FOLEY, Ala. — The Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival has been grounded.

According to South Baldwin Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Donna Watts, the organization’s Board of Directors met Monday to discuss the festival’s future.

The result was a vote “to forego hosting the Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival for the immediate future,” she said in an email sent to Chamber volunteers this week.

In a phone interview, Watts explained that the Board felt Chamber resources could better be used elsewhere.

“We need to take the resources we have and put them toward more business-oriented programs,” she said.

Watts pointed out that for 10 months out of the year, some sort of preparation is made for the weekend event that takes place on Father’s Day weekend.

“That takes up a lot of time and resources,” she said.

In addition to Chamber staff, the festival is implemented with the help of more than 300 volunteers.

“There’s no way you can do that without them,” Watts said.

However, those efforts didn’t attract as many attendees to the 10^th annual event as they have in years past.

“Attendance was down because of the weather,” Watts said, citing the rainy first day of the festival.

She explained that 10 years ago, that might not have been a problem.

“Today, you’ve got weather at your fingertips,” Watts said. “If people see a 20 or 30 percent chance of rain in the forecast, they stay home.”

She added that because the Chamber doesn’t have a gated entry or ticket system, the number of attendees cannot be tracked.

The Chamber president and CEO also said that while the festival draws balloon pilots from across the country, that might not be true before long.

“It’s an extremely expensive hobby or sport,” Watts said, adding that young people are also not expressing as much interest in ballooning.

The chamber’s current business-focused programs include the following: AM Connections, a fast-paced networking opportunity; Leadership Series, periodic luncheons featuring a notable speaker; Business After Hours, monthly networking opportunities at member businesses; and Free Enterprise Luncheon, an annual event honoring the Walton M. Vines Free Enterprise Person of the Year.

With all of this in mind, Watts said the Chamber Board considered the trends and decided to opt out of hosting the Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival.

“However times and needs of our business community have changed in 10 years and so it is with all things, change is inevitable,” Watts said in the email to volunteers.

One thing that will not change is the Chamber’s hosting of the Alabama Festival of Flavor. The third annual event is set to take place in the streets of downtown Foley on Saturday, Oct. 18.

Watts explained that festival is a localized focus on farm-to-table food and drink, tying in with the Coastal Alabama Farmers and Fisherman’s Market.

“We want to continue to be part of that,” she said.