Renaissance Festival to go on as planned

After a short-lived financial setback, the show will go on.

The Sterling Renaissance Festival came up with more than $300,000 in less than a week and will be able to kick off its season as planned on Saturday, according to festival owner Doug Waterbury.

"It was obviously a relief, and we appreciate the support from everyone," he said.

Last week, event organizers announced the last-minute need to fundraise after a loan they had been counting on from a private lender fell through in mid-June. Waterbury said the lender had fully expected to be reimbursed from another venture, but wasn't.

"So the funds we counted on were no longer available," he said. "Bottom line — the money was wrapped up elsewhere."

The Sterling Renaissance Festival was able to close the cash gap with a $30,000 loan from a longtime festival patron, more than $16,000 in donations through a fundraising website and a $285,000 loan from a commercial bank in Syracuse.

The money will go toward marketing, inventory, merchandising and repairs on the property.

Gary Izzo, the festival's creative director, said there was a silver lining — the public plea raised awareness and brought a lot of people forward in support. The fundraising website, www.rockethub.com, had more than 130 donors contribute to the cause.

According to the fundraising website, donors received perks — such as free festival tickets and season passes — in exchange for donations of $100 or more. Waterbury also said he planned to pay back the bank and private lender within the first few weekends of the festival.

The Sterling Renaissance Festival, founded in 1977, is held each summer at its Cayuga County property that doubles as an Elizabethan village just miles from Lake Ontario. This year, the 14-day event is scheduled to run for seven straight weekends, beginning Saturday. Waterbury said the 2014 event costs about $3 million to produce.

In 2008, organizers borrowed $1.5 million to bring the festival to life. By re-investing the profits, Waterbury has been able to take out smaller and smaller loan amounts each year and is working toward having the organization be self-sufficient by the 2015 season.

"We recognize the emotional attachment people have to Sterling, and we want to reassure them it's in good hands," he said. "We are in a good position to be here for generations to come."

"We are not thin in any way because of this," said Izzo. "We have everything we've had in previous years, if not more."

Includes reporting by staff writers Victoria E. Freile and Tina MacIntyre-Yee.