Let the music begin: Summer concerts return to Buhl Park

Jun. 1—HERMITAGE — When the annual summer concert series kicks off this weekend at Buhl Park, visitors will see not only their favorite bands, but a few new features as well.

The first show in the park's free-to-the-public series will be a performance by John Reese and Backbeat at 6 p.m. Sunday. The band performs jazz from all eras, as well as rhythm and blues, soul, pop and dance music.

If anyone watching the performance feels the urge to hop up and dance, they can do so on a new, 22-by-80-foot, smooth-finish surface in front of the Performing Arts Center outdoor stage, said Julie Eckenrod, director of arts and communications at Buhl Park.

"We always have people that want to dance," Eckenrod said. "But typically they just stand and dance where they are, so they they can utilize that new space."

The new surface was something suggested by many park visitors over the years. A couple months ago, park officials revisited the idea and were able to secure funding for the project through donations, she said.

Funding came from by the Shenango Valley Foundation, the Buhl Regional Health Foundation and a private donor.

Workers started the project in early May, and the weather cooperated enough so that the new surface was completed in time for the concert series' beginning this weekend, she said.

"There's just a little landscaping and some grass that needs to be planted, but the cement floor is done," she said.

After that initial performance, there will be subsequent concerts every Wednesday and Sunday, weather permitting, through late-August at the stage.

The Sunday concerts typically draw an average of 1,000 to 1,500 people, while Wednesday concerts draw a "little less" due to additional factors in people's lives such as work, she said.

Park officials opted to start the summer concert series a couple weeks early this year, allowing a couple extra Wednesdays and Saturdays in August in case performances are cancelled due to rain and need to be made up.

When planning for this year's concert series, Eckenrod said she interacted with 80 to 100 different bands, including returning fan-favorites and new bands hoping to schedule their first performance at the park.

"Sometimes it's tough with the timing to get everybody scheduled," she said.

There are a few other changes that will be coming to the summer concert series, aside from the new dance floor.

There will be an expanded menu at the nearby Cabin Cafe, which offers 50-cent hotdogs with chili, cheese or sauerkraut, drinks, pepperoni rolls, ice cream and other snacks.

To help improve customer service, park officials will set up additional tents to help serve visitors faster. Different service stations will focus on specific items, such as a station for ice cream or cold drinks, Eckenrod said.

"The line for the cabin always gets very, very long, so we'll have a few extra stations if they just want something quick," she said.

For some healthier options, the Wednesday concerts will see the debut of the Health Hut, a collaboration among the park, the Community Food Warehouse of Mercer County and the Buhl Regional Health Foundation.

The hut will offer fresh fruit and vegetables — free — as well as recipes and preparation ideas for any visitors who stop by.

"If it goes well and we're certain it will, then we'd like it to be an addition for our summer concert series going forward," Eckenrod said of the Health Hut.

For more information on the summer concert series or other park events and programs, visit www.buhlpark.org or call 724-981-5522.

Like David L. Dye on Facebook or email him at ddye@sharonherald.com.