One of the largest events of the year in Greene County has been delayed due to the 2019 novel coronavirus.

Bell Tower Festival Chair Philip Heisterkamp says the festival has been pushed back from June 12th and 13th to Saturday, August 29th. He explains what led to the decision to delay the event.

“One of the first mandates was no festivals, no fairs, no events of more than 250 people or more. So when you think about what might happen over the course of 2020, that might be the last thing to be released, or it might not get released for 2020 at all. So there’s a very good chance that the festival won’t happen at all because the state of Iowa or the government of the United States may say that gatherings of 250 is still a bad idea for an extended period of time.”

Heisterkamp is hopeful that the festival will still happen, though as a one day event, to keep the tradition alive. He appreciates the work that the planning committee has done to this point in making adjustments to the festival.