THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 3, 1996 TAG: 9603010216
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 10 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
SOURCE: BY BILL REED, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 149 lines
``THERE ISN'T a bad seat in the house,'' Bill Reid is fond of telling visitors to the massive and as yet unnamed amphitheater now under construction along the western boundary of Princess Anne Park.
When completed sometime in mid-or-late April, the entertainment complex will house up to 20,000 spectators who will pay to see major acts such as Jimmy Buffett, Garth Brooks and other mega-stars in the entertainment firmament.
As huge earth moving machines churn up the muddy slope of the berm overlooking the stage 60 feet below, Reid, president of Cellar Door of Virginia, is showing visitors how the view of future performers will be remarkably unobstructed - even from the top of the berm.
``Right here is seat 20,000,'' he says, planting both feet in the mud at the berm's crest. ``See how well you can see those guys (workmen) on the stage from here.''
Work on the complex has proceeded steadily since construction began eight months ago, despite a recent spate of wet and wintry weather.
``We're about 70 percent complete,'' says Michael Daniels, project manager for the general contractor, W.M. Jordan Construction Co. of Newport News, who is also along for the tour. ``We're at a point now where we're doing a lot of finish work.''
With more adverse weather in the offing, Daniels foresees a slight slowdown in the construction process.
``When it rains you get 75 percent of the normal activity (on the work site) and 50 percent of what you want to get done. Right now we're just hoping for no more rain,'' he said.
The main reason: the inordinate amount of moisture contained in the soil that has been excavated on the 96-acre amphitheater site to build up the berm.
It has been more than a week since the last rain and snowfall and, although the days have been sunny and mild in that period, the berm remains soft and soggy.
``The soil is hard to dry out,'' Daniels asserts.
As if to illustrate his point, Reid, who has donned calf-length rubber boots to tour the site, sinks in the muck to the top of his left boot. It takes considerable effort on his part to pull his foot from the tenacious muck without losing the boot, then proceed with the tour.
Despite the vagaries of the weather, work crews have nearly completed the parking lots, which are designed to hold 7,000 cars. The lots have been graded and covered with crushed rock and lighting has been installed on each lot. All that remains to be done here is the landscaping, Daniels explains.
The main structure, which houses the stage, the equipment and dressing facilities, is up. So are four restroom buildings, two concession stands and an administration building. In various stages of completion are seven merchandising and beverage kiosks, a storage building and five modular buildings that will be used for hospitality and dressing rooms for the entertainers and rooms for amphitheater security personnel and first aid. Much finishing work, including plumbing, wiring, painting and carpentry detailing, remains to be done in each building.
For instance, says Reid, five huge video screens will be installed on or near the outer rim of the amphitheater canopy to help spectators in the furthest reaches of the berm see performers.
``They'll be able to see facial expressions, although they'll be close enough to get a good view of performers from here,'' Reid said.
Workmen are in the process of pouring concrete to complete the stage. They also are constructing concrete slabs to anchor the 7,500 seats that will be protected from the elements by the wide corrugated canopy, which resembles a giant scallop shell.
Seven man-made ponds or lakes surround the complex. They are the source of the 450,000 cubic yards of soil that has been extracted to build up the berm, which now resembles a giant brown cereal bowl with a pie-shaped wedge sliced from one side.
The lakes are to be landscaped and equipped with fountains to give the entire property ``the look and feel of Tidewater,'' says Reid. The entire site will be dressed up by 12,000 plants - trees and shrubs - which are now on order.
When completed, Reid contends, the amphitheater complex will give visitors the look and feel of a Harbor Park, the popular three-year-old baseball stadium built on the banks of the Eastern Branch of the Elizabeth River in Norfolk.
The amphitheater will be colorful, festive, user-friendly, yet blend in with its environment, just as Harbor Park blends in with and enhances the riverfront in Norfolk, Reid insists.
The Virginia Beach amphitheater site is on an expanse of peaceful rural landscape that is bordered on its north side by thick woods. It lies along the western end of Landstown Road, near the intersection with heavily traveled Princess Anne Road.
Another important and unfinished task, Reid acknowledges, is obtaining a sponsor for the new amphitheater. A corporate name will be attached to the facility to give it a distinctive identity, not to mention corporate dollars to help pay for its operation and construction debt.
The Nissan Pavilion in Manassas, which Reid and Cellar Door operate, opened last June and is an example of the importance of attaching a corporate identity to the new Virginia Beach facility, Reid says. Hardees Walnut Creek amphitheater in Raleigh, N.C., is another. Both are important stops for big name entertainers who tour the country each year.
Reid foresees a corporate sponsorship commitment closer to the opening of the Virginia Beach amphitheater.
Some sponsors already are on board to help underwrite resort entertainment programs scheduled by Cellar Door. They include Miller Lite and Blockbuster, says Reid, but at this point, neither their names nor logos will be attached to city's amphitheater, which Reid predicts will put Virginia Beach up on the entertainment pedestal along with Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit, Washington and New York City.
The Virginia Symphony has been selected to give the amphitheater's opening performance, said Reid, while Bruce Hornsby, the pianist and songwriter from Williamsburg, will be the first big name entertainer invited to take the stage, once it is open for business.
``It sort of makes sense,'' says Reid. ``He's a local boy who's made good.''
Reid and Cellar Door expect to book 35 to 40 shows a year at the amphitheater, featuring acts like Vince Gill, Sting and possibly Elton John, among others.
The amphitheater, which is being constructed at a cost of $17 million, is part of the city's long-range tourism development strategy. The structure will rank right up there with a vastly expanded Virginia Marine Science Museum, which is under construction at a cost of $35 million.
Both items are part of the city's Tourism Growth Investment Fund initiative, a building program fed by special taxes on hotel and restaurant sales and amusement and franchise fees. TGIF was established by the City Council in 1991 to pay for more than $93 million in resort improvements in the next 10 years. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photos, including color cover, by DAVID B. HOLLINGSWORTH
Bill Reid
Workers lay a concrete slab where 7,500 protected seats will be
installed. Despite a spate of wintry weather, the construction has
proceeded steadily for eight months.
Bill Reid, president of Cellar Door of Virginia - also pictured on
the cover - says the amphitheater complex will give visitors the
look and feel of Norfolk's Harbor Park. Reid says the amphitheater
will need a corporate sponsor's name.
The amphitheater's stage will be one of the largest in the state.
The main structure, which houses the stage, the equipment and
dressing facilities, is up.
Among the parts of the complex still being constructed are seven
merchandising and beverage kiosks, a storage building and five
modular buildings for dressing rooms for the entertainers and rooms
for security and first aid.
by CNB