A new amphitheater planned for the heart of Winston-Salem is already attracting mixed reviews from community members.
The City of Winston-Salem is moving forward with plans for a 5,000+ seat music venue. The proposed outdoor music venue is being developed by Winston-Salem area business owners Don Flow of Flow Automotive and Jim Brammer of the Concert Stuff Group.
The site is slated to host major touring acts, local groups like the Winston-Salem Symphony and community events, including graduations from local universities in the heart of Winston-Salem.
The project is a major step in the 10-year Downtown Winston-Salem Plan adopted by the city council and City-County Planning Board in 2023. Members from the Planning Committee of the Downtown Winston-Salem Partnership studied similar venues in other communities, such as the Red Hat Amphitheater in downtown Raleigh, before discussing the possibility of a project on Flow’s property.
Since announcing the project, city officials and developers have touted the venue’s benefits at almost no cost to local taxpayers. Besides generating a new revenue base for local businesses, the venue promises an estimated $50,000 in annual property tax revenue for the City of Winston-Salem without requiring any public funding, tax breaks, or incentives.
Tim Walker, who owns two businesses near the proposed site, Small Batch Beer Company and Timmy’s Hot Chicken, said, “We are very excited about the new Amphitheater. It will be a great addition to downtown, and we are hoping it brings more business to the area.”
The venue plans to occupy the block between First Baptist Church and the Benton Convention Center downtown, with part of the site already owned by Flow. Earlier this month, the Winston-Salem City Council approved a plan to lend the remaining city-owned portion of the site to developers at one dollar a month.
City officials have pushed back against the project. At a City Council meeting on Sept. 2, Council Member Barbara Hanes Burke of Winston-Salem’s Northeast Ward called to explore alternative uses for the downtown property leased to project developers. Burke proposed using city-owned land on the site to increase the affordable housing supply and meet the city’s housing goals. She also asked if developers would accommodate a new housing project on the site in addition to the amphitheater.
Other community members have also voiced concerns about how the project will impact nearby residents. Some believe the project will specifically harm residents at Crystal Towers, a public housing development just across W 6th Street from the proposed amphitheater, where tenants have previously complained about living conditions.
Mariah Bayer, a resident of Winston-Salem’s North Ward, criticized the City Council’s attention to the amphitheater rather than the conditions of Crystal Towers.
“This amphitheater proposal in particular is like a smack in the face for our elderly and disabled residents at Crystal Towers,” Bayer said. “How do you feel to swiftly push for investment in entertainment, but not sustainment just down the street?”
Other residents are concerned about the noise and traffic obstacles that the project might create for residents. Members of Winston-Salem’s City Council worry about lack of notice about the project for residents at Crystal Towers, including member Regina Ford Hall, who represents the Northwest Ward home to both the amphitheater site and Crystal Towers. Hall noted that residents at the complex were not notified of the proposal until the plans were first unveiled to the rest of the public.
Earlier this month, project leaders and members of the Downtown Winston-Salem Partnership met with Crystal Towers residents to address their concerns. They told residents that they are exploring adjusting noise ordinances and sound mitigation solutions.
