Ontario’s Roxodus music festival cancelled, organizers say

Organizers of the highly-anticipated Roxodus music festival say the event has been cancelled citing concerns with the venue, though Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) also say they are investigating a former employee of the company behind the festival.

The organizers of the event, which boasted a lineup with Aerosmith, Kid Rock, Nickelback, and Lynyrd Skynyrd, among others, announced the cancellation of the four-day show on Wednesday morning.

It was scheduled for July 11 to 14 in Clearview Township.

“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 on social media.

“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 … Information about ticket refunds will be released shortly,” they added.

However, Global News visited the site where the event was scheduled to take place and much of the ground appeared dry Wednesday.

Additionally, earlier on Wednesday the OPP told Global News that their Huronia West Detachment was investigating a complaint that officers received late last week against MF Live Inc., the company that owns the festival — though police have since clarified that officers are investigating a former employee of the company.

Police would not say what the nature of the investigation was or provide any details. They would not say if it is tied to the festival’s cancellation.

A police spokesperson said they will not be releasing a formal statement on the investigation unless it leads to something concrete.

The all-ages festival was to take place at the Edenvale Aerodrome in a 420-acre space at a private airport just northwest of Barrie.

A four-day VIP pass for the event cost $639, not including taxes and fees, while a single-day general admission pass went for $129, plus taxes and fees.

Meanwhile, attendees who were planning to camp in either an RV or tent would potentially pay between $219, plus fees and taxes, to $1,600 for a lakeside spot.

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The festival’s eventbrite page where attendees would purchase tickets had a no-refund policy.

“All sales final. No refunds or exchanges,” it said. However, that same policy also said, “We go rain or shine.”

It is unclear what the organizers plan to announce with regards to ticket refunds.

Social media users reacting to the news have been expressing disappointment and have been demanding refunds.

There is no word on when the next update will come from organizers and Global News’ attempts to reach the event’s communication team have been unsuccessful.

Clearview Township responded to news of the cancellation in a statement Wednesday.

“The cancellation of Roxodus Music Fest by MF Live Inc., Roxodus Music Fest promoters, is unfortunate news,” the statement read.

In an interview with Global News, Clearview Township Mayor Doug Measures said prior to this announcement, there had been discussion about potentially moving the event to Burl’s Creek in Oro-Medonte, Ont., the same location where the Rolling Stones concert was held on June 29.

Measures said he received a call from the mayor of Oro-Medonte last Thursday and the mayor offered to assist in moving the event after hearing it may be in trouble.

WATCH: Work appears stalled at venue that was to host Roxodus music festival

1:02 Work appears stalled at venue that was to host Roxodus music festival

In addition to those efforts, Global News has learned that there were additional attempts to move the festival to Burl’s Creek even after the cancellation was announced. Despite that, it appears the festival will still not be happening.

“Despite last minute attempts with MF Live to arrange the show at Burl’s Creek, we can confirm that Roxodus will not take place at our property,” the Burl’s Creek public relations team told Global News.

Measures added that he was very disappointed, but not necessarily surprised by the news of the cancellation Wednesday.

“Over the weekend when I drove by the site, over the Canada Day weekend, I observed there was very little work going on,” he said.

“For certain, we have had a very wet spring here in Clearview … I’m not surprised that the soil is very saturated here with water.”

However, Measures added that he had not gone inside the venue area to see it for himself.

“It’s unfortunate for the volunteers and the vendors that would have been working at this event; the service clubs that were going to be involved in selling tickets and that type of thing. Certainly there’s a lot of people in our community who are going to be impacted by this,” he said.

– With files from Don Mitchell and Jamie Mauracher