NEWARK - There was no Samba music, skewered beef or people sporting yellow and green while dancing in Newark’s Ironbound section this year for the city's annual Brazilian Day. The festival, which runs for two days in early September, was canceled allegedly because the organizer did not pay last year's bill.

Speaking in Portuguese, East Ward City Councilman Michael Silva stood on Ferry Street and informed the community at a Sept. 10 press conference why there was no Brazilian Day festival this year.

“I’m going to tell the truth, good or bad, the reason why it didn’t happen,” Silva said.

It costs nearly $100,000 to throw a festival in Newark, according to Silva. That covers the cost of police presence and firefighter services, post-event cleanup and the Office of Emergency Management pu

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