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Founders Festival organizers outline 2025 plans; council asks for final approval March 17
Summary
Organizers from 360 Event Productions presented the Founders Festival 2025 plan—returning fan favorites, new food vendors and volunteer-led elements—and told council they will return with a finalized application for approval on March 17 after eight weeks of confirmation with partners.
Julia Law, owner of 360 Event Productions, and Jenna Smith, the festival's event manager, presented a recap of the 2024 Founders Festival and an outline for the 2025 event, telling the Farmington City Council on Feb. 18 that most popular elements will return and several new features are being pursued.
Law said the 60th Founders Festival will return favorites such as FidoFest, a kids zone, a crafters market, live music and the parade, and that organizers are adding new food vendors, including Mediterranean and halal options. "Everything last year in here is pretty much coming back for 2025," Law said. She also described plans to integrate a PTA-run bingo tent into the beer-tent area to give the PTA a more visible, supported footprint at the event.
Council members pressed organizers about communication and logistics after some volunteer-run groups reported problems last year. Council member Taylor said some volunteers "weren't in touch with us" and urged more proactive outreach; Julia Law and Jenna Smith said they will run a biweekly update cadence and work directly with volunteer leads. Law recommended an eight-week hard deadline for having supporting organizations confirm participation: "Let's say 8 weeks prior to the festival is, like, a hard deadline," she told the council.
Organizers discussed candidate locations for new attractions (for example, placing a fast-pitch inflatable in the kids zone) and said local partners such as Farmington Baseball League and Heights Brewing will support programming. They also described marketing timelines: early rollouts will be locked in with later digital additions possible if groups confirm afterward.
The council did not vote on the application at the Feb. 18 meeting. The council asked staff and organizers to return with a finalized event application at the March 17 meeting for formal approval. That schedule is intended to allow volunteer groups and partner organizations time to confirm logistics and finalize signage and program placement.
