A free Ottawa music festival that's called Westboro home for more than a decade is leaving the neighbourhood behind, one month after the local business improvement area decided to stop funding it.

Organizers with Westfest announced Thursday that the 2016 edition of the outdoor music festival will take place in Laroche Park in the city's Mechanicsville neighbourhood, not Westboro.

"We dream of a space where families can bring blankets, lawn chairs, children and dogs in tow to celebrate with us, all the while enjoying the plethora of Canadian art that we showcase during Westfest," founder Elaina Martin said in a statement.

$125,000 contract cancelled

In September, the Westboro BIA voted to cancel a two-year contract as the festival's title sponsor — a contract that would have paid $125,000 each year to the festival.

At the time, BIA chairperson Dan Hwang said they had "other initiatives" they wanted to pursue and that the title sponsorship was too expensive to maintain.

Thursday's statement did not mention the funding cut but did say that the festival had stimulated "growth [and] civic pride" in Westboro, and that organizers wanted to do something similar for Mechanicsville.

"We have chosen to move to Laroche Park specifically because we recognize, in the area, a need for economic and cultural stimulation and want to bring free art and give a voice to a community and area that is often overlooked," the statement read.

Artists who've performed at Westfest over the years have included Joel Plaskett, Kathleen Edwards, Sloan, A Tribe Called Red, and the Cowboy Junkies. Next year's edition is slated to take place from June 10-12.

The festival will also remain free, the statement said.