The status of the critically acclaimed Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival was put into question last week, according to a report found on laweekly.com.
The event, held in Indio, Calif., is widely considered the holy grail of music festivals for indie music lovers. Coachella has gained more and more traction each year, with the total number of attendees tying the event’s record of 75,000 three-day passes sold last year.
Earlier this year, Coachella festival promoter and organizer Goldenvoice announced that the show would be adding a second weekend for the first time in the festival’s history. This sparked the neighboring city of La Quinta to pressure the Indio City Council to perform an environmental review of the popular music festival. The Indio City Council listened to the concerns of the La Quinta City Council, postponing the approval of the contract of the event.
In 1999, the first Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, then known simply as Coachella Fest, was held on the Empire Polo Field festival grounds in Indio. Since then, as the event has grown in attendance and size, and so has neighboring city La Quinta. The city now borders two sides of the festival’s location, prompting concerns from residents about the addition of the second weekend.
Adding to the frustration of the event’s uncertainty, fans wanting to reserve their spot have already put their pre-sale tickets on hold by making monthly payments for the hefty price of $269 for a three-day pass.
The Indio City Council made revisions to the contract with Goldenvoice on Oct. 4, which was not enough for the La Quinta City Council. La Quinta asked for a 30-day delay on signing the contract to address the need of an Environmental Impact Review. If the review is found to be necessary, the recommended 75 days of public comment could very well delay the current opening date of the Coachella Festival.
Reach the reporter at tpaxton@asu.edu
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