A popular youth sand castle competition at San Francisco’s Ocean Beach has been rescheduled after being postponed earlier this month because of the federal government shutdown.
The Leap 30th Anniversary Sandcastle Contest will now take place at 10:30 a.m. on Nov. 9.
It was initially scheduled for Oct. 12, but the dispute in Congress over the federal budget led to the shutdown of federal services deemed “non-essential” and the closure of national parks.
Ocean Beach is part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, and federal parks officials told contest organizers that the event could not be held during the shutdown, which started Oct. 1 and ended on Oct. 16.
Thousands attend the annual sand castle contest, which features students from more than 20 local elementary schools participating alongside architects, construction professionals and others.
Leap, a youth arts advocacy organization, gets roughly half of its operating budget from the sand castle contest, so the shutdown “has and will have a financial effect on the programs we are providing to schools this year,” organization leaders said in a letter announcing the new date.
The letter states, “We are thrilled that we were able to reschedule soon after the parks reopened, and hope you can all join us at the beach in celebration of the arts, community, and creativity.”
More information about the event is available online at www.leaparts.org.
Dan McMenamin, Bay City News
