Woodstock Organizers Want To Move Festival To Maryland

COLUMBIA, MD — In an attempt to salvage the event, organizers of the Woodstock 50th anniversary music festival want to relocate it to Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia. The festival won’t take place in its original 1969 home in upstate New York after the main backer pulled the plug on the event.

The festival is now scheduled to take place Aug. 16-18 at the outdoor amphitheater in Columbia, Bloomberg reported. The venue should be able to accommodate 32,000 people.

Organizers of Woodstock 50 have been working to save the festival after their main financial backer pulled out of the event and local officials in upstate New York refused to approve a permit. Attempts to move it to different spots in the state failed.

In documents obtained by Bloomberg and reported by Rolling Stone, Howard County Executive Calvin Ball wrote to Greg Peck, one of the Woodstock organizers: “When we heard that there was an opportunity to save this festival and bring a piece of American history to our community this summer, we jumped at the chance.”

The documents also said the festival would be renamed “Woodstock 50 Washington” and it will primarily serve as a fundraiser for nonprofits dedicated to climate change and voter turnout.