New London — Despite a number of challenges, Sailfest, the region's largest summertime festival, wrapped up Sunday as it returned after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Barbara Neff, owner of Neff Productions and executive director of the Downtown New London Association, the group that runs the event, said it was definitely harder than in past years as expenses were higher and certain products were difficult to acquire. In an effort to cut costs, she said, there was no beer tent or entertainment on Friday night.

While the event has boasted more than 200 vendors in past years, Neff said this year's Sailfest had about 160, with some of the past vendors no longer in business or experiencing staffing issues. Crowds also appeared to be lighter during the day on Saturday, she said, with a larger crowd showing up later than usual at night.

Nonetheless, Neff said, the crowds were well-behaved, and she had heard good things from downtown restaurant owners about increased business.

"This event was never designed to make money," said Neff, who took over organizing Sailfest in 1996. "It was to bring people to the community and to support businesses."

A 2018 economic value study on Sailfest showed it brought an estimated $58.2 million profit to the area, not including the cost by producers of the event to stage it, and an estimated 278,000 visitors.

Mayor Michael Passero on Sunday said the festival was better than he anticipated after its hiatus, and its return has given the city a morale boost. He said the fireworks on Saturday night drew a strong crowd, and concerns over gun violence didn't keep people away. Passero was deeply grateful to the Mashantucket Pequot tribe for sponsoring the Sailfest fireworks, which he called fantastic and a staple for the city. 

"It's like we are back to normal almost," Passero said.

Richard Velazquez, a resident of New London for 21 years, was with his wife and 6-year-old son on Bank Street on Sunday afternoon, as they took a moment to sit down and eat. The married couple shared their first date together at Sailfest 18 years ago and try to go every year to try something new.

Velazquez said this year's Sailfest was fun but he wished there was more diverse live music like hip-hop. He said they attended the festival all weekend but watched the fireworks from home Saturday night, concerned after the Fourth of July parade shooting in Illinois.

"You never know what people are going to do nowadays," Velazquez said.

This year's Sailfest was marked by safety concerns as gun violence has spiked nationally and multiple shootings were reported in New London last week. Due to staff shortages, the city's police union in May expressed skepticism that the city could run the event safely.

Passero said it was the quietest Sailfest as far as emergency calls, stating that planning by the police and fire departments paid off. He said he's heard more complaints about the police union's position from business owners who don't understand why those who serve to protect them would want to hurt their businesses.

Police union President Josh Bergeson expressed disappointment Sunday that Passero had yet to address the police union since it made its concerns known about staffing at Sailfest. He said things went well over the weekend despite the police force being "pushed to its max" and sacrificing certain operations. Even with mutual aid from other police agencies, he said, police did not have enough officers to do traffic operations outside the downtown area.

Acknowledging the recent shootings, Bergeson said strong presence downtown of police armed with rifles is what helped deter any acts of violence. He said there were three arrests over the weekend and no officers were hurt. Bergeson thanked Norwich, Waterford and state police for assisting at the event.

Police Chief Brian Wright said the police department did a "phenomenal job" due to the great teamwork and collaboration with state and local entities.

"It flowed well as with any large-scale event, and we were able to carry out a safe, uneventful event," Wright said.

j.vazquez@theday.com