While it was just last week that Coachella announced they would officially be cancelling the initially postponed 2020 edition, all hope might not be lost for events in the area at the end of this year.
While speaking to local television news network KESQ News Channel 3 on June 12 about cancellations of major events in the area, Indio Mayor Glenn Miller revealed that Goldenvoice is considering putting on a major event in October similar to the company’s famous Desert Trip.
The original Desert Trip was headlined by The Who, Roger Waters, The Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney, Neil Young, and Bob Dylan and its 2016 edition garnered much attention as it grossed a whopping $160 million over two weekends.
While it is obvious that a festival as massive as Coachella has a major impact on the local economy, Miller said in the interview that Coachella’s cancellation is expected to cost the City of Indio $4 million. While the cancellation stood looming over their heads after the initial postponement to October, the move was not entirely unexpected. He went on to say that the decision was largely out of their hands since other figures like the County Supervisor, public health officer Dr Cameron Kaiser and Governor Gavin Newsome had a big say in whether it was safe and the event could go forward or not.
With regards to what might however still be in store during October, Mayor Miller said,
“It’s possible. We’re working with Goldenvoice now to see what we can do about hopefully having another concert in October, [a bit] like a Desert Trip, hopefully, either a two-day or two-weekend concert to help with the economy not only for the city of Indio but for the whole Coachella Valley and the state of California. The funding that it brings in is amazing to a lot of our businesses who could use a good shot in the arm and at the same time, it gives a lot of our businesses some hope. We have a great relationship with Goldenvoice and the Empire Polo Club and I believe we will be able to pull this off.”
If, when, and what this event will be and if it will even be possible to host a large scale public event by October of 2020 still remains to be seen. One thing, however, is for sure, the local economy which is already drastically impacted by COVID-19 closure losses will further feel the hit with the cancellation of Coachella, Stagecoach, and more major festivals since they rake in billions of dollars via taxes, tourism, etc.
