The Hole a perfect spot for entertainment venue

It’s been mentioned several times, and appropriately so, about how the downtown football tailgate party was such a tremendous success.

A number of local residents are eager to build on that event and make Court Square a focal point for downtown gatherings. It’s certainly an idea worth exploring.

The grand purpose of the city’s downtown revitalization project is to attract people to Main Street, to replace some of the empty buildings with thriving businesses. It’s the reason city officials initiated the $5.2 million project that returned much-needed luster to downtown.

While the facelift has occurred, the transformation has yet to fully take place. Downtown has yet to capture a sense of vibrancy. There are a number of empty stores and just as many businesses struggling to stay afloat.

Transforming The Hole from a grassy slope into useful property is by no means a panacea, but it’s another piece to the puzzle of making Main Street not only a road but an attractive destination point.

A parking lot would certainly be practical. Of the $5.2 million spent to revitalize downtown, none of it went to providing more parking.

But a parking lot isn’t a draw. No one is going to travel to Court Square to see pavement. And it was estimated over 1,000 people attended the recent tailgate party. Those folks obviously found somewhere to park.

A water park would certainly be neat, but it would be nothing more than a seasonal attraction. For eight months of the year, it would be idle space.

Some form of year-round entertainment venue would be a perfect fit. Whether it’s a stage or small amphitheater, whether it has fixed seating or requires lawn chairs, there are few better ways to draw a crowd than live entertainment.

City officials have discussed this option before ‘ and discussed it at length. In the scope of downtown revitalization, our city leaders would be serving the community well by beginning to work toward transforming The Hole into an entertainment venue.