Niagara Falls’ Filipino party needs musical exemption from city council
Published May 10, 2023 at 4:16 pm
The Second Annual Niagara Fiesta Extravaganza, the now-annual summer party held by the local Filipino community, are set for this year’s bash but needed to stop by Niagara Falls City Council last night (May 9) with a couple of requests.
The first request was pretty simple – please come join us at Fireman’s Park on August 5 and 6 but if councillors and city hall could mention the two-day party on their social media, that’d be the icing on the ‘bibingka’ (Filipino cake).
The second request was slightly more official. Could the city relax their noise bylaw for those two nights? The city bylaw says no playing of loud music between 9 pm and 9 am on weekend nights. The fiesta was hoping for special exemption that it could be pushed to 10:30 pm for the two nights – actually the Saturday and Sunday of the Civic Long Weekend.
Both requests were happily granted after organizer Eileen Tinio-Hind and founder-president Valerio “Maki” Makinana made their pitch to council.
The Niagara Fiesta Extravaganza is one of just seven in select cities across Canada and after the success of its inaugural start last year, the 2023 version is looking to shake the foundations with music, entertainment, celebrities, a car show, a motorcycle show, a food expo, cultural exhibits and presentation, games, prizes and basically, a spotlight on the Filipino community in Niagara.
“We will continue to raise multicultural awareness and appreciation of our culture that can deliver lasting impacts to more Filipino Canadians,” says the organizers.
“Known as the ‘Festival of Smiles, everyone can experience nonstop entertainment in the form of cultural presentations, live performances, food expos, games, and lots of giveaways. We’ve got lots of vendors that sell Filipino food, unique handicrafts, clothes, and other merchandise that showcase everything Filipino. We’ve also got famous celebrities and music artists that will serenade everyone throughout the day. Through these efforts, our goal to build a stronger community in all major cities of Canada is achieved.”
For more information, visit their Facebook page HERE.
