Clearview Township on the hook as bills mount for defunct Roxodus

Bills mount for township after defunct Roxodus The township of Clearview is tallying up the bills as they roll in for the defunct Roxodus. Roger Klein reports.

It's July 11th, the day thousands of people anxiously awaited for months.

Billed as the event of the summer, the Roxodus Music Festival that was supposed to start today, promised to rock the Edenvale Aerodrome in Clearview Township for four days. Rock legends Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Blondie and many more were scheduled to hit the stage.

Ticket holders were upset and angered by the abrupt news of the festival cancellation on July 3rd.

Karen Bull and her friends travelled from England to see their favourite bands perform at Roxodus. It wasn't until they landed in Toronto last week that they heard the news. "A bit of anger, obviously a lot of disappointment, but we are trying to make the best of it."

The mayor of Clearview is also 'trying to make the best of it' as the bills begin to mount for the defunct festival.

MF Live Inc., the company behind Roxodus, agreed to put up a $250,000 performance security to cover any costs Clearview Township might incur, but they didn't follow through. "We do have security in knowing that our agreement is registered against their title, so if there are further fees and expenses we will exercise that right and apply it to their property," Mayor Doug Measures says.

While the bills are still being tallied, the mayor says he expects them to exceed $25,000, and that amount could grow significantly.

Simcoe County has launched an appeal of the temporary use by-law that allowed for Roxodus, plus a limited number of other events, over the next two years. Environmentally sensitive land that was disturbed may also need restorations.

"So those fees are kind of unknown as to what that might cost to do, but we expect MF Live to meet the terms of the agreement and restore those lands," says Measures.

At this point, the owner of the property, Taurus Investment Group (not to be confused with the American company of the same name), and MF Live Inc. have not been invoiced by the township.

No one from MF Live was available for comment today.