Kentucky Center Cancels Thunder Over Louisville Event

Officials with the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts have canceled their Thunder Over Louisville event this year.For the past four years, center patrons have had exclusive access to the western portion of the belvedere, even though it’s not included in the center's contract with the Derby Festival. This year, the Derby Festival has found a sponsor for a new event on the belvedere, and the center cannot use all of the space."We tried to offer them more space. Not as much space as they’ve taken in past years, but more space than was contracted and its part of an effort to ensure public space on the belvedere," says festival spokesperson Aimee Boyd.Kentucky Center spokesperson David Holland says the full space is essential to the center's event, and festival officials told the center less than a week ago that full access would not be granted."You know that means it was less than a month before Thunder Over Louisville and since we really didn’t have time to revise any of our marketing materials or really inform the public and since the pricing of the event was really based on having all of that space in the back we really had no choice but to cancel the event for this year," says Holland.Holland says patrons who have already purchased tickets will receive a refund.