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Mission Viejo reports nearly 10,000 visits at inaugural Barbecue Music Fest; city nets about $6,000
Summary
City staff told the council the July 25–27 Barbecue Music Fest drew roughly 8,800 unique visitors (nearly 10,000 visits total), produced targeted parking revenue and raised funds for local groups; staff said the event put financial risk on the contractor and may become annual.
Director Mark Nix told the council the new Mission Viejo Barbecue Music Fest, held July 25–27 at El Sol Viejo Community Park, drew roughly 8,800 unique visitors and “bringing our attendance to just under 10,000 visits.” Nix provided a daily breakdown — about 3,000 on Friday, 4,100 on Saturday and 2,900 on Sunday — and said the average stay was 165 minutes and the median participant age was 37.9.
Nix said preferred parking generated $9,000; of that, $4,000 supported the city’s sports/Olympics effort, $3,000 went to the New Hart PTA and $2,000 went to the Marine Adoption Committee. “As it stands right now, we've netted 6,000,” he told the council, adding that the city had shifted most financial risk to the event contractor and expected some vendor invoices to still be processed.
MVTV produced a highlight reel shown to the council; Garth Wyckoff, reporting for MVTV, summarized the three-day festival and its family-focused attractions. Council members praised staff for organizing a major new event and said public feedback was largely positive, though staff acknowledged online comments flagged areas for improvement if the event returns next year.
City leaders said the event supported the Sports and Events Tourism Committee’s goal of marketing Mission Viejo as a potential training venue for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic effort, and noted that attendees came from nearby cities including Santa Margarita, Lake Forest, Aliso Viejo and others. Staff said that most contracted obligations — including financial risk for vendor performance — were placed on the contractor.
