LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — One day after the City of Little Rock terminated its contract with Think Rubix, Mayor Frank Scott Jr. officially announced the cancelation of LITFest.
The festival was set to take place from October 7 to October 9 and highlight the city through concerts and focus on technology and economic growth.
One vendor explained that he was very disappointed.
"Like for vendors. It's a nightmare. And overall, it's just disappointing that it was handled this way," Ti King said.
Ti King with American Business Engine said he had looked forward to promoting his marketing agency as a part of LITFest.
Due to the cancellation, that won't be able to happen.
"Just thinking about how this event was planned just gives me anxiety because I know how many months ahead of time, we were trying to nail down our sponsors and vendors," he said.
Scott said his vision was for LITFest to "celebrate the best of Little Rock through a diverse and inclusive festival" and support the development of the city.
"While LITFest is now canceled for this weekend, it is my desire to see it move forward in the future," the mayor said.
Scott also said that both the city and Think Rubix "acted legally" and "within the bounds of contracting and procurement."
He continued to say that the contract was prepared by the city attorney's office and "was not optimized for the scale and scope of this music festival."
“I’m disappointed that divisive politics negatively affected the vision and impact of this inaugural festival," Scott said. "I fully support the artists, vendors, food trucks, and organizations involved in showcasing the best of our City."
On Monday, the city terminated its contract with Think Rubix with a 15-day notice as a result of "violations" of the contract.
The Ashanti concert, which was set to take place Saturday night during LITFest was canceled. Tickets will be refunded to anybody that purchased them.
We will update this article with more information as it becomes available.