Reversing course from earlier last week, the hot air balloon portion of the Balloons Over 66 Weekend in Lincoln will return Aug. 28-29.
The announcement came via a post on the Balloons Over 66 Weekend’s Facebook page late June 5.
The festival’s committee met June 4 to discuss “the future of the festival.”
The post thanked Lincoln Mayor Tracy Welch “who jumped in immediately to help us find a way to guarantee the return of the balloons that our community and visitors have come to love.”
The confirmation came, the post noted, “after working through the details and overcoming a few hurdles,” but didn’t offer further specifics, including where the funding was coming from.
Reached June 7 by The State Journal-Register, Welch said he couldn’t comment further than what was posted.
Welch told the SJ-R June 1 that he would do “what I can” to bring balloons back in 2027.
Organizer and former Lincoln Mayor Seth Goodman said he personally funded the balloon portion of the event with the help of a few other small local businesses over the past several years. That expense totaled over $100,000 of personal savings “to ensure that it continued on for the community,” Goodman said.
“At this point, it just doesn’t make sense to continue the event,” citing the lack of funding and the cost of liability insurance, Goodman said June 1.
Goodman said in his own June 7 post while he was thrilled that the balloons will continue to fly in Lincoln, “had that help/assistance been there prior, the cancelation would have never been posted.”
Goodman, who is also a pilot and is the owner of ME Realty in Lincoln,, said he was taking “a backseat” as far as the event this year.
The weekend event, which attracted some 30-plus hot air balloons, ran anywhere from $20,000 to $30,000 per year to put on, Goodman added. That included lodging, propane, meals and advertisements for the pilots, he added.
There were some grant funds from the city that were used toward expenses and later a small annual sponsorship/donation, Goodman acknowledged, and the Logan County Tourism Bureau funneled funds “for a few years” as well as helping coordinate promotions.
“They nor the city had anything to do with running the balloon portion of the event,” Goodman said.
Welch said the city has had money in the budget at various levels over the last decade or so but acknowledged that “it doesn’t cover nearly what it takes to make that festival happen. That is just a fact.
“Admittedly, Mr. Goodman has borne the burden of the cost of that event mostly,” he added.
The festival part of the weekend features a barbecue cook-off, art fair, Dock Dogs, a flea market, a 5K and kids’ races and food vendors.
Contact Steven Spearie: 217-622-1788: sspearie@sj-r.com: X, twitter.com/@StevenSpearie.
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: High flying again: Hot air balloons will be back in Lincoln after all
Reporting by Steven Spearie, Springfield State Journal-Register / State Journal-Register
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By Steven Spearie, Springfield State Journal-Register | USA TODAY Network
