In the end, it was money and not Mother Nature that ended the St. Paul Winter Carnival’s snow-sculpting competition this year.
Facing sagging sponsorship, officials pulled the plug Wednesday afternoon and decided to focus spending on the high-profile ice-carving competition.
They were just over a third of the way to their goal of raising $122,000 for the events, said Kathy Bjerke, chairwoman of the St. Paul Festival & Heritage Foundation, which runs the event.
It may be the only time in recent memory that lack of money quashed the snow event, said Bob Olsen, a festival historian.
But the decision isn’t a surprise.
Carnival officials said last fall that funding was down, and foundation President Kate Kelly said last week that one of the competitions might have to go.
Other options included decreasing the number of competitors in each field and shrinking the amount of space the events took up.
But with the snow-sculpting event gone, the ice event should run as planned, Bjerke said. And the volunteers who help out with the snow have assured her they’ll help out with the ice, she said.
So why ice over snow?
Surveys indicate the ice-carving competition is more popular, carnival officials and historians say. Ice carving also is associated with Rice Park, whereas the snow competition has moved around town over the years.
And, considering that all eyes will be on Rice Park during the U.S. Figure Skating Championships, Bjerke said, “If we really want to showcase this festival, we need to make it beautiful.”
Carnival officials blame the drop in donations on a lagging economy and recent mild winters, which have begun melting donor-sponsored creations even before carvers could finish them.
Historian Olsen said this bump is just one of the carnival’s usual ups and downs.
“Well, I hope it’s cyclical,” he said.
Last month, the organization began selling the 300-pound blocks of ice used for the carvings.
They cost $122 each – in honor of the carnival’s 122nd year – and the foundation has been hoping to sell 1,000 as part of its “Stock in a Block” program.
That program has been extended until at least Jan. 18, Bjerke said.
Because the carnival no longer needs to pay the city to block off a street for the snow competition, it’ll be able to save some money, officials said – although Bjerke said the carnival still needs to raise more.
The snow event “is an unfortunate thing to cut,” she said, “but we’re going to move forward with the festival, and it’s going to be fabulous.”
Alex Friedrich can be reached at afriedrich@pioneerpress.com or 651-228-2109.
Copyright 2008 Pioneer Press.