Design/construction team selected for the amphitheater

On Thursday, February 10, the Macon-Bibb County Urban Development Authority – acting on behalf of Macon-Bibb County – approved the selection of TVS, Piedmont Construction Group, Stage Front and HGOR as the design team /construction of the new outdoor amphitheater. which will be built at the Macon Mall. Together, this team brings extensive experience in design/build projects, mixed-use facilities, entertainment venues, auditoriums and amphitheaters.

“We’ve brought together some amazing groups for this project and we’ve been blown away by all of their proposals,” said Macon-Bibb County Mayor Lester Miller. “TVS as the architect of this team is what ultimately led to this choice. Their experience and other successful projects will help us create a true destination for outdoor concerts and events in our community and lead to new developments and investments.

“We salute the determination of Macon’s leadership to visualize a new neighborhood centered around this amphitheater and to champion it until its completion,” said TVS Director Emery Leonard. “A dynamic and tailor-made district, anchored in the musical history of Macon, is a formidable center of activity. We will work with the community to design a place that will play a role in the future of American music by providing a greater platform for the diverse talents that influence our culture today.

“The goals of our design/build team are the same as those of Mayor Miller and Macon Bibb County: to reinvigorate the area around the Macon Mall and drive economic development starting with this new amphitheater.” says G. Scott Thompson, CEO of Piedmont Construction Group.

The new amphitheater will have a capacity of 10,000 with covered and fixed seating, lawn seating, green spaces, performers’ dressing rooms, green room, ticket offices, vendor and event areas, catwalks transition areas, specific areas for crews, retail areas and other amenities. The first step for the design/build team will be to work with Macon-Bibb County, local and state partners, industry representatives and the community to create a final design.

“We want to provide a top-notch entertainment experience for people who attend shows and performers. We want people to want to come here for shows and artists to want to perform here, so we need to create a phenomenal experience for everyone involved,” adds Mayor Miller. “This team doesn’t just design an installation; they bring their knowledge and experience of the entertainment industry to ensure this venue serves our community, the state, and future talent.

“Our goal is to create ‘THE’ destination for music and outdoor events that is unique to Macon, to be as welcoming and inspiring as it is functional,” adds Leonard. “This amphitheater will be an artist’s dream and an audience’s first experience, and it will set the stage for the redevelopment of the surrounding restaurant and retail district.”

“It’s exciting to work with a group that includes TVS, Stage Front and HGOR because of their expertise in creating spaces that entice people to ‘come early and stay late,'” adds Thompson. has designed more than 18 performing arts centers, and HGOR has been instrumental in the design of the Battery at Atlanta Braves Stadium and the Brickyard at Mercedes Benz Stadium.”

Other projects that members of the design/build team have been involved in that bring their experience and knowledge of the entertainment industry and community needs include: Georgia World Congress Center, The Battery at Truist Park, Colorado Convention Center Expansion, Georgia Dome, BB&T Center, College Football Hall of Fame, Augusta Convention Center, Reno Events Center, International Waterfront Mixed Use Development in Trinidad & Tobago, Georgia Aquarium, Steven Tanger Center for the Performing Arts, Mercedes-Benz Stadium , Macon City Auditorium, Mercer University Hawkins Arena, Cox Capitol Theater, Museum of Arts and Science Amphitheater, Decatur High School Performing Arts Theater, and more.

About the amphitheater

The amphitheater stage will be on the southeast corner of the venue facing Rocky Creek and Mercer University Drive, and will feature three distinct seating areas: 2,500 fixed seats in a tiered bowl, 1,500 temporary on flat ground between the fixed seats and stage, and 6,000 lawn seats outside the bowl and roof structure. The VIP seats will be distributed in 10 “boxes” between the pit and the fixed seats. Two entrance plazas will have concessions, retail amenities and restrooms, as well as gazebos providing additional VIP opportunities. There will be other concession and retail options around the amphitheater, and future plans may include building a full-service restaurant.

Artists will have access to a 60′ deep by 72′ wide stage with 20′ wide wings. A 12-15 foot deep loading dock is being designed to accommodate eight canopy-covered truck bays to better serve artists and crews. There will be separate men’s and women’s changing rooms, star changing rooms, a green room and a catering area, a make-up room, break rooms and meal areas for the crews.

About the Macon Shopping Center Redevelopment

Construction of the new amphitheater is part of a larger revitalization effort surrounding the redevelopment of Macon Mall. In September the mayor and other leaders announced that Hull Property Group would donate the Macon Mall to the government. It will undergo a major redevelopment plan which, in addition to building the amphitheater, will retain its current retail stores, bring in more retail, attract new restaurants in and around the mall, relocate offices of the government in vacant spaces and will include new sporting activities, such as a large indoor pickleball centre.

“We are at the center of our community. A place we can’t run from, a place that still needs assets, love, money, respect,” Mayor Miler said at the time. “This area is about to explode [in growth]. It’s nothing one person can do. It’s something we can do together.

“We have to save this mall and the Eisenhower Corridor, and we are. This is historic,” District 9 Commissioner Al Tillman said during the announcement. “This was the biggest announcement of my term. We couldn’t do this without Mayor Miller, the Commission and the new administration.”

The project will cost taxpayers nothing. Instead, bonds are issued that will be repaid with rents already paid to the mall and future rents from new businesses and offices that will move there. The bonds were authorized by the Commission in November, and these funds will be used to build the amphitheater, make improvements to the mall and allow interior construction to attract new tenants.

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