Sunday, May 18th 12-5pm
2025 Updates
Porchfest will be back again Sunday May 18th! Due to the overwhelming growth of this event, our commitment to keep people as safe as possible, and other logistical needs and concerns, we will be making several changes this year. And we're really going to need your help. These changes will ensure we can host a safe event for many years to come.
And why do we need your help? We just handle the logistics behind the scenes and ask for what we need. But ultimately it's you, our community, that sees it to fruition by adhering to our requests. We’ll be relying on your support to help implement and uphold these changes. Each adjustment we make is designed with the sustainability and safety of Porchfest at heart, ensuring it remains a cherished tradition for years to come. Please do your part to help this event be a success.
Porchfest will be back again Sunday May 18th! Due to the overwhelming growth of this event, our commitment to keep people as safe as possible, and other logistical needs and concerns, we will be making several changes this year. And we're really going to need your help. These changes will ensure we can host a safe event for many years to come.
- Porches - We will be restricting porches to areas and streets that are safe for pedestrians and keep corridors open for emergency vehicles and thru traffic. We are working with the City of Modesto to close more streets and clearly define Porchfest areas. Please see our boundary map for details. But there are some streets we have booked music on in the past that will not be able to participate this year.
- You can also expect to see porches more spread out in both neighborhoods so as not to create the density of crowds in some locations that we've seen in the past.
- Parking - We highly encourage you to park your cars in areas outside the main event area and walk or bike into the Porchfest areas. For the college neighborhood, MJC East Campus on College avenue has offered their parking. Please feel free to use it!
- Accepted Musical Genres - Over the years, we have learned that certain genres are better suited to the residential setting of Porchfest than others. And our long term success relies heavily on keeping our neighbors happy and our community and organizers safe. Our 2025 application will reflect some limitations to the genres we can accept at this year's event. For instance, in 2025 we will not be able to accept heavy metal or rap. And other bands and genres will be evaluated for participation based on the usual criteria (at least a 1-hour, family friendly set). But we will also be looking for bands/performers that have a family friendly online presence and whose volume level can be controlled enough so as not to disturb too many neighbors. Another primary reason for this decision is that Modesto Porchfest organizers cannot secure adequate or affordable liability insurance if we include certain genres. We know this may come as a disappointment to many. We remain committed to supporting all genres of family-friendly music - even if we can't feature all of them during the neighborhood-based event. Over the coming months, we plan to leverage Modesto's Queen Bean Coffee House to host Tiny Porch Concerts throughout the year. In this space, we'll have more freedom to book and celebrate the diversity of genres available in our community. Please email us for more information.
And why do we need your help? We just handle the logistics behind the scenes and ask for what we need. But ultimately it's you, our community, that sees it to fruition by adhering to our requests. We’ll be relying on your support to help implement and uphold these changes. Each adjustment we make is designed with the sustainability and safety of Porchfest at heart, ensuring it remains a cherished tradition for years to come. Please do your part to help this event be a success.
Modesto Porchfest is a collection of 60+ individual porch parties throughout the LaLoma, College, and Downtown neighborhoods thrown by gracious hosts. 120+ Local bands will perform throughout the afternoon on porch, patio, and driveway "stages" throughout the neighborhoods.
Porchfest is a free event. Tip jars are available and we encourage you to tip our performers generously.