Among the public events that have been canceled include the Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Mummers Parade and all planned races such as the Broad Street Run and the Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon.
“I know this news will be disappointing for many Philadelphians,” said Kenney at his press conference. “It was not an easy decision to make. But as we continue to battle COVID-19 and try to restore some sense of normalcy in our city, we know there will be many difficult decisions to come.”
Events held in private venues also exempt from ban
Furthermore, city officials have made it clear that the ban does not cover events held in private spaces, such as sports stadiums, concert venues and other performance spaces, which means that football games held at the Lincoln Financial Field are exempted from the moratorium.
Thomas Farley, Commissioner of the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, clarified that, even though sporting events may continue, they will have to do so without fans physically present in the stadium. The Managing Director of the City of Philadelphia, Brian Abernathy, said that events held in private performance venues will also have to follow similar city health guidelines.