Hogs for the Cause will relocate to the fields behind the UNO Lakefront Arena when it returns in the spring of 2017. The event will take place on March 31 and April 1, with the lineup dropping in December of this year.
For the past few years, the charity barbecue competition/music festivals has set up shop in City Park, where it drew 20,000 people this past April. According to NOLA.com, UNO’s Lakefront Arena Grounds on Leon C. Simon Drive has roads and slabs that organizers can utilize to make things run more smoothly.
“We did a lot of soul searching,” Hogs for the Cause co-founder Rene Louapre told the publication. “City Park has helped us grow, but based on where the teams are going—these smokers weigh a lot—we needed better logistics.”
Louapre explained that another factor in the decision was a desire to relieve some of the strain on Mid-City, which hosts a number of events during the same time period. He also noted that the new location has easily-accessible parking.
Recent editions of Hogs for the Cause have utilized City Park’s 50-acre festival grounds, a space that has also been used by Voodoo Fest since it opened in 2012. Both this year’s Hogs for the Cause and last year’s Voodoo Fest were forced to cancel one day due to rain, a problem that was exacerbated by the festival grounds’ drainage issues.
“To their credit, City Park has identified the drainage problems,” Louapre told NOLA.com. “Going forward, I think they’ll get that fixed.”
Proceeds from Hogs for the Cause support the families of children with pediatric brain cancer. The event has raised over $1 million since it was established seven years ago.
Hogs for the Cause even expanded to Charleston in October of 2014, though it was forced to call off its 2015 edition in the city due to severe flooding. Organizers are unsure if the festival will return to South Carolina, but they have said it will take place in the spring if it does.
Last year’s Hogs for the Cause featured performances by Greensky Bluegrass, Deer Tick, The Deslondes, Sweet Crude and many more, along with delicious barbecue offerings from 90 different teams.
