Asheville Downtown Association raising $100,000 for band shell in Pack Square Park

Jason Sandford

Jason Sandford is a reporter, writer, blogger and photographer interested in all things Asheville.

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I reported in Sunday’s Asheville Citizen-Times that the Asheville Downtown Association is raising $100,000 to pay for a new band shell structure to cover the stage at Pack Square Park. From the story:

Adrian Vassallo, president of the association’s board of directors, said will greatly expand the ability to bring new events into the park. The model will be on display starting at 6 p.m. Monday in the park before the Asheville Symphony Orchestra’s Labor Day performance there.

The removable coated polyester top will cover a curving new structure designed by Asheville artist Hoss Haley, who designed the stainless steel pergola that now stands over the stage, and Peter Belt, the designer and maker of fabric shelters for Artful Shelter and Red Sky Shelters.

A covering for Haley’s pergola was in initial plans by the Pack Square Conservancy, which oversaw the $17 million effort to remake the center-city public space. The new park opened in 2010 without a covering, and event organizers have made do with temporary tents. It’s time now for a permanent solution, according to Vassallo.