CHICOPEE – After failing to obtain the approvals necessary to bring back the Kielbasa Festival to Chicopee, the festival’s organizer Thomas Kielbania Jr. announced on Facebook the Eastfield Mall in Springfield may be the location for the next festival.

Kielbania had hoped to bring the K-Fest to the civilian side of Westover, but the executive board that governs the use of the location did not approve the proposal.

On Jan. 31, Kielbania posted on Facebook, “Very Official Message: The Chicopee Kielbasa Festival has been invited to host our event ‘in exile’ at Eastfield Mall in Springfield, Massachusetts. We just met with mall managers and they have offered us to host Chicopee Kielbasa Festival at their location until we can come back to Chicopee. There is talk of fireworks as well as the food, carnival, massive market for retail as well as music/entertainment and of course beer and wine.

“We all know we’d rather have the event in Chicopee but there are Polish people everywhere and it’s only a 15 minute ride from Chicopee Mass! This is a fantastic opportunity and we like to thank the mall for reaching out in sympathy for our cause. We have reached out to Mayor Sarno’s office and have begun the process of exploring this possibility. No dates as of yet but it would be this year.

“Please let us know your kind thoughts below and share this post like you’ve never shared before!”

Nicole Sweeney of the management staff of Eastfield Mall told Reminder Publishing the mall did invite the K-fest, but that Keilbana has “a few more hurdles” he need to clear before the plans become reality.

She noted he must get several permits and approvals from the city of Springfield.

Sweeney added the most likely date for the event would be in September. Kielbania told Reminder Publishing that he is waiting to hear from Mayor Domenic Sarno and is trying to line up a carnival – a key component – for the event.

The festival was last staged in 2017 as a for-profit business. Kielbania has founded a non-profit group “Chicopee 4 Teachers” and all proceeds from the K-Fest would be used to fund that group’s support of teachers.

According to www.chicopee4teachers.org, “We exist for one reason: to support knowledge and learning in our community. Our students, our future generations, need teachers who are committed to providing the highest quality education they can. But what happens when those teachers are distracted by financial hardships, unrealistic expectations, and uncertainty? The answer is simple. Their students, our children, suffer. It’s time for the communities of Western Massachusetts to come together and help these true heroes out … Beginning with the city of Chicopee, and seeking to grow to encompass all the schools and teachers in the 413 area code, Chicopee for Teachers is just that. We are for the teachers. And we need your help!”

Kielbania said if the festival is presented in Springfield that city teachers would also benefit from monies raised at the K-fest.

He said he is not upset at the decision that blocked the use of the Westover location. Having it at a shopping mall made Kielbania think back of the fair’s heyday when it occupied the rear parking lot of the former Fairfield Mall in Chicopee drawing thousands of people from around New England.

Keibania brought back the festival after a 17-year absence in 2014, staging it that year and in 2015 at Szot Park. He then moved the festival to the grounds of the Eastern States Exposition for two more years.