Santa Monica's new Ocean Way Festival has been cancelled before its first edition after Hurricane Marie stripped sand from the beach site. The two-day event was due to run on September 26 and 27. Instead, the city and organisers have said they are working toward a possible 2027 edition, but no replacement date has been confirmed.
The decision followed a city assessment of the damage left by the storm. CBS Los Angeles reported that the waves had removed so much sand that the festival would have needed to move 96 feet inland. City officials also said runoff cut through the southern end of the site, forcing that boundary 500 feet north. Those are the two physical changes cited in the city's public explanation.
They made the planned site too small for the event's infrastructure and the crowd it was expected to host. CBS said the city concluded there was not enough room to build the venue and accommodate tens of thousands of people safely. Mixmag, citing a City of Santa Monica press release, said staff reached the same conclusion after assessing the remaining beach footprint. The shared point in the two reports is the safety of the reduced site, not a choice to relocate the 2026 event.
Mixmag reported that Marie reached the California coast on September 2, bringing major swells and 100-mph winds, and that the storm ended on September 8. The outlet said Santa Monica and Laguna Beach declared emergencies after coastal flooding, property damage and beach erosion. The festival cancellation was announced on September 12, four days after the storm's end date given by Mixmag and two weeks before the planned opening.
Ocean Way's opening was a partnership between Santa Monica and promoter Goldenvoice. Mixmag reported the city's view that the loss of usable beach meant the festival infrastructure could not be built safely. The festival's own statement said storm surf and runoff had caused significant erosion. CBS reported the cancellation in the same terms, saying the beach loss meant there was no safe space for the proposed venue and crowd.
Mayor Caroline Torosis, quoted by Mixmag, said the city could not place tens of thousands of festivalgoers on the sand until it was safe. Her remarks also said the partnership with Goldenvoice would continue. That is not a confirmed return date or an assurance that the same beach footprint will be available. CBS likewise reported that organisers said plans were under way to bring the festival to Santa Monica in 2027.
There is a small but important limit to what has been announced about tickets. Mixmag said 2026 ticket-holders would receive automatic refunds in due course. CBS reported that the festival said refunds should arrive within a few business days. That is a reported expectation, rather than confirmation that any refund has been completed. Neither report gives a total ticket-holder count or states how many refunds have been processed.
The cancellation is about the immediate practical limit of the beach site, not a judgment on the festival's future. The sources confirm the 2026 event cannot be safely held on the footprint left after the storm. They do not confirm a new date, a site restoration timeline, or whether the planned 2027 return will go ahead. Until then, the only confirmed outcome is that the inaugural event will not take place this month.
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