Brunswick County outdoor music venue expected to open next spring, details surrounding the project and reaction

BRUNSWICK COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — An outdoor music venue is set to make its debut in Brunswick County next spring. WWAY spoke to the people behind the blueprint on Wednesday. 

The venue is called Cumberland Woods. It’s being labeled a family-friendly attraction and will be located in Bolivia off Galloway Road. 

Steve Shuttleworth and Peter Higgins are the men behind Cumberland Woods. They said the more than 300-acre lot would include a stage for performances and access for food trucks, all while keeping its outdoor appeal. 

Higgins said this project will have a low impact on the environment, utilizing the wood line surrounding the property as a natural sound barrier. 

“I mean we looked at a lot of different tracts of land in Pender County, Brunswick County, Onslow County, and we felt that this was well suited because we want to have a fairly large tract of land because we don’t want to be; we want to have plenty of space that we’re not impacting the surrounding neighbors,” Higgins said. 

But despite having this plan in place, it seems nearby neighbors are still hesitant. Shuttleworth said he and Higgins are working on ways to please everyone. 

“We talked to the neighbors, we tried to listen to what they said, we hired some sound professionals to demonstrate what the volumes would be at different locations. So, that we really would assuage their concerns about interrupting their peaceful and quiet enjoyment of their property,” Shuttleworth said. 

Shuttleworth and Higgins said the next phase of this project is beginning work, like setting up its main focus; the stage. 

Brunswick County resident Julie Hans shared her opinion on welcoming this event venue in her backyard. 

“It just depends on how close you are to the venue. It’s not that bad, if, I mean, if you’re not right up against it, I wouldn’t have an issue,” Hans said. “The more stuff we can get like that, over here in Brunswick County, would be awesome. Then you don’t have to travel over to Wilmington to see it.” 

The Brunswick County Board of Adjustments approved these plans three weeks ago. Now, after having an engineer finalize a desired construction plan, it will go back before the Board of Adjustments to get building approval.