ANKENY, Iowa — The announcement came last week.

“For our 21st year, we’re excited to announce our new home at the District at Prairie Trail in Ankeny!”

The negative reception began almost immediately.

“That makes me sad,” said one poster on Facebook. “This was something that was unique to Des Moines. I’m tired of events, restaurants, etc. moving to the suburbs!”

Some called the move a “money grab” while others promised not to attend.

Chris Burch, the new executive director of the Water Works Park Foundation, claimed he was blindsided by the news.

“Water Works Park was approached by Oktoberfest with plans to move the event to Ankeny, and we were told that those plans had been done and really served more as a heads-up.”

Oktoberfest Des Moines organizers say this is a completely inaccurate assessment of the situation. They say the move was due to Burch, who had overbooked Lauridsen Amphitheater for the weekend of Oktoberfest.

“He booked a concert for that Sunday and then came to us saying he’d created a scheduling issue,” said Mindy Toyne, director and owner of Oktoberfest Des Moines.

“There’s almost no way we could tear down Oktoberfest in time for a Sunday concert on the Lauridsen stage,” says Tony Rose, whose Function House Hospitality Group sets up and tears down the event. “At the very least, we’d have to hire many more workers and pay them triple overtime to do it.”

Facing a cost-prohibitive situation, Toyne said she had no choice but to look for a new venue.

But where? Des Moines’ other spots each brought their own problems.

“We can’t stake tents on the Riverview Park lawn because of the irrigation system,” Rose said. “And the Iowa State Fairgrounds are expensive and require lots of perimeter fencing.”

“We loved having the event down on 4th Street downtown,” Toyne added, “but we’ve outgrown it.”

In the end, Toyne and Rose said the still-new amphitheater at the District at Prairie Trail in Ankeny checked the most boxes.

“It’s got tons of parking and a beautiful perimeter fence already set up,” Toyne explained. “It’s also got an amazing stage that’s completely covered. Those of us who’ve endured rainy days of Oktoberfests in the past can attest to how important that is.”

Rose says that amphitheater is the very best in Iowa, and the grounds are ideal for vendors.

“The whole place is completely wired for electric already,” he said. “They’ll be able to set up everywhere — on plenty of concrete — and have everything they need.”

Toyne signed a five-year deal with The District to give it some long-needed continuity.

“This year will be great, but next year will be better and so on, and so forth,” she said. “We need to give it some time to improve year to year before we look at moving it again.”

Oktoberfest runs September 26 and 27. Tickets go on sale Friday, July 18 at www.oktoberfestdsm.com

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