Group OKs plans for summer concert series

A committee charged with organizing this year’s downtown summer concert series now has the backing it needs to move the plans forward.

The Downtown Economic Development Corporation, in its first year overseeing the event, gave a thumbs up Wednesday to the summer events committee to begin soliciting an event planner.

The corporation will allot as much as $6,000 of its annual budget to committee chairman and corporation member Tom Tucker to hire a planner who would coordinate the nine scheduled events and attract sponsors.

Tucker offered the committee’s draft plan to corporation members during their meeting Wednesday.

“We decided to go with something that was pretty much in keeping with last year’s (series), due to the short amount of time,” he said.

The group expressed gratitude for the committee’s quick action. With the series set to begin in less than two months, growing concerns about time constraints have worried corporation members.

“(Tucker) put a tremendous amount of effort into this in a short amount of time,” said corporation chairwoman Andrea Rohrbacher.

The events — four concerts and four movie showings — are tentatively scheduled for every Wednesday between June 15 and Aug. 3.

A grand finale at the Hargraves Center athletic fields is slated for Aug. 13.

Tucker said the concerts and movie showings will likely be held on McCorkle Place, where the town has hosted events in previous years.

Plans for alcohol sales at the event are still unclear.

The committee drew up details on the series while the Town Council considered a DEDC-supported petition to allow some alcohol sales on town-owned property.

With the council now prepared to vote on the issue May 9, the committee can begin to discuss the possibility of serving alcohol at some of the events.

Mayor Kevin Foy, the corporation’s newest addition, warned fellow members that if the ordinance passes, event hosts wishing to serve alcohol on town-owned property still would have to submit an application to the council.

“It’s not a blanket ordinance, but it’s what you asked for,” Foy told the group Wednesday.

A more vital part of the planning process, corporation members agreed, will be soliciting a sponsor.

The draft plan puts the corporation’s total expenses for the series at $30,000.

“This thing is not cheap,” Tucker said. “There’s a heavy dependence on the sponsors.”

Member Roger Perry suggested that the committee plan according to affordability.

“The events should be a function of how much sponsorship money you get,” he said.

The corporation will meet again May 11 at the Midway Business Center on Merritt Mill Road to discuss with town planning board representatives an initiative to bring wireless Internet access downtown and a downtown Streetscape improvements proposal.

Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.