What to expect from the new North Minneapolis amphitheater
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Party on the North Side. Rendering: Courtesy of the City of Minneapolis
The opening of a North Minneapolis riverfront amphitheater is coming sooner than you might expect, given how long it took to get get a deal done.
State of play: A groundbreaking is scheduled for Sept. 20, which would create a timeline for the first show on Memorial Day weekend 2027, 22 months from now.
What they're saying: First Avenue owner Dayna Frank told Axios last week her team would have to begin booking concerts for the summer of 2027 "tomorrow" because that's the lead time on musical acts.
- First Avenue will operate the venue along with the Minnesota Orchestra and African American Community Development Corp. (AACDC).
What to expect: Axios asked Frank which venues are good comparisons for the 8,000-seat amphitheater in terms of the type of acts that will take the stage.
- She mentioned Red Rocks outside Denver, Ascend in Nashville and the Allianz Amphitheater on the Richmond, Virginia, riverfront.
- On the upcoming calendar for those venues: Simple Plan, Neil Young, The Head and the Heart, Rob Thomas, Alabama Shakes, Nelly and Ja Rule, Cake, Indigo Girls and Beck.
The big picture: It might feel like there's local music venue saturation, with the last decade bringing The Minneapolis Armory, Palace Theatre, Surly Field and, soon, a 19,000-seat amphitheater in Shakopee.
- But Frank said the project fills two voids in the Twin Cities' concert scene — it'll be the only urban amphitheater of a "boutique" size and it will be the only one in North Minneapolis.
- "I don't think we've quite seen a community-centric, equitable development like this," she said.
Follow the money: $3 from every ticket will go to the AACDC to help combat displacement on the North Side and to give grants to youth programs and entrepreneurs .
Between the lines: The name on the venue in press releases and renderings is the Community Performing Arts Center, which has the same acronym as the Conservative Political Action Committee.
- Frank said moniker is just a placeholder — a naming ceremony is still to come.