With construction still underway, city says Riverfront Park will open in time for July 4th

WILMINGTON, NC (WWAY) — The City of Wilmington’s brand new Riverfront Park and amphitheater is set to open in a few days, but ongoing construction has some questioning whether it will be complete in time.

The park is located off Harnett Street near Marina Grill and PPD. A ribbon cutting is scheduled for Friday, and a day of free concerts will be held for the July 4th grand opening.

“The stage, the great lawn, the performance area, a lot of the outdoor rooms, the promenade, the offices, the back of house, all that’s going to be ready to go for the opening celebration on July the 4th,” said city spokesman Dylan Lee. “One section of it, the West Gardens, which is sort of an environmental garden area closer to the river, that one’s not going to be ready.”

Tickets are not needed for Sunday’s event. Lee says street parking throughout downtown will be free for that day, and guests can pay to park at the city and county decks, and the CFCC lots.

“The gates will open at 1:00 and the music will start at 2:00,” Lee said. “We’ve got diverse entertainment, everything from reggae to hip-hop to live comedians to jazz to bluegrass.”

One of the bands set to christen the new stage is reggae group Signal Fire.

“We’ve been fortunate to play Greenfield Lake and all the great venues here so to add this to the list and be one of the first out there is a huge honor, we’re super excited,” said lead singer Sean Gregory.

Gregory, also the guitarist, manager, and songwriter, says he’s excited to see the turnout after a year of canceled shows due to COVID-19. The amphitheater has a capacity of 7,200 people.

“We’re hoping to pack this thing out, being a free event and in the daytime, kid friendly, I think it’s going to be a great opportunity for everyone to see the venue and check out local bands,” he said.

The paid shows at the park, run by Live Nation, will start later in the month and residents are excited.

“We’ve got Jim Gaffigan tickets already, I’d like to go to Trevor Noah,” said Doug Hamerski.

For those attending the grand opening, Lee says the city is prepared for a large crowd.

“We have security for the July 4th event and additional staff to make sure, especially since people haven’t been there before that they understand where to go and how to get around on that,” he said.

Lee says Live Nation will handle security and rope off certain parts of the park during the paid concerts.

No word yet on when the West Gardens portion of the park will be complete.

You can find out more here.