LEWISTON — The former Railroad Park may not have space for a huge concert venue, but a modest stage is a good option, councilors said Tuesday.
Now, councilors need to decide how big a stage they want.
“I don’t see us limiting ourselves or selling ourselves short right at the beginning,” Councilor Kristen Cloutier said. “I think we need to be versatile. If we build it for larger acts, then smaller acts can still use it. We don’t want to build it for smaller acts and then be unable to attract larger ones.”
City Planner David Hediger said staff is suggesting work building a small amphitheater with seating for up to 1,000 on the northwest corner of Simard/Payne Memorial Park.
It would be the third phase of improvements to the area that are part of the Riverfront Island Master Plan projects.
Work widening the access bridge between the park and Oxford Street is finished and improvements to the gateway park extending out from the park toward Lincoln Street should be finished in mid-July.
Those projects are designed to improve the connection between the park and Lincoln Street and the rest of downtown, creating a gateway. The gateway park was the first project spelled out in the city’s Riverfront Island Master Plan, which was written last year.
This next phase includes improving access to the Androscoggin River and the city has set aside $250,000 in the capital plan to do that work. Hediger said the current plan is to build an amphitheater and river access improvements at the same time.
“They are immediately adjacent to each other and we don’t want one design taking away from the other,” Hediger said. “They are in proximity so we can probably do a better job and a better price on the bid.”
Hediger said the Planning Board toured the park Monday.
Whatever gets built will not be huge, he said.
“There have been some comments saying we should do something like the Bangor Waterfront, and that has seating for 16,000 people,” Hediger said. “I will tell you if Lewiston pursues that, Simard/Payne (Memorial) Park disappears.”
Instead, he said staff favors a design that uses the land’s natural terrain to make a more modest amphitheater with room for 500 to 1,000 spectators. The city could crowd in 2,000 people, if necessary.
Councilors agreed and also suggested building some sort of temporary shelter for the stage and electrical access.
Councilor Don D’Auteuil said a smaller space would not force larger acts away.
“If it’s a big concert and somebody wanted to do like Portland did with Mumford and Sons, you could be anywhere in that park and still hear it,” D’Auteuil said. “You don’t need to be in that amphitheater. You could be somewhere else with a blanket in the grass and hear everything.”
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