A large rock music festival slated to take place northwest of Barrie, Ont. next week has been cancelled due to the impact of recent heavy rain on the venue, organizers say.
The Roxodus Music Festival, scheduled for July 11 to 14 at the Edenvale Aerodome Airport in Stayner, Ont., was cancelled on Wednesday. Organizers said on social media that the 170- hectare venue in Clearview Township would not be ready in time.
Aerosmith, Kid Rock, Nickelback, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Alice Cooper, Cheap Trick, Peter Frampton, Billy Idol and Blondie, were among more than 20 bands expected to perform.
“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,” organizers said in the posting.
“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.”
Organizers said information about ticket refunds would be released shortly.
Damien Nelson, a representative for MF Live Inc., the live entertainment company that was producing the festival, said in an email to CBC Toronto: “Roxodus representatives will not be available for interviews.”
On a cached version of the Roxodus website, the tickets and refunds policy reads: “All tickets are FINAL SALE. No refunds will be issued for any reason.”
Clearview Township, the municipality where the event was scheduled to take place, said in a news release on Wednesday that the cancellation is “unfortunate news.”
It said MF Live Inc. met all the requirements of the township’s temporary use zoning bylaw amendment and special event agreement that was approved by council on June 19.
“The decision to cancel the festival was a business decision made independently by MF Live Inc.,” the township said in the release.
“As a municipality, our primary concern has been the safety of our residents and the financial well being of Clearview Township. Clearview staff and council have done everything foreseeably possibly to protect the public and the taxpayers while working with Roxodus organizers to meet all the necessary municipal requirements.”
