Jason Isbell performs during the 2021 Under the Big Sky festival in Whitefish.
The Missoula County Fairgrounds will get a rental fee of at least $50,000 -- and up to $120,000 depending on the number of tickets sold -- for allowing concert promoters to host the two-day Zootown Music Festival at the fairgrounds on July 4-5, 2025.
Fairgrounds events and operations manager Billie Ayers shared the 21-page facility use agreement the Fairgrounds signed with Always On LLC, the main concert promoter for the new festival. The term of the lease is for six days every year starting in 2025 and ending in 2029, meaning the festival could be held every summer through 2029.
There are stipulations in the contract that state the concert promoters must pay for any delays in cleanup or damage to the Fairgrounds.
Ayers said that the county won't be liable if there's, for example, damage to fencing or to the turf or arena.
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The Western Montana Fair is the largest event of the year at the Fairgrounds, and it's scheduled for Aug. 5-10, 2025.
"It's a tight window for us, so we wanted to make sure it's far enough in front of the Fair," Ayers said.
The music festival is not expected to bring as many people as the Fair.
"The Fair sees 23,000 people on a Friday and Saturday, so this (music festival) is going to be between 15,000 and 20,000 folks," Ayers said. "The Fair sees 110,000 people for all six days, and it's an all day thing, so we're kind of used to it. And the best part is, for the music festival, we will just be herding people. We won't have to flip a hockey rink into an (animal barn). It's something that we can actually enjoy before the craziness hits us as a staff."
Ayers said the goal is for the Fairgrounds to host more "community-connecting" events in the future, and the music festival fits the bill. She said the five-year contract will allow the Fairgrounds staff to work with professionals in the music industry to see how spaces at the Fairgrounds can be designed so they're versatile enough to host many different events.
"It's nice to have partnerships like this, to have those conversations," Ayers said. "We never want to get to a place where it's bottlenecked as just one thing. There's all kinds of different ways of seeing the Fairgrounds as being more versatile. This is meant as a community connections center."
Ayers said that any event that's over 5,000 people gets to book two years in advance, so they can choose dates. Events of over 1,000 people can book 18 months ahead and then weddings and banquets and smaller events are backfilled.
Unlike many cities where the Fairgrounds are way on the outskirts of town, Missoula's Fairgrounds are a desirable event space because they're right in the middle of the city. That means less driving, and people can get to events much more easily.
"We don't have that (distance) issue," Ayers said.
In fact, when many fairgrounds around the U.S. are struggling to break even, the Missoula County Fairgrounds gets booked for a healthy number of events, meaning more revenue.
"That means our historic buildings are getting maintained and restored," Ayers said. "We're now in our second hundred years of life, and we're very lucky to be managing here at this time."
The Zootown Music Festival will have two main stages, Ayers said, with one on the big grass area where the carnival is located during the Fair and another stage playing to the grandstands from the rodeo arena.
After the first $50,000 guaranteed, the Fairgrounds will get $5 from every ticket sold for a maximum total of $120,000. When counting tickets sold, two-day and three-day tickets will count as one ticket sold.
"The revenue goes to the County Fairgrounds fund and is used to maintain our rental buildings and offset operation costs," Ayers explained. "It does not go to the county general fund, it will always stay with the Fairgrounds. It does not go to the Missoula Fairgrounds Foundation, which helps with capital improvements like the grandstands."
Scott Osburn of Always On LLC said he's had a great working relationship with county officials so far.
"We're committed to working closely with the Fairgrounds and surrounding areas to grow this event into a signature part of Missoula's cultural and economic landscape," Osburn said. "We view this as a collaborative effort, and by building a strong partnership with the community, we're confident that we can make Zootown an event that Missoula will be proud to host for many years."
The dates that Zootown Music Festival has locked up for 2025 are July 2-8, although the music is only scheduled for the 4-5. It appears the festival may not always fall on the 4th in future years, because in 2028 and 2029 the dates are for the later part of June and the first few days in July.
"We have a long-term vision for the Zootown Music Festival to become a marquee legacy event for Missoula, one that continues to grow and contribute to our community for years to come," Osburn explained. "With that in mind, it's important for us to have flexibility on event dates in the early years as we fine-tune the festival's logistics and scheduling. This flexibility will allow us to adjust and ensure that the festival's timing aligns with both local and regional needs."
In 2025, the festival will feature musical acts like Hozier, Modest Mouse, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, Kacey Musgraves and more.
David Erickson is the business reporter for the Missoulian.
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