Charles E. Johnson, Executive Director, Friends of Sweet Auburn Foundation, Inc., sponsors of THE BIG SHOW SAVANNAH, has announced the cancellation of the festival, scheduled for October 31 - November 2, 2008, along the Martin Luther King, Jr. Corridor.

"At this point, based on the projected budget, the funds are not available to move forward with the festival....Special thanks and appreciation goes to all of the people in Savannah that worked very hard to plan The Big Show Savannah. We also salute Savannah city officials for their valuable assistance and cooperation. At times hard decisions must by made, this is one of those times. After evaluating all of the factors that go in to making a festival successful the decision has been made to cancel The Big Show Savannah."

A committee of Savannahians that served as the steering committee for the festival will remain active over the coming months to explore the possibility of hosting a locallydriven festival along the Martin Luther King, Jr. corridor sometime next year. According to Diana Harvey Johnson, the local point person for the festival, "The concept of a festival along the Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. was an idea that was already on the drawing board before we were approached by Sweet Auburn. Some people wanted to reestablish "The West Broad Street Reunion Festival which was held in the early 1990's. The time has come for such an event, and we will continue to work towards that goal."

There are a number of businesses and individuals, in addition to the Savannah Development and Renewal Authority (SDRA) that are committed to developing a sustaining Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd./West Broad Street festival, Ms. Johnson said. According to Richard Shinhoster, owner of Diaspora Marketplace, located on MLK, Jr. Blvd., "In addition to highlighting the history and culture of the Savannah area, it would provide a great opportunity to call attention to the very positive changes and development that are taking place along the corridor."

For more information, call 927-8425.