Huntsville's new music festival takes another step forward

Talk of a new music festival at John Hunt Park became a bit more than just talk at Thursday night’s Huntsville City Council meeting, as the council voted unanimously to allow Mayor Tommy Battle to enter into a three-year partnership agreement with C3 Presents LLC, to produce the two-day festival.

Here’s what we know:

About the music festival

The festival will take place at John Hunt Park’s 428 acres of green space, and it will take place over the course of two days.

The proposed annual music festival is set for 2025 but organizers say it could happen as early as the weekend of Sept. 28-29, 2024, depending on . talent acquisition and logistics. C3 Presents estimates about 30,000 people will attend in year one.

The festival’s name will be announced later.

“This will have significant appeal and should attract music fans from other states and possibly other countries. The investments we’ve made over the years to John Hunt Park are already attracting large-scale sports events, and it’s also what appealed to C3 Presents. It’s the perfect venue for an event of this magnitude.”
Mayor Tommy Battle

The agreement with C3 Presents

C3’s portfolio includes the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Texas and Lollapalooza in Chicago and its seven international editions — drawing a combined 2 million attendees annually.

The event roster also includes Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, Innings Festival, Shaky Knees, Railbird Festival, Moon River Festival, Austin Food + Wine Festival and more.

Here are some more details about the contract:

C3 would manage all festival production, from booking the talent to logistics, vendors and volunteers.
The City of Huntsville is required to reimburse C3 Presents for any net losses, up to $1 million, each year.
Unused funds will be reinvested into John Hunt Park.
The City will also provide public safety and EMS services for each event as well as matching funds for marketing.
The contract also requires restoration of John Hunt Park following each event.
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“C3’s global body of work speaks for itself, and the fact that a festival producer of their caliber is committed to developing a signature event in Huntsville speaks volumes to our reputation as an emerging music city. Their team is very excited about coming to Huntsville, and we’re confident they will deliver the world class festival experience our community deserves.”
Matt Mandrella, Huntsville Music Office director

The 2022 edition of the Austin City Limits Festival, held the first two weekends in October, had an economic impact of $447 million in the City of Austin. Lollapalooza 2022 contributed more than $335 million to the City of Chicago’s economy.

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