Tomato Festival to skip 2018

For the first time in more than 50 years, Reynoldsburg will not celebrate its tomato heritage with a festival this summer.

Faced with a sudden loss of volunteers and a community that wants changes in both the venue and format, organizers of the Reynoldsburg Tomato Festival say the event is taking a year off.

Mary Hudson, president of Reynoldsburg Festivals Inc., which runs the event, said the festival will return in 2019.

“We have no intention of letting it go, we’re just taking a step back,” Hudson said.

She said finances were not a factor in the decision, as the event’s presenting sponsor, Heartland Bank, remains committed.

The festival began in 1965 as a way to honor the city’s claim to fame: tomatoes. In 1870, Reynoldsburg resident and horticulturist Alexander W. Livingston was the first to upgrade the wild tomato and develop a breed that could be widely grown.

The festival has evolved over the years. It moved from Civic Park to Huber Park, which is smaller but closer to the center of town, and was shortened from five days to two. After the 2017 festival, Hudson said a community survey showed that the public wanted a longer festival and the return of carnival rides and games, among other changes.

Hudson said that at the same time, several of the core group of volunteer organizers had stepped down.

She said the festival will return to Civic Park next year, but beyond that she is not sure what other changes will be made. She plans several community meetings to get input.

“There are so many things changing (in Reynoldsburg),” Hudson said. “There are a lot of people from different cultures moving in, and we’d like to be inclusive of them, as well.”