UPDATE: At 8 a.m., Roxodus tweeted: "It is with a heavy heart that we announce the cancellation of the Roxodus Music Festival." Full statement added to bottom of this article.
Organizers of the inaugural Roxodus music festival will announce today that they are pulling the plug, with only a week to go.
The four-day event was scheduled to kick off July 11 at the Edenvale Airport in Clearview Township and boasted headliners like Aerosmith, Kid Rock, Nickelback, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Alice Cooper.
On July 1st, the festival tweeted: “Happy Canada Day, Rockers! Can’t wait to see you NEXT WEEK!”
The official reason for the cancellation is rain – the site is saturated so staging the festival is not possible.
Information about refunds has not yet been provided. Ticket sales were suspended late Tuesday. Previous buyers agreed to terms and conditions that state the event can be scrapped “without ... any obligation to issue a refund or reschedule the Festival” if due to “events outside the Company’s control.”
MORE: Should Fans Be Surprised By Roxodus Cancellation?
CTV News Barrie reported Tuesday that there were discussions about moving the festival to the Burl’s Creek Event Grounds, which hosted the Rolling Stones concert this past weekend. Township officials said no application to move the festival had been submitted.
Organized by Mike Dunphy and Fab Loranger, Roxodus promised fans an “experience of a lifetime” with a line-up that also included Peter Frampton, Collective Soul, Cheap Trick, Billy Idol, Blondie and a number of Canadian acts like Matthew Good, Big Wreck, Theory of a Deadman, I Mother Earth and Honeymoon Suite.
Tickets ranged from $129 for single day general admission to $639 for a four-day VIP pass. Organizers also sold camping packages priced between $219 and $1,600; parking from $49 to $119; and shuttle bus services from nearby towns.
MORE: Roxodus Joins Graveyard Of Canadian Music Fests
A representative for MF Live Inc. said last month that 20,000 passes had been sold. According to the Roxodus website, only the top-tier RV camping packages, priced as high as $789, were sold out. (In March, festival co-founder Mike Dunphy said all the bands had been paid in full.)
MF Live Inc. only secured approval for a temporary zoning bylaw amendment and special events permit from the township on June 19. Council left organizers responsible for all costs, including additional police resources and paramedic services.
UPDATE: Statement from Roxodus organizers:
"During the past couple of months, our venue at Edenvale Airport has battled tremendous rainy weather that has impacted our ability to produce the festival. It is with a heavy heart that we announce the cancellation of the Roxodus Music Festival this year. Our team has worked tirelessly to find a solution in which the show can go on but unfortunately, we could not make it happen this year. Our dream of producing a ‘once in a lifetime experience’ has been put on hold as we take the much-needed time to nurture our venue into a premier landmark in Ontario. We sincerely thank all of the artists, sponsors, partners, and neighbors who have supported us from the very beginning. The embrace from our community has meant the world to us and we hope to one day see our dream come to life. Information about ticket refunds will be released shortly."