KITCHENER The Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Festival will be forced to a virtual model for the second year in a row amid ongoing COVID-19 restrictions. Wednesday, organizers said even if the stay-at-home order is lifted June 2, it wouldn t provide enough time for event performers and merchants to prepare for the late-June festival. Instead, the 54th edition of the festival will take place on the Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Centre s YouTube channel. The festival runs through the last week of June, with a one-hour special planned for Saturday, June 26 at 7 p.m. Last year we had our very first online Festival, Lucia Harrison, chief executive of the Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Centre, said in a release. It allowed people to interact with some of our artisans, enjoy story-telling, participate in hands-on activities and engage with local performers on YouTube. This year we re doing even more online.