing regulations.
“They are evaluating any financial liability they might have with a cancellation, and once they determine that, they’ll make a decision,” Terzi tells the paper. “Based on our knowledge of the event, it will be very difficult for them to have that event in July. With other events you could do things to keep people separate, but Comic-Con is a whole different animal, it’s a massive sea of people.”
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The event boasts an annual crowd of 135,000 fans of comics, movies, and other facets of pop culture.
The Union-Tribune reports Comic-Con International — the parent organization behind San Diego Comic-Con and WonderCon — emailed hotel partners earlier this month asking for some wiggle room on cancellation fees should they need to cancel room blocks at the 50 hotels the convention partners with on an annual basis. The organization reportedly requested “any cancellation fees or penalties for this year’s event be waived as we work through this challenging process. Comic-Con continues to be a loyal partner and important economic generator for the City of San Diego and has been for over 50 years.”
The paper reports the majority of hotels have agreed to Comic-Con’s e-mail requests and the Tourism Authority — which helps SDCC with securing lodging across the city — is waiting for the remaining properties to be on board before making the final decision to cancel.
As of Thursday, an event spokesman still said the organization was weighing its options, including the addition of a virtual convention in place of a physical one should most attendees still be under quarantine at that point in time. According to the Tourism Authority, canceled conventions have cost the City of San Diego upwards of $203 million through the first quarter of the year.
