FIRST ON 3 UPDATE: Festival Latino pays bill for county parks

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — It looks like a popular Wilmington festival will happen next month after all.

New Hanover County Parks Director Jim McDaniel says this morning Lucy Vasquez, Director of Amigos Internacional, paid the more than $2,000 the group owed for use of county parks. Earlier this week we learned the county had given Vasquez a deadline of 4 p.m. Friday to pay the $1,000 she owed for using Hugh MacRae Park for last year’s festival and $1,255 to use Ogden Park this year. If she missed the deadline, the county planned to turn the reservation over to another group that wants to use Ogden Park Nov. 12.

With the debt now paid, one issue still remains. Vasquez sent out news releases promoting the event yesterday, including a hot air balloon. The problem is New Hanover County’s Risk Management Department has told her that it does not allow hot air balloons on county property, McDaniel said.

Vasquez has not yet returned our call for comment.