Pickle Festival concert moving to downtown
By Steve Herring
Published in News on July 18, 2016 1:46 PM
MOUNT OLIVE -- Major changes are in store next year for the North Carolina Pickle Festival concert traditionally held on the Friday night prior to Saturday's festival that is held in late April.
Instead of being held at the Mount Olive Airport, festival organizers are looking to move the concert downtown to an earlier time on the day of the festival.
The Pickle Festival is sponsored by the Mount Olive Area Chamber of Commerce.
The proposal had been on Monday night's town board agenda, but was removed to allow more time to map out possible locations and the logistics of the move.
"We are trying to change up our Friday night concert," Chamber President Julie Beck said. "The first thing that prompted all of this is they are doing some expansion out at the airport, and we won't be able to use the airport next year for our concert. So that is kind of what got this whole thing started.
"Our Friday night committee got together, and we said well, let's look at another location. In the midst of the conversation we said maybe we should move it to Saturday because we already have thousands of people in town. Right now we are leaning toward the festival ending at 6 p.m., and then from 6 to 8 p.m. having a concert downtown."
The move would save money as well, she said.
"We have already rented the stage and the sound equipment for the stages (for Saturday) anyway versus Friday night when we have to rent extra," Ms. Beck said.
Another concern prompting the move is that Vidant Medical Center is now basing a medical helicopter and ambulance at the airport, Town Manager Charles Brown said.
"We really can't have the crowd we have out there normally for the concert on Friday night," Brown said.
Brown said he thinks the move is a good idea.
"It would actually make it easier on our personnel to start it at say 6 o'clock and run it to 8, and do it on the end of a street where our guys don't have to be cleaning up," he said. "He are still in a thought process, but I think we will be able to work it out so that we can do that."
What the location could be is the $64,000 question, Ms. Beck said.
Possible locations are still being scouted, Ms. Beck said.
"We have to take into consideration that the vendors are trying to tear down, pack up and leave and the town is trying to clean up the streets," Ms. Beck said. "We don't want to impede any of that.
"Our intention is for it to be a free concert. So it is a whole different approach than what we have been doing. Our goal would be to go out and get sponsors to help pay for the concert."
Ms. Beck the idea is to also have one or two food vendors and possibly a beer garden as well.
Brown said he does not think the beer garden would not be a sticking point.
"Although, I think it might be wise to look into somebody who does that already," he said. "It is sort of an issue, but I think there are ways that we can work around this."
The idea would still be to attract a bigger name entertainer for the concert, Ms. Beck said.