Edhat Staff
The annual Lucidity Festival scheduled for the end of June near Lake Cachuma has been postponed and moved to a new location amid fire season concerns and access issues.
On Friday festival organizers sent a letter to attendees explaining an “unexpected development” from local officials.
“Despite our successful track record at Live Oak Campground for over a decade, the Santa Barbara County Fire Department and California Highway Patrol have not approved our event scheduled for June 28-30,” organizers stated. “They have cited high fire season concerns and access issues due to the flowing river, which impairs one of our evacuation routes. For these reasons, they have put greater scrutiny on the venue’s capacity by reducing it to far below our expected 4000-5000 attendees.”
The Lucidity Festival describes itself as an open-source transformational arts and music festival. The three-day event features workshops, live music, camping, art and dance programs, and more with an emphasis on environmental and social responsibility.
The festival has taken place annually since 2012 at the Live Oak Campground off Highway 154.
Event organizers stated the County Fire Department and CHP are now requiring engineer-stamped traffic and fire safety plans; requirements the organizer have never faced before and were communicated only a few days ago. New directives for safety vehicles and personnel from various agencies were also required.
“Despite months of deliberation and revisions, the suggestion to hire a Traffic Engineer was only communicated on May 28, just two days before our onsite meeting with safety agencies at Live Oak. During this meeting, the suggestion was escalated to a requirement, and multiple additional mandates were introduced,” organizers stated.
Organizers stated they had no choice but to postpone the event and select a different location.
The new date for the Lucidity Festival will be April 25-27, 2025 at Lake San Antonio North Shore in Monterey County.
“The decision to postpone did not come easy. We made every attempt to pivot venues and maintain the same dates; however, we believe you deserve a well-planned, high-quality event that delivers the Lucidity experience you’ve come to love in a safe container,” organizers stated.
All tickets will transfer to the new date automatically although if those wish to request an exception or have further inquiries, they can fill out this form.
