Updated Post 11:55 a.m. June 14 The city of Katy officially announced June 14 it will host the 2018 City of Katy Rice Festival the second weekend of October in downtown Katy. In a statement released Thursday, the city announced it will work to bring a renewed focus to the event and is renaming it the City of Katy Rice Festival. “Our goal is to bring the festival back to its original form,” Katy Mayor Chuck Brawner said in the release. “It will be a family-orientated event with only quality arts and craft vendors, live music, excellent food and drinks and fun for the whole family—an event that the City of Katy, our residents and businesses and visitors would be proud of.” The city said in the release it plans to partner with area civic groups, local downtown businesses and key sponsors. More information on the festival will be released in the coming weeks. "The City of Katy hopes you will support our dedication to this iconic festival," the release stated. "Please mark your calendars and plan to be part of the 2018 City of Katy Rice Festival." Those interested in sponsorships or volunteering may contact Kayce Reina, the City of Katy’s Director of Tourism & Marketing: [email protected] or 281-391-8653. Updated Post 3:24 p.m. June 13 The 2018 Harvest Festival is back on after Katy Mayor Chuck Brawner said the city will take on the financial responsibility and host the festival. "We’ve already been working on it and [we are going to have the festival] in the same time frame in October," Mayor Brawner said. "We’re in the preliminary stages right now. A lot of our ideas are tentative, but we will have something because it’s important for our community and the history of Katy that we keep that going." Original Post 12:46 p.m. June 13 The Katy Area Chamber of Commerce has confirmed the city's annual Rice Harvest Festival will be cancelled this year. The Katy Rice Festival is an annual celebration of Katy's agricultural heritage that typically features a carnival, various contests and competitions, arts and crafts and live entertainment in downtown Katy. The festival has long been celebrated by Katy residents since it started in 1981. The two-day weekend celebration has brought in between 40,000-50,000 residents in the past, according to the Chamber's website. The Chamber was unable to provide explanation for the cancellation. Community Impact Newspaper will update this story with more information including the reasoning of the cancellation as it becomes available.