DAILY NEWS: Thousands of rowers descend on the banks of the Schuylkill every year to participate in the Dad Vail Regatta – the country’s largest college regatta, which has been held in Philadelphia since 1953. But in 2010, rowers might find themselves competing in Rumson, N.J., on the Navesink River. Increased operating costs and the weak economy’s impact on the regatta’s corporate sponsors mean that last May’s regatta may have been its last in Philadelphia. “The regatta, due to several unforeseeable contributing factors, is facing discontinuation as a Philadelphia-based event,” warned a Nov. 2 letter from the Dad Vail Regatta Organizing Committee (DVROC) to Mayor Nutter, Gov. Rendell and the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau. MORE
UPDATE: Two city councilmen said yesterday that they will try to help keep the Dad Vail Regatta on the Schuylkil. Councilmen Bill Green and Curtis Jones Jr. said they were hoping that some combination of lowered fees and city funding would keep the regatta from moving out of town. Backers from Rumson, N.J., have sent regatta organizers a $100,000 check to show their interest in hosting the 2010 race, according a source who asked not to be identified. For those pushing to keep the regatta in Philadelphia, financing is key. Officials from the Fairmount Park Commission, the Managing Director’s Office, the City Representative’s Office and regatta organizers are scheduled to meet Friday to discuss the situation. MORE