OTTAWA --
An outdoor concert at Lansdowne Park later this month will feature rapid COVID-19 screening and could serve as a dry run for larger concerts later this year.
But it's already facing a significant roadblock as the city's top doctor warns Ottawa could soon move into the red zone, which would cut outdoor gathering limits by 75 per cent.
Organizers are calling the “Long Road Back” on March 27 the first event of its kind in Canada, and say it could pave the way to safely reopening the live music industry.
“As we look ahead to the summer of 2021 and beyond, establishing best practices for live music events now is critical,” said Mark Monahan, the executive director of Ottawa Bluesfest. “In order to produce summer and fall events, rapid COVID-19 antigen screening is needed to demonstrate live concerts can happen safely.”