It’s happening! You can see progress!
On Monday, July 18, crews from the Public Works Department began tearing up the parking lot and islands at the Macon Mall to make way for construction of the new amphitheater. This will prepare the site for future construction. The asphalt and concrete torn up will be used by the Solid Waste Department to rebuild the road around the landfill, saving it several hundreds of thousands of dollars. It will also save money for hiring a private contractor to do the job, meaning more money can go to the actual amphitheater.
“It’s good for people in the area to see work happening! We’ve spent the past weeks working on the design, but this shows people we are following through on what we promised,” says Mayor Lester Miller. “Our crews are to be celebrated for stepping forward to find ways to cut costs and reuse this material in other ways.”
About the Amphitheater
The amphitheater stage will be on the southeast corner of the site and face toward Rocky Creek and Mercer University Drive, and it will have three distinct seating areas: 2,500 fixed seats in a stepped seating bowl, 1,500 temporary seats on a flat floor between the fixed seats and stage, and 6,000 lawn seats outside of the bowl and roof structure. VIP seating will be in 10 “boxes” between the pit and fixed seating. Two entrance plazas will have concessions, retail amenities, and restrooms, as well as overlooks providing additional VIP opportunities. There will be other concession and retail options around the amphitheater, and future plans could include the construction of a full-service restaurant.
Performers will have use of a 60’ deep by 72’ wide performance stage with 20’ wide wings. A 12-15’ deep loading dock is being designed to accommodate eight truck bays covered with a canopy to better serve the performers and crews. There will be separate men’s and women’s dressing rooms, star dressing rooms, a green room and catering area, a makeup room, and break rooms and eating areas for the crews.
