WINNIPEG -- Nuit Blanche Winnipeg, which typically takes place one night a year, is now being spread out over a month and not on Saturday, Sept. 26.

Culture Days Manitoba, the organization that puts together Nuit Blanche Winnipeg, has decided the art installations scheduled for Sept. 26 will now be a part of the month-long Culture Days Manitoba event.

Jennifer Cheslock, general manager of Nuit Blanche, said Nuit Blanche and Culture Days were always prepared to comply with the government’s requirements for public gatherings, but the requirements have shifted as the situation evolved.

“We want to be part of the solution to keep Manitobans safe and in a position where they can still experience the joy of arts and culture,” she said.

This decision comes after Public Health notified the event organizers they had to limit cohorts to a maximum of 100 people for outdoor events.

“When we found out late Wednesday, early Thursday morning, we felt there just wasn’t enough time to put a plan in place safely, quickly and to be able to communicate that to folks in time for the events on Saturday,” Cheslock said.

Cheslock said they are working on a revised schedule of events, which they will share as soon as possible. She said there were about 20 events and art installations scheduled for Saturday night, most of which will be rescheduled to take place in the Culture Days month from Sept. 25 to Oct. 25.

Cheslock noted that Friday is the kick-off for Culture Days across the country.

“We’re working with artists, arts organizations, and businesses to follow all of the guidelines and our priority is to keep communities safe,” she said.

David Pensato, vice-chair of Culture Days Manitoba, said the event is usually four days and Nuit Blanche is one part of it.

“This year Culture Days is taking course over the entire month,” he said.

“With the recent developments in the last week with COVID, we decided, it was a very difficult decision, but we decided it was best to take the installations that we had slated for Nuit Blanche and spread them out over the rest of the Culture Days month as well.”

He said they’re working with the artists to find the best solution for each installation, which will likely mean they will be featured for an evening throughout the month.

- With files from CTV’s Michelle Gerwing.