Wed Sep 18 18:22:00 UTC 2024: ## North Mankato’s Bier on Belgrade Festival Cancelled for Fall 2024
**NORTH MANKATO** – The popular Bier on Belgrade festival, North Mankato’s take on Oktoberfest, will not be held this fall as the event’s organizers, the Business on Belgrade group, reevaluate their event schedule.
While the event enjoyed community support, attendance numbers have been declining in recent years, according to Jolinda Grabianowski, a board member for Business on Belgrade. The group cites competition from other Oktoberfest celebrations and fall events in the region as a factor in the declining attendance.
Despite the cancellation of Bier on Belgrade, the Business on Belgrade group plans to continue hosting their other popular events, including Bells on Belgrade, Bookin’ on Belgrade, and Blues on Belgrade. The group will focus their efforts on their most successful events, such as Blues on Belgrade, which drew nearly 5,000 attendees this past July.
The group is also exploring ways to collaborate with the Old Town Mankato Association to better coordinate events in both Mankato and North Mankato, keeping visitors in the city centers longer.
The City of North Mankato provides support to Business on Belgrade events through traffic management, police patrols, and other in-kind assistance, although the events are not city-sponsored.
The city council has previously discussed the possibility of reducing the overall number of events and focusing on larger, more popular ones, a potential move that may impact future event scheduling in both Mankato and North Mankato.
First Piper 