Napa Porchfest Canceled For 2024 But Not For Good, Organizers Say

NAPA, CA — The rumors are true. Napa Porchfest is not happening this year. But it is not gone forever.

The free one-day live music event is typically held on the last Sunday of July in the neighborhoods surrounding Fuller Park in Old Town Napa. Bands and musicians transform the porches of some of Napa's finest historic homes into stages for one afternoon. Crowds converge on Old Town where the streets are shut down and lined with food trucks and vendors.

The first Napa Porchfest was held in 2011 on more than two dozen porches. It was inspired by the original Porchfest in Ithaca, New York, and was believed to be the first of its kind in California and possibly even the Western United States.

In years past, the event was put on by a group of volunteers and a nonprofit organization called Napa County Landmarks which advocates for historic preservation. The two groups have parted ways.

Statement from Napa County Landmarks

Napa County Landmarks —Landmarks — a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation and promotion of historic architectural treasures in Napa County, provided a statement on its decision to pause its hosting of Porchfest for 2024.

The annual festival has "grown remarkably since its inception" and the "decision comes as Landmarks sharpens operations to ensure the long-term sustainability of its core mission—the preservation of Napa County's historic structures," the organization said.

"This pause allows us to refocus our resources and efforts towards initiatives with county-wide
impact in historic preservation advocacy, policy, and education while exploring partnerships that
can carry the spirit of Porchfest forward," said Christine Madrid French, executive director of
Landmarks.

Terry Wunderlich, president of Landmarks' Board of Directors, added that the organization is "deeply grateful to the people who made Porchfest a symbol of our vibrant cultural landscape."

"We look forward to seeing how this event can evolve, potentially under new stewardship, while we rededicate ourselves to protecting the architectural gems that make our area uniquely special," Wunderlich said.

Porchfest 2025

The group staying with Porchfest expressed its commitment to bringing it back in 2025 but said help is needed in the way of volunteers, funding and the community's support in general.

"We are creating Napa Porchfest as its own non-profit so this won’t happen again," Porchfest organizers said in an email Thursday. "That being said, we won’t be able to bring you Porchfest in 2024 because we need to take some time to build our organization."

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