MENTOR, Ohio — If your summer plans typically included a stop at Mentor Headlands BeachFest, the city shared a status update on Monday regarding the event’s future.
“BeachFest has not been scheduled for 2024 and will likely not be resumed in the future,” according to a statement on the city of Mentor’s site. “We’re thankful for the tens of thousands of beachgoers that have attended BeachFest over the past decade, as well as the generous support of our sponsors, vendors, volunteers, and staff who made it all possible.”
While a reason for the decision was not initially provided in the city’s statement when it was first posted Monday, it has since been updated after 3News reached out for further information.
“We all agree that BeachFest was a great event but required a substantial commitment from the city in terms of financial support as well as staffing from members of the parks, police, and fire departments,” according to new details on the city of Mentor's site. “Attendance was highly reliant on weather and presented a challenge on attracting vendors and other participants. Headlands BeachFest was hosted at Headlands Beach State Park and was presented solely by the city of Mentor. To date, the city of Mentor has not engaged neighboring communities or county and state agencies including ODNR [Ohio Department of Natural Resources] regarding their interest in reviving the event but is willing to engage in that discussion.”
A spokesperson for the city of Mentor tells 3News the decision to cancel Headlands BeachFest "was made solely by Mentor Parks & Recreation."
After the news first surfaced, some turned to the Headlands BeachFest Facebook page to discuss their disappointment.
“Lame. Headlands has so much potential and whoever runs that show completely wastes one of the greatest tourist destinations you can imagine in the Great Lakes area,” one person wrote. “This place could be throwing concert festivals with food trucks and they could easily improve that weak concession stand and turn it into a restaurant or something, but no. Let's just leave it get run down and take away any event that draws people to the area.”
3News also reached out to officials at ODNR, but they told us the city of Mentor was handling the updates regarding Headlands BeachFest.