By Suzette Orah Bruhn, Sedona Resident
(September 26, 2013)
I cannot believe the City is so stubbornly continuing with plans to build an amphitheater at Barbara Antonsen Park. Does our City Council remember they recently passed a noise ordinance making outdoor music performances in Sedona almost impossible? Now the City is spending over a million dollar on an outdoor venue, with a strict noise ordinance in place, very limited access, no parking facilities, located in a densely populated area. This is doomed for failure. Sedona will have, again, wasted millions of dollars on a poorly planned project.
This money should be used to buy the Cultural Park instead. The Cultural Park was Sedona’s, and Northern Arizona’s, most attractive, sophisticated and exciting outdoor venue, with ample parking facilities, easy access and located relatively out of town.
Prior to getting bids for its construction, the citizens of Sedona need to vote on the building of an outdoor venue at Barbara Antonsen Park.
If the City cannot afford buying the Cultural Park, it should create a vibrant downtown with music, dining and shops. Has any one of our City Council Members been to Cottonwood’s Main Street recently? Why is it that a city like Sedona, which attracts 4 million tourists a year goes into deep sleep at sundown while a residential city like Cottonwood is so vibrant?
Cities encourage its merchants by giving incentives and preparing the right platform for the development of an exciting downtown. Sedona doesn’t have to have outdoor music disturbing its residents. Cottonwood’s Main Street’s music scene is all indoors. Sedona could have music and entertainment at our Uptown restaurants, with exciting Coffee Shops, wine tasting rooms, and souvenir shops. This will make Sedona the sophisticated City its tourists are expecting it to be. Not another poorly planned venue.
4 Comments
So we can’t have music because it is too “noisy”. But we can have helicopters flying over all day spoiling the serenity of the desert for the sake timeshare sales (“take a free helicopter ride”, if you listen to our pitch) What’s wrong with this picture?
Cottonwood welcomes tourists. Sedona would rather tourists go to Cottonwood. Hence one of the the reasons the City Council prefers a smaller, Community-Oriented amplitheater vs. a grander one like the Cultural Park which has the potential to attract those pesky visitors to their community.
Sharon,
If Sedona doesn’t want tourists as you suggest, then why does the city fund the Chamber of Commerce $500,000 for “destination marketing”?
Bring back the Cultural Park.
It’s a shame that we have to drive to Phoenix, Prescott, Flagstaff, NMexico to see concerts and shows when we had a great venue right here.
Yes the CP had parking problems, walking path issues, but easily fixed. The noise ordinance was not perfect but was working.
Stop this crazy- ness. We are “supposed” to be a town of art and culture. It’s why we moved here. We were able to see about a dozen shows at the CP and then poof.
What a sad sad shame.