The three-day 45,000-capacity music festival planned for August – billed as Wales' biggest – is also the world’s first emission-free festival promoters claim.
Monmouth Town Council’s People and Places committee heard from James Kenny, one of the men behind the event, about their plans for creating “an entire village” to make sure the event goes well later this year.
“The event will be bigger, better and cheaper” he claimed and explained that the maximum price for all three days will be £240, early bird prices start from £180, “which will include free camping, free buses and no booking fees!”
He is committed to supporting the town with over 60 per cent of the commercial stands going to local traders and businesses.
“We will only take 10 percent of their take in exchange for a pitch, with all the electricity and the waste provided,” he said.
Camping will take place on fields across the river on Troy Farm and a £55,000, 20 ft wide, 60 metre span bridge from the Mabey Bridge company will allow festival goers to get to the five stages.
He plans to build an entire village to support the event, with a fire station, bus station and a hospital with its own x-ray machine supported by four ambulances and six response bikes with doctors on call 24 hours a day.
Free shuttle buses will take festival-goers back into town so they can shop and explore if they want to.
Site security will include drugs dogs and profilers and 600 security staff, “everybody will be searched on entry,” he added.
He is in discussion with Toyota on using all hydrogen cars and pick-ups with electric or hydrogen buses and is holding talks on bringing National Express buses back to the town centre.
All cars will be directed from the A40 to the campsite at Troy Farm, “there will be only buses going down the Redbrook Road entrance.
The campsite will have glamping and camping: family sites and village communities as well as provision for motorhomes and will be able to cater for over 38,000 people.
Vehicle access will be in stages so that traffic can be managed by Tracsis who provide traffic management services and specialise in live events.
There will be five stages, from the main ‘Rebels’ Roost’ stage to a spoken word stage.
Over 100 acts have been lined up “and we will pay everybody, unlike some festivals who just offer up and coming bands free slots,” he added.
Gig Pig connects venues and bookers with top musicians and is organizing the line-up.
The main stages will be over the far end of the site and will face away from Wyesham so the noise will be mitigated, “and the bands will stop at 11pm” he added.
He’s paying for extra parking wardens to patrol Wyesham as well as the town to make sure that traffic does not clog up the surrounding area “and we have car transporters to take away anyone parking illegally.”
Councillors and the public were then invited to ask James questions and when asked how confident he was with reaching the capacity crowds, he replied, “I know the line-up”.
The anticipated capacity of 45,000 includes crew members, media personnel, guests, security staff, bands, and festival attendees.
The event is costing £9m but is expected to bring a revenue of £28m to the town
The festival is planned for August 29-31, and for more information and tickets, see www.monmouthrising.com
Keep an eye out in the Beacon for an exclusive headline act announcement.