Rarely are hurricanes associated with a positive outcome.

Last year — after remnants of Hurricane Ike spawned a windstorm that shredded trees, ripped off roofs and tore down power lines in Southern Indiana — a group of downtown investors and New Albany officials decided to make lemonade out of the lemons Mother Nature hurled at the area.

The former riverfront amphitheatre had been obliterated, as high winds rived its protective canopy, damaging the structure beyond repair.

Mayor Doug England said he was never a fan of the yellow-colored awning that covered the old amphitheatre. Combining insurance money, riverboat funds approved by the New Albany City Council and a sizable donation from the Clark-Floyd Counties Convention and Tourism Bureau, England pushed ahead with his plan to bring a permanent awning to protect New Albany’s outdoor venue.

The new and improved amphitheatre will host its first crowd July 3 for an Independence Day celebration.

MAC Construction & Excavating Inc. began work on the half-shell structure in April, and England said only a little tidying up on the amphitheatre is still needed before completion.

“It’s going to be hurricane-proof,” England said. The vision to improve the amphitheatre started when he first came back to the mayor’s seat in 2008.

“It was a dream from the first day I sat in office.”

Jim Keith, director of the tourism bureau, said his organization has been advertising the amphitheatre and July 3 event through media outlets in Indianapolis, trying to entice people to check out New Albany.

The tourism bureau provided $390,000 toward the $700,000 awning.

“This new one is pretty stunning,” Keith said of the structure. “The amphitheatre creates a focal point for events to happen and gives identity when you drive across the Sherman Minton Bridge.”

With a Friday night concert series planned for the summer and acting groups pledging to put on shows at the amphitheatre, England said downtown should get a boost from the riverfront venue.

Keith said city leaders can aggressively seek performances to keep the amphitheatre busy.

“The amphitheatre is a source of pride for the local community,” he said.



KICKOFF EVENT

The Independence Day celebration is actually the night before the holiday, slated to begin at 5 p.m. July 3.

England wanted the event to be July 3 since there are many other options for entertainment July 4 coupled with families wanting to spend time with their relatives.

This year’s musical lineup is highlighted by Ambrosia — a band with several hits in the 1970s and 1980s as well as five Grammy Award nominations. Some of their hits include “You’re the Only Woman,” “Holdin’ on to Yesterday” and “Biggest Part of Me.”

Also performing will be The Wulfe Bros., Flashbak and Steve Price Band. A fireworks display will follow Ambrosia’s performance. Food and drink vendors will be on hand for the event, which is sponsored by England, the city of New Albany and the tourism bureau.

Local businesses and organizations including Duke Energy, the Horseshoe Foundation of Floyd County, Holiday Inn Express and The Tribune contributed to the event so that no taxpayer money would be used.

Councilman Steve Price, whose band is performing at the event, said he’s excited to take the stage. He credits England for getting a big act like Ambrosia to play the show and believes more well-known bands will come, too.

“I want to get the riverfront going,” he said.

Price voted against using riverboat funds to help with the amphitheatre cost, but he said that was because the lowest bid came in nearly $100,000 more than the engineer’s estimate.

Now that it’s basically finished, Price said MAC did a great job.

“It’s certainly better than that yellow tarp,” he said.



SO YOU KNOW

• MAC Construction & Excavating built the awning at a price of $694,970.