South Street closing next month as work starts on Raleigh's Red Hat Amphitheater
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A rendering of the new Red Hat Amphitheater. Photo: City of Raleigh
A portion of South Street in downtown Raleigh will close permanently next month, as pre-construction work is expected to begin on the new Red Hat Amphitheater.
Why it matters: Red Hat Amphitheater, the popular music venue owned by the city, is being relocated a block to the south to create room for an expansion of the Raleigh Convention Center and continue to provide concerts in the heart of downtown.
- Across 50 concerts last year, the venue had an economic impact of $33 million, according to a presentation by Kerry Painter, the director of the Raleigh Convention and Performing Arts Complex.
Driving the news: The Raleigh City Council voted this month to authorize one of the first construction contracts for the amphitheater in the hopes that it can open in time for the 2026 concert season.
- That timeline could be hard to meet at this point due to some delays that have already occurred in the design and permitting phase of construction — though the city says it's committed to not cutting short any of its concert seasons.
- "Once they have a better understanding of the impacts the delays in those steps have caused, [city staff] will update City Council and the community on the timeline for the amphitheater and convention center," Julia Milstead, a spokesperson for the city, told Axios in an email.
The latest: Painter showed the Raleigh City Council updated renderings of the planned amphitheater this month, revealing textured sidewalks around the entrances to the venue and streets lined with trees to improve the acoustics.
- Some details are still subject to change, Painter said.
- The city also remains in conversation with the state's Department of Transportation over a connector lane to help with traffic around the venue.
State of play: To create enough room to build an amphitheater large enough to attract some of the country's most popular musical acts, the Raleigh City Council moved last year to close a block of South Street between McDowell and Dawson streets.
- The move was controversial — with some residents expressing concerns over a lack of communication and a loss of one road connection between downtown and Boylan Heights — but ultimately went through.
- The street is now expected to close April 14.
- The vote to approve the construction contract received only one no vote — from new council member Mitch Silver who said he was still "struggling with the closure of South Street."
