Indio residents prepare for busy festival season as city prepares to host Coachella, Stagecoach, and new Echo Lounge
INDIO, Calif. (KESQ)-- Residents in Indio are preparing themselves for the influx of visitors heading to the valley for three back to back weekends of Coachella and Stagecoach. It’s a drill they’ve gotten accustomed to every year. They're adapted to some traffic and minor inconveniences, but a lot of locals that spoke with News Channel Three say they are grateful these major festivals are putting Indio on the map.
"Growing up, you always heard about Coachella," said Angel Chavez, a nearby resident. "It's like, 'Oh, it's a big party.”
Despite the festivals' close proximity, many residents like Chavez, say growing up they found the festivals unaffordable and out of reach.
"They had single day passes before 2011 so it was a more affordable," said Chavez. "They were like $99 then but after 2011 they started making tickets a mandatory three days. Someone like me couldn't afford to go. My parents would never let me go."
It wasn’t until the city gave him free tickets in high school that he got to experience the event’s wonder for the very first time.
"In 2009, the first time I ever got to go to Coachella was, thanks to the Indio Teen Center," explained Chavez. "I used to go there after school, and one day they donated a bunch of passes to us.” Since then, Chavez has made the effort every year to go back, but he understands not everyone is as lucky.
"Thanks to city, I started going, and now I haven't missed since," said Chavez, showing News Channel Three's Tori King his favorite pictures and videos. "So it's been pretty actually "It actually changed my life. But the last, you know, five, six years, with inflation and just the festival getting bigger, globally, the prices have gone up. So I think they priced out a lot of the locals, especially the younger audience. But to me, in my opinion, it's still worth the price."
Because of that reason, the City of Indio along with 'Goldenvoice' have made deliberate efforts over the years to bring the festival a little closer to home. The two teamed up to create two unique experiences for locals, one of them being 'Chella'.
It’s a free, family friendly event that takes place downtown every year, bringing top-tier artists to the residents, before they perform at Coachella.
"It's something for the community to be proud of and bring the community together here in downtown Indio,"" said Miguel Ramirez-Cornejo, the Economic Development Director for Indio. "And it's absolutely free all of our events, we try to incorporate as much community as we can.”
And new this year, the city announced it’s adding another event, called the ‘Echo Lounge’, which will really give residents that ‘festival feeling’ at home.
“The reason why we called it the 'Echo Lounge' is because we're an echo distance from the actual festivals," explained Ramirez-Cornejo. "We wanted to provide that festival vibe, that festival experience, to residents, to people who aren't going to the festival."
The event will feature yoga sessions, sound baths, a live DJ set, and in an effort to really bring Coachella to locals, the festival will be live streamed on an enormous screen throughout the day.
"We are the city of festivals, and so why not provide something to the community so that the community can enjoy as well," said Ramirez-Cornejo.
“Everything just keeps expanding," said Chavez, who also attends 'Chella' every year. "These festivals have helped the city grow a lot by, you know, all the taxes that they collect. They're able to beautify the city with former structures they have all over town. I kind of liked the evolution over the last 15 years.”
