Walmart AMP plans expansions for artists and club members
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A rendering shows plans for the new hospitality complex. Image: Courtesy of Walton Arts Center
The Walmart Arkansas Music Pavilion plans to expand its hospitality complex for private members and events and its artists wing for performers.
Why it matters: The region's largest concert venue wants artists to have a good experience so they are more likely to return, Walmart AMP vice president Brian Crowne said in a news release.
- The hospitality complex expansion will allow the venue to take more private club members after being at capacity for several years, spokesperson Jennifer Wilson told Axios in an email. Memberships start at $5,000 a year.
State of play: The 1,270-square-foot addition to the Willard and Pat Walker Family Artist Wing includes a gym for artists, crews and their families, plus a lounge for watching TV or playing games backstage. The work will include enclosing the patio that was added in 2020 and installing air-conditioning, Wilson said.
- Separately, a two-story permanent hospitality complex will replace the open-air tent that has housed the Land O'Lakes Lounge since 2014. The lounge will be on the first floor, and the second floor will house an all-inclusive club with beverages, food, air-conditioning, seating and private access to a patio, according to the news release.
- The venue can also rent the space for private or corporate events, Wilson said.
By the numbers: The work, totaling $7.7 million, will nearly double the hospitality complex's size, adding 6,000 square feet for a total of 12,725 square feet.
Flashback: The venue's 2020 expansion included additional dressing rooms for artists plus a green room, showers for their crews, and an expanded catering lounge.
What's next: The expansions are set to be complete in time for the 2027 concert series that starts in May.