It appears relief is on the way for people who bought tickets to the Roxodus Music Festival, which was abruptly cancelled by organizers earlier this week.
Eventbrite, the company that helped sell tickets for the four-day concert that was slated to be held next weekend at Edenvale Airport, posted a message on social media this morning that they would step in to refund ticket holders.
“After multiple attempts to communicate and secure funds back from the abruptly-cancelled Roxodus festival in Ontario, Canada, the organizers have provided no indication that they will refund ticket holders," reads the message from Eventbrite.
"We believe attendees deserve to get their money back now, so we have set up an Eventbrite-funded Fan Relief Program to make all Roxodus ticket holders whole while we continue to aggressively pursue the return of funds from the festival's creators.
"We are transferring funds to ticket holders immediately and they can expect to see it reflected on their credit card or bank statement within seven business days.”
One fan who wished to remain anonymous said he has already received his money back from Eventbrite.
Wanda Olma and her husband have yet to hear back regarding ticket refunds. She said she is hoping to hear back soon about the mini-vacation that went south for the grandparents.
“This has been an upsetting time for me and my husband as we invested $2,348 for both our tickets and a reserved campsite - monies I fear we may not get refunded,” Olma said in and email to BarrieToday.
“This was a once-in-a-lifetime mini vacation we were looking forward to, even renting a motor home for the event," she explained.
"Being a small business owner and each of us in our early sixties, this was a large investment of funds for us. We decided to take some of our savings and make this a fun adventure for the two of us (no kids, no grandkids, just us).
"It's a shame the event was cancelled, leaving so many with questions about refunds," she wrote. "(It is) especially difficult for the vendors who have worked hard to prepare for the opportunity to grow their businesses at what was supposed to be a large music event.”
Not just fans and vendors have been left in the dark by MF Live and its owners Mike Dunphy and Fab Loranger.
Damien Nelson, who had served as the company's the media contact for the festival, said he, too, has not heard from the organizers since he was tasked with sending out the cancellation notice.
“Thank you for your patience this week. I am no longer the media representative for Roxodus Music Festival,” said Nelson.
“After distributing the cancellation announcement on July 3, we have not received any further information about refunds, or when an update is expected after repeated requests. I do not know who the best contact is moving forward as that information has also not been shared with us.”
A call this morning to a phone number provided for the company went unanswered. It has not been answered since the event was cancelled.
The five-day music event was to have included performances from legends such as Aerosmith, Nickelback, Alice Cooper and a host of others.
Organizers cancelled the event, saying spring rains made the grounds "unfeasible" to support the large crowds and massive stages - a claim airport officals scoffed at.
