<\/p>\n
EDM fans sit on the Ultra name display near the main stage at Ultra Music Festival in Miami on Friday, March 27, 2026.<\/p>\n
PHOTO BY AL DIAZ<\/p>\n
adiaz@miamiherald.com<\/p>\n
The city of Miami has approved a 20-year contract with the group that puts on Ultra, the electronic music festival that takes place in downtown\u2019s Bayfront Park each year.<\/p>\n
In a unanimous vote, the City Commission on Thursday approved the agreement with Event Entertainment Group. While the agreement terminates in 2046, the city has the ability to cancel it each year, without cause, within 305 days of the next scheduled event. Canceling the revocable license agreement would require a supermajority vote from four out of five city commissioners.<\/p>\n
In addition, every five years, Ultra must submit a report to the city within 45 days of the event. That report will go before the City Commission, and any changes made to the agreement during those five-year intervals will require approval from four out of five commissioners, according to Commissioner Damian Pardo. Ultra has also agreed to conduct two community meetings each year, 45 days prior to the event, that are organized and sponsored by city officials.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday marks a historic moment for the City of Miami and for the global electronic music community,\u201d Ultra said in a statement after the vote.<\/p>\n
While downtown residents had expressed concerns over noise levels, traffic and other quality-of-life issues created by the event, Pardo, whose district includes downtown, said he thinks the agreement addresses those concerns.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ll be happy that they were heard, their quality-of-life issues were very much considered, and that we really are blessed to have an event like Ultra where the producers are from here, there are people who really care about noise and noise levels and their commitments, and they\u2019ve been not only sticking to them \u2014 they\u2019re very committed to explaining that to the residents,\u201d Pardo told the Miami Herald after the vote.<\/p>\n
Several residents at Thursday\u2019s meeting pointed to the length of the contract as a point of concern. Downtown resident Ted Kerr said \u201cno one has clairvoyance. And yet long-term contracts often assume a level of certainty that doesn\u2019t exist.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe longer the contract, the greater the risk of unintended consequences,\u201d Kerr said. \u201cMarkets change. Leadership changes. Community priorities change. What seems like a strong agreement today can become a constraint tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n
Downtown resident Laura Okamura said \u201cany agreement with Ultra will have a profound impact on our Bayfront community\u201d and asked for more time to revise the agreement to address community concerns.<\/p>\n
\u201cI understand Ultra brings revenues to downtown businesses, and so some residents are willing to a certain extent to put up with additional noise, traffic, garbage, crime and loss of use of Bayfront Park for over 28 days each year,\u201d Okamura said.<\/p>\n
For Fernando Weiner, who also spoke at the meeting, events like Ultra are part of what make the city enticing.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s because of events like the F1 race that we have here,\u201d Weiner said. \u201cIt\u2019s because of events like the Miami Open, it\u2019s because of the Miami Heat, it\u2019s because of the concerts that we put on at the Arsht Center, at the Kaseya Center. It is because this city prioritizes cultural events. It\u2019s why I don\u2019t live in Scranton, Pennsylvania, or Little Rock, Arkansas.\u201d<\/p>\n