Pittsburgh's Three Rivers Regatta canceled amid money, insurance concerns

The company hired to put together Pittsburgh’s Three Rivers Regatta misled the event’s board and the city about payments, insurance and other details, forcing organizers to cancel the weekend-long festival, officials said Tuesday.

The board plans to pursue all legal means and launch an investigation into LionHeart Event Group.

“To be clear, the blame for this cancellation lies solely with LionHeart,” said Charles Scholz, a member of the regatta’s board and an attorney with Houston Harbaugh.

The popular festival along the rivers was scheduled for the upcoming weekend. This is the first year since 1978 that the regatta has been canceled.

LionHeart officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

Former Pittsburgh Operations Chief Guy Costa, who served on the regatta board until his retirement from the city in March, said rumors circulated that LionHeart President Derek Weber was experiencing money problems. When asked about potential problems, Weber would only say “everything’s fine, everything’s fine,” according to Costa.

A news release from the regatta said the board learned late last week that LionHeart “misrepresented the status of payments and insurance,” leading up to the scheduled event.

The event’s official website — yougottaregatta.org — reflected the news Tuesday afternoon.

“After careful deliberation over the past several days and in consultation with both county and city leaders, we came to the difficult but necessary conclusion that we have no choice but to cancel this year’s regatta,” said Scholz.“We learned late last week that the event management company charged with overseeing all aspects of the regatta failed to provide the necessary assurances for a safe, sanctioned and fully coordinated event.”

Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto and Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said they were disappointed that the event had to be canceled.

“There needs to be a full investigation as to the finances and what happened as to LionHeart’s involvement,” Fitzgerald said.

Peduto said that last week the city learned that LionHeart had not yet paid the state for the use of Point State Park. The mayor said the city tried to save the regatta by moving it to the North Shore. Peduto later learned that LionHeart had not paid required fees to the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police.

“It was only early this week that we learned that there wasn’t insurance,” Peduto said.

Mayor Bill Peduto talks about Three Rivers Regatta being canceled pic.twitter.com/JhqiBrpBE0

— JoAnne Harrop (@JHarrop_Trib) July 30, 2019

City departments warned Weber for months that he needed to have in place the needed permits, payments, insurance and security measures. He repeatedly responded that he was making progress, officials said. It was only within the last few weeks that city officials became extremely concerned that the work would not been done in time for the event.

“It is in the best interest for the city and the region that we cancel this year, begin the investigation immediately and reorganize to bring back the regatta next year,” Peduto said.

Peduto spokesman Tim McNulty said the regatta owes the city $28,000 for police security services dating back to 2017. The payment is a reimbursement for officer overtime.

LionHeart also owes the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office about $25,000 for security provided during last year’s regatta, according to Chief Deputy Kevin Kraus.

“We were asked again to work this year and we declined,” Kraus said. “We weren’t going to offer any services this year until we got paid.”

Pittsburgh City Council members described the regatta cancellation as a loss for the Pittsburgh region. They said they were shocked and surprised after learning of the cancellation from reporters covering a morning council meeting.

Councilwoman Theresa Kail-Smith of Westwood said council might have been able to help preserve the event had regatta officials sought its input.

“I’m extremely disappointed,” she said. “I’m sure council members will work with the administration and regatta folks to see if there’s something we can do to address this issue. Events like this just don’t benefit the city of Pittsburgh and our business district. They benefit the entire region. I think that this has to be a regional approach. It would be helpful if we had additional support from our partners around the county.”

Kail-Smith and Councilman R. Daniel Lavelle, who heads council’s Public Safety Committee, said they want to make sure the city is paid for police services.

“It’s an institution within the city,” Lavelle said. “It will also be a hit to the economy. A lot of people come in from out of town for this event. I would just hope that the committee will take a hard look at potentially bringing on a new promoter who can continue moving this forward as well as whatever appropriate legal actions are necessary.”

This would have been the the 42nd annual festival celebrating the city’s three rivers. The regatta was to feature NGK Formula 1 and Formula Light Powerboat races, the Pittsburgh Paddlesports Championships — which debuted at last year’s — and Jet Ski Freestyle Championships.

One of the longtime sponsors is EQT Corporation.

“We’re disappointed about the cancellation but agree with the decision,” said Michael B. Laffin, vice-president of communications for EQT Corporation, via email. “We’ll stay close to the regatta’s board as they conduct their investigation and determine what our next steps are after we learn all the facts.”

The regatta was to include the Alcosan 3 Rivers Proud Anything That Floats race, a new show from Pittsburgh’s Squonk Opera and music throughout the weekend.

“We were just as shocked as everyone else,” Jackie Dempsey, an artistic director for Squonk Opera, said in an email. “We got an email just about an hour before the official announcement was made. We are currently scrambling to find another venue that will host us this weekend.”

The group took to social media in an attempt to salvage the performance.

We're sad to report that this year's 3 Rivers Regatta is canceled. We just got the news this morning. We're trying to think of how we can still do 'Hand to Hand' in Pittsburgh this weekend. We're pursuing a few leads but welcome any suggestions or ideas. https://t.co/ZmoCeYqHrp

— Squonk Opera (@squonkopera) July 30, 2019

Alcosan director of communications Joey Vallarian said he didn’t have much to comment on regarding the company’s sponsorship.

“Alcosan enjoyed being a part of it,” he said.

The regatta has worked with LionHeart for three years, Scholz said. The event is still investigating LionHeart’s financial difficulties and how far it goes back. Scholz said that the regatta’s board receives monthly reports from LionHeart and according to those reports, bills related to the event had been paid. That information appears to have been falsified, Scholz said.

The website for LionHeart prominently features the regatta, showing powerboat, paddling and sandcastles. LionHeart worked on Pittsburgh’s Fourth of July fireworks, the city’s bicentennial celebration, the Boxing on the Bridge event in 2016 and a Christmas light event in 2015, according to its website. The company has also worked on campaigns for Allegheny Health Network.

Last year, LionHeart launched the two-day LionFire Music Festival at a campground near Slippery Rock.

JoAnne Klimovich Harrop and Bob Bauder are Tribune-Review staff writers. You can contact JoAnne at 412-320-7889, jharrop@tribweb.com or via Twitter @Jharrop_Trib. You can contact Bob at 412-765-2312, bbauder@tribweb.com or via Twitter @bobbauder.