For the first time in the festival’s 14-year history, the Mid-City Bayou Boogaloo will not be a free festival.

The Bayou Boogaloo takes place this weekend along the banks of Bayou St John.

The fest begins on Friday, May 17, and goes through Sunday, May 19.

Bayou Boogaloo will charge a $10 single day admission fee, or $20 for the three-day weekend.

Wristbands will allow in and out access.

Children under the age of 12 are free.

Three-day tickets can be purchased in advance here: https://thebayouboogaloo.com

According to a press release, “A radical increase in land use fees is the reason an admission charge will be implemented in 2019. We understand this information is coming at the last minute, but it was unavoidable. Our choice was to cancel the fest, or implement a gate fee.”

The Friends of Bayou St. John Board of Directors made this decision in order to keep the Bayou Boogaloo viable for our musicians, artists and businesses that rely on our event and, most of all, for the hope that community festivals can remain part of the cultural landscape of New Orleans.

Friends of Bayou St. John works all year long to protect and preserve the bayou.

Tree planting, trash pick ups and efforts to clean the water are routine.

Just yesterday, Mid City Boogaloo/Friends of Bayou St. arranged for the 14 trees along Bayou St. John to be pruned, mulched, air-spaded (oxygenated.)

This was an in-kind donation from Benton Tree Service facilitated by Friends of Bayou St. John. Cost of this service would have been $19,165.