Sunday, July 26, 2009
Amphitheater proposal left me ambivalent
Dan Radmacher
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From the RoundTable blog
When I saw the news that Roanoke City Council had pulled the plug on the Elmwood Park amphitheater, at least for now, it occurred to me that the project evoked the same response in me as the apparently equally dead Rockledge Inn proposal for the top of Mill Mountain.
Both are potentially very cool ideas that would bring energy and excitement to Roanoke -- unless they failed miserably. In both cases, failing miserably seems a plausible, if not necessarily likely, outcome. In both cases, failure would significantly spoil a Roanoke treasure.
The restaurant on top of Mill Mountain could be an extraordinary venue, a place to enjoy a nice meal or a drink with an unbeatable view.
Opponents of the restaurant mostly seemed worried that it would be too successful, ruining the park-like atmosphere of Mill Mountain by adding traffic, parked cars and crowds. To me, that was less a concern than the alternative. If the restaurant didn't draw enough business to make a profit -- which seemed like a serious risk in such an out-of-the-way location -- the building could end up as an abandoned white elephant, taking up green space while offering no value in return.
The Elmwood amphitheater would probably have greater odds of success, though not without a substantial subsidy from the city. If the current recession continues or the city faces other budget issues, such a subsidy could end up being quite burdensome.
If it ever got to be too much, the city could be left with an empty amphitheater -- and its debt service -- that offers little value for the green space it had consumed.
But while an empty restaurant on top of Mill Mountain might distract from the natural ambiance, it would not alter the park as drastically as an amphitheater would change Elmwood.
I wonder, for instance, how the amphitheater would affect the many festivals that use Elmwood every year -- featuring everything from strawberries to wine and barbecue to beer.
Take a look at the design suggested by Red Light Management (www.tinyurl.com/mmxtoo), though, and the amphitheater appears to leave a decent amount of park space undisturbed -- though it is space near Elm Avenue that currently is mostly unused during the festivals because it is so hilly and unsuitable for vendors' canopies.
Maybe all the vendors and the large crowds they draw can be squeezed into the remaining open space, but there is no arguing that the park's character would not be significantly changed by the proposal. I can't imagine, for instance, the weekly Party in the Park taking place in a 5,000seat amphitheater.
The character would be different, but not unpleasant. The bold shell of the actual performance and seating area, meant to evoke the Mill Mountain Star, would provide excellent shade during the day, perhaps encouraging greater use of the park even when performers weren't onstage.
When the amphitheater did host concerts, there would be terrific, as Red Light put it, synergy with the rest of downtown -- the reason I've always favored Elmwood Park over the Reserve Avenue location once favored by council.
Restaurants, art galleries and other downtown businesses would benefit from the increased traffic, perhaps offsetting at least a portion of any subsidy with increased sales and meals taxes.
As Roanoke Times music reporter Tad Dickens enthused after the plans were unveiled, the amphitheater "looks freaky-good in both light and darkness." It would be a very cool thing for Roanoke, and Dickens seems to trust Red Light to bring in hot acts that could draw some crowds.
But even seeing all that potential, Dickens ended up conceding that "as badly as I -- and a lot of other live music and culture freaks -- would like to see it happen, it doesn't make any sense to spend that kind of money now."
I have to agree, and not just because of the $14.2 million price tag for the amphitheater. Roanoke needs to get a good estimate of the long-term subsidy that would be required year after year before deciding whether the amphitheater would represent a wise investment.
The amphitheater is dead for now, but as we said in a Thursday editorial, projects such as this in Roanoke often have more lives than a cat.
If the amphitheater idea is resurrected, perhaps in more certain economic times, I won't be disappointed. Though I'll probably remain ambivalent and in need of some persuasion.
I won't be the only one feeling that way, either, which is something whoever is sitting on council then should keep in mind.
Radmacher is the editorial page editor of The Roanoke Times.
