GOOSE CREEK, S.C. (WCSC) – Residents of Goose Creek will soon have the opportunity to enjoy concerts, events and entertainment right from their city.
The Joseph S. Daning Amphitheatre will serve as an entertainment venue right behind Goose Creek City Hall. This project has been in the works for about three years now and construction began in May 2023. The project is just under $4 million and is on track for both budget and timeline. It will officially open on Labor Day.
The amphitheater will hold a variety of different events, national shows and concerts. The city is already planning for three major shows after the grand opening in September. They are anticipating one in September, one in October and one in November and plan to make all three of these free for the public to attend.
Recreation Director for the City of Goose Creek Crystal Reed says that this is what the city needs and it will provide a great benefit to the community.
“I think the goal is to bring entertainment and opportunities to our residents, so they don’t have to travel outside of city limits to get what they need. This will give us opportunities for neighbors to get to know each other and congregate and celebrate in their city,” Reed says.
When no events are happening, the venue will serve as a park for residents to enjoy all the time with the opportunity to enjoy lunch from the food trucks. The amphitheater will be able to seat about 800 people and there will be plenty of overflow room on the nearby lawns.
This amphitheater is named after former South Carolina Representative Joe Danning, who served as a Council member for the City for over 20 years and helped secure $1.5 million of state funding for this project. The remainder of the project was funded by ARPA funding.
The majority of the project is completed. The final steps are to finish the stage, add an area for the food trucks and add the grass. The city also recently hired an arts and entertainment coordinator who has been able to help them prepare for the opening.
The location of the complex plays a major factor as it is central to the city and will provide residents with the opportunity to walk to it using nearby trails. Reed says this is a priority of the city as they are growing and expanding.
“In this complex the goal really is to make our city more walkable. So, we have the rec complex here. We’ve got our municipal center. And so, as growth comes, we want people to be able to spend less time in their cars and more time getting to things in the city of Goose Creek. So, the goal is to add more entertainment, more recreation opportunities within the city. And so that’s what this will do for us,” she says.
Reed says she is excited to see what comes of this new addition to the city. She says they want to accommodate the community through the growth of the area.
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