Tucson's 2nd Saturday Cancelled Indefinitely

There will be no scheduled events moving forward.Photo byMichael DziedziconUnsplash

It doesn’t matter if you’re a newer resident or have called Tucson home for years, 2nd Saturday has always been an important downtown event for the community. It became a family-friendly opportunity to come downtown (if you could find a parking spot) and enjoy the various restaurants, vendors, live music, and other activities going on. Even if you didn’t spend a dime, it presented everyone with the chance to better connect with the community and possibly make a connection with a new small business, food truck, or artist. Unfortunately, it appears 2nd Saturday has been canceled, and it doesn’t look as if it is coming back any time soon. 

Much like the rest of Tucson, 2nd Saturday went on the shelf during the pandemic. As it centered around live events and people coming together there wasn’t any real chance to operate the activity, so it shut down and remained that way until last year. In 2023 it came roaring back, returning to downtown Tucson with live music, vendors, and other fun and family-friendly activities. 

All of this continued up until this past June. Rather unexpectedly, the 2nd Saturday Facebook page announced all events were “Cancelled until further notice.” No other information was given on the post, that went live on June 1. Some assumed that it was due to the extreme temperatures, and as such assumed it would return with the school year, the return of students, as well as cooling temperatures. 

That, however, has not proven to be the case. A number of performers who were originally scheduled to partake in the canceled 2nd Saturday commented on a Reddit post that they were informed the gig had been shut down because there was no longer any funding for the event. Several other community members confirmed this. 

2nd Saturday is presented by the Rio Nuevo Group, and while this is not where 100% of the financials come from, as there are around a dozen event and media sponsors, Rio Nuevo is the main group that has kept the monthly activity going. And yet, despite this, Rio Nuevo has remained strangely silent regarding what is going on with the weekend, and whether it has any plans on bringing it back. There have been no information, updates, or insights into 2nd Saturday by Rio Nuevo. Perhaps continually funding restaurants that are already open and just want a larger patio or throwing money at bars with little chance of success has taken all of the group's available financial resources.

So, unfortunately for Tuscon residents and anyone else who has enjoyed the monthly celebration in the past, it does not appear 2nd Saturday will be coming back. At least not anytime soon.