A committee of city council members and stakeholders could meet as soon as next week to discuss the future of the Sen. Terry Brown Amphitheater on The Island.
That suggestion came from Vice Mayor Joseph Mickens, who represents Ward 2, after the council remained at an impasse on the issue during its Wednesday meeting at the Municipal Complex.
“It’s been an eyesore and I’m about tired of looking at it like that, to be truthful with you,” Mickens said. “… That’s on us, colleagues. That’s on the six of us councilmen and the mayor.”
Though a date wasn’t set, the council plans to invite representatives from Main Street Columbus, the Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau and Red Mountain Entertainment – an outfit once interested in running the venue upon completion. The meeting also will be open to the public.
“Whatever we come out of this (planning) meeting with, that’s what we’re going to go with,” Mickens boldly declared Wednesday.
Since 2017, the city has used $3.2 million in state legislative appropriations for the initial phases of the amphitheater, including the stage, but the site still hasn’t hosted an event. In 2024, the legislature gave the city another $1 million, enough to progress the work but not enough to complete the site.
The city opened a new round of bids last week, with Weathers Construction bidding $3.5 million to complete the site – which would include concrete work, fencing, gates, concessions, restrooms and seating, among other things. Hannon Construction bid just more than $600,000 for just the concrete, irrigation and landscaping work.
Even accepting Weathers “all-in” bid, City Engineer Kevin Stafford told The Dispatch he urged the city to build in another $500,000 for things like soft costs and parking.
Stafford told the council Wednesday those bids are good for 90 days, so the city could advertise for more bids without rejecting them. A new bidding process could go quickly, he said, and he believes at least one more contractor would bid regardless. If the city committed to using more than just the $1 million it has in hand, he said at least two more might be interested.
Ward 5 Councilman Stephen Jones moved to rebid, then asked Chief Financial Officer Jim Brigham if he could “come up with ways” to pay for the whole project, instead of continuing to piecemeal it. Jones specified it could be a “combination of things” – using some of the city’s $5 million reserve fund, borrowing or both.
“I would not encourage the city to incur $3 million in debt,” Brigham said. “If we use the reserve fund, it would eat up almost the entire reserve fund. At this time … I think it will be a challenge to do the whole thing without going into additional debt.”
‘Adequate is relative’
That brought a substitute motion from Ward 3 Councilman Rusty Greene to reject the bids and discuss the best way forward to use the $1 million the city already has earmarked for the amphitheater.
“We can get this thing open in six months and see how it goes,” he said. “If it goes great, and we want to go back and add to this at a later date, that’s great.”
Ethel Stewart, councilwoman for Ward 1, asked Stafford if Greene’s idea would be adequate. Stafford replied the amphitheater, as it sits, is Americans with Disabilities Act compliant, has two bathrooms already on site and has a fully functional stage with power. That means it could open immediately but would need portable bathrooms and food trucks to accommodate an event.
To get a company to run the venue, the amphitheater would need the planned 3,500 capacity, seating, gating, concessions and the other planned touches to “finish” it.
“Adequate is relative,” he said. “… I think if you don’t finish it out, and you keep it as-is, what you’ll get is a 500 to 1,000 people facility.”
That is good enough for Greene, at least for now. He and Mayor Keith Gaskin both promoted using the facility as soon as possible for local events and finishing it as soon as other money came available.
“What has it been … eight years … that we have sat here and not made a decision?” Greene said. “And you could have this thing open in six months.”
Mickens said he thought both Greene and Jones made “valid points” and moved to table the matter and form the committee. The measure passed, but not before Jones questioned Brigham more.
“When I came to your office you said we could find a way to pay for it, but now you’re saying something different. Why is that?” he asked.
Brigham responded that the city has the cash if it wishes to use it.
“We’ve gotten a lot of money from the state,” Jones said, again arguing the city could use a combination of funding mechanisms. “But at some point, we’ve got to have a dog in the fight also. We’re going to have to spend some money in order to finish it.”
“My only comment on it is, whatever the council decides, I will figure out how to get it done,” Brigham replied.
Jones wanted a little more from the CFO.
“We want you to figure it out in advance and give us some options,” he said.
Zack Plair is the managing editor for The Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 35 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 35 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
