Dear OSCOV Community,
The OSCOV Executive has considered in great detail the issues and complications that would be involved in staging the OSCOV Melbourne Orchid Spectacular in 2020.
Unfortunately, all things considered, we have decided that we will not be able to hold the Spectacular this year. The key reasons for this are:
1 we understand that KCC Park will probably not be available as our venue during the scheduled dates for 2020;
2 social distancing and crowd limitation requirements would most likely be very difficult to comply with, and would significantly impact public participation in the Spectacular;
3 the unavailability of insurance, the potential for financial penalties for social distancing breaches that OSCOV cannot control, and the potential for significantly reduced attendance fees, vendor contributions and sponsorships create an unacceptable financial risk; and
4 the uncertainty of the COVID-19 impact on our society, and the probability that external regulations will continue to change without notice, mean that the certainty that we need to provide to our Vendors, Society exhibitors, the general public, and other stakeholders, cannot be provided in any other way.
We very much regret having to make this decision, but for all concerned, we feel it is the only decision we can make.
The annual OSCOV dinner (including the presentation of the 2019 Victorian Orchids of the Year), which is usually held in conjunction with the Spectacular, will also not be held in August. However – if we are able to host the dinner later in the year, we hope to do so.
We will continue to support our Member Societies and the orchid community in general as much as we can in these difficult times – and we very much look forward to life returning to normal in 2021, including holding the Spectacular again during the last full week in August 2021, and the resumption of our Member Societies’ extensive schedule of orchid Shows and monthly meetings.
If you have any queries in relation to this announcement – please contact me on 0417 334 232 or [email protected], or OSCOV’s Secretary, Marita Anderson on 0457 721 034 or [email protected].