After a quarter-century in Wickliffe, The FEST, Northeast Ohio’s long-running Christian music and family festival, is packing up its lawn chairs and heading west. The one-day celebration will move to ForeFront Field in Avon on Saturday, August 15, 2026, ending a 25-year run in Wickliffe while keeping its familiar mix of national Christian artists, kids’ activities, an outdoor Mass and an evening fireworks finale. For 2026, admission will be $10 per person, and organizers plan to cap attendance at 10,000 to keep the vibe family-friendly. Landing inside a ballpark means permanent restrooms, built-in seating and stadium infrastructure that planners say should make the whole operation easier to manage.
Announcement and organizers' message
Organizers rolled out the relocation plan this week, framing the move around sustainability and public-safety concerns while promising it will still feel like the FEST regulars know. They are billing it as the "same event with all the activities and areas familiar to attendees." As reported by Cleveland.com, the change comes on the heels of the festival’s 25th year in Wickliffe, where it has drawn tens of thousands of people over the years. The Diocese of Cleveland remains listed as a lead sponsor, and organizers told reporters that sponsorship support will be available for families who need financial help.
Tickets, capacity and access
According to a Lake Erie Crushers news release republished by OurSportsCentral, tickets for The FEST will cost $10 and were scheduled to go on sale April 9 through the festival website. That release also confirms that ticket sales will be capped at 10,000 to maintain a family-friendly atmosphere, with sponsorships offered to help families unable to pay. Stadium perks like permanent restrooms, on-site seating and accessible facilities are being touted as key reasons for shifting the event into a ballpark setting.
Why ForeFront Field?
ForeFront Field - the home of the Lake Erie Crushers - already comes with many of the pieces a big outdoor festival usually has to build from scratch. Suites, concession stands and permanent concourse bathrooms are all in place, which organizers say cuts down on the logistical heavy lifting required to host large crowds. According to the venue’s ForeFront Field page, the ballpark’s 2026 calendar is already crowded, listing more than 250 events for the year. That built-in schedule gives Avon an established events infrastructure and staff to lean on. Venue officials also point to easy access from I-90 and established parking plans as practical advantages for a one-day festival.
What’s changing - and what isn’t
The FEST’s own website still lists the 2026 date but shows the location as "TBA," a sign that organizers are still pushing updates across their channels; the official site remains theFEST.us. Local tourism coverage has long pegged the Wickliffe version as a major summer draw, with one visitor guide grouping the 2025 FEST among events that attract "tens of thousands." As Cleveland.com noted, the Diocese of Cleveland continues as a sponsor, and organizers say they plan to preserve the programming people have come to expect.
Local impact
For Wickliffe, the move means losing a high-profile free event that local tourism materials credit with boosting hotels, restaurants and shuttle services. Avon, on the other hand, picks up a midsummer attraction that plugs neatly into an already busy ForeFront Field calendar. Tour Lake County's event preview highlighted the festival’s 2025 footprint and the hospitality bump that comes with it, and both communities’ town and business leaders will now be watching how parking, traffic and shuttle routes are handled as more on-the-ground details roll out.
Where to buy tickets and next steps
Organizers say tickets will go on sale April 9 through the festival website and will be limited in number, so would-be attendees are being directed to keep an eye on theFEST.us for the official ticket launch and ongoing updates. The Lake Erie Crushers' event calendar and ForeFront Field staff are also expected to share logistical information as August 15 approaches, and organizers reiterate that sponsorship and assistance programs will be available for families who need them.
