MILWAUKEE — PrideFest is officially returning to Milwaukee this year.

Milwaukee Pride, Inc., the parent organization of PrideFest, announced Thursday that it is hosting “PridetoberFest” from Oct. 8-9 at the Henry W. Maier Festival Park.

Organizers said PridetoberFest will be a scaled-back version of the traditional June festival, that was canceled for the second year in a row due to the COVID-19 pandemic. PridetoberFest will utilize a smaller footprint on the Henry W. Maier Festival Park compared to the last PrideFest in 2019. 

The event will still use multiple stages to highlight various entertainment, including musicians and shows. The festival will also feature popular local food trucks for guests.

“We just couldn’t wait until 2022 to see our LGBTQ+ family and allies again," PrideFest Producer and Milwaukee Pride Vice President Luke Olson said in a media release. “October is LGBTQ+ history month along with National Coming Out Day. What better moment to gather and reflect on the long journey that got us to this point - and of course, to celebrate!”

PrideFest organizers said Friday’s hours are set for 3 p.m. to midnight and Saturday’s hours will be noon to midnight. 

“For the last two festival planning seasons, our planning processes were guided by science, direction from local government, the health department, and of course the needs of our community,” said Milwaukee Pride President Wes Shaver. “Now these same sources have offered new guidelines and pathways to come out of the pandemic and it’s time to listen and act accordingly. We are excited to bridge the gap between recent summers and what we expect will be a fully open and back to normal 2022. It’s time to bring businesses and communities back to life!” he added. 

Milwaukee Pride is working on entertainment lineups, tickets and more details. Additional event information will be available later this month or in early August.