COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — A $40 million state-of-the-art outdoor amphitheater is scheduled to break ground in Colorado Springs soon.
When completed, the amphitheater will have 8,000 seats, with 60 VIP fire pit suites, 4,500 lower level seats, and lawn seating. It will host large touring acts from across the country for Colorado Springs concert-goers, and will be easily accessible from Denver and parts of Southern Colorado.
It will be built on the city's north side at the Polaris Pointe Development, just east of I-25 in the North Gate area. The land is already home to entertainment like Topgolf, iFLY, Overdrive Raceway, and more.
JW Roth, developer of the amphitheater, is from Colorado Springs, and said the city is growing, but it doesn’t have a large outdoor coliseum like this. That’s why he came up with the idea for the project, which he said will offer world-class music in style and comfort.
“It's something that has never been built anywhere else, and it's going to be built right here in Colorado Springs,” Roth said. “I'm not building this to compete with Red Rocks, I’m building this to be complimentary of all of the other arts and all of the other cultural projects that are happening in our state.”
The amphitheater will be named The Sunset because of its views of Pikes Peak and the United States Air Force Academy.
“The sun sets right over Pikes Peak about the time that we would be kicking off the headliner shows every night," Roth said. "So we decided that would be the best name for the amphitheater.”
Roth is the founder and chairman of Notes Live, the entertainment company that is developing the venue. He said the funding for the project is coming from the company, which has nearly 60 shareholders.
“People ask me, ‘Why are you building this in Colorado Springs?’ Well, first and foremost, this is my hometown. This is where I live. This is where I grew up, and I love our community. We’ve got the greatest city with a great culture,” she said.
The new venue will also include 4- to 5-star restaurants — such as seafood and a chophouse — as well as a rooftop bar.
Roth’s vision and planning for the project began about a year and a half ago. The amphitheater will be built on the same development as Boot Barn Hall, which is a venue that opened in 2019 with a capacity of 1,400, and the restaurant Bourbon Brothers. Roth and his company — Notes Live — own both of these establishments.
News5 also spoke with nearby business owners and employees about the project.
“No longer do I have to drive to Red Rocks to hear an outdoor concert,” said Korky von Kessel, one of the owners of iFLY. “I think this area is going to be the entertainment center of Colorado. If you think about it, you can shoot a magnum, you can drive a race car, you can hit a golf ball, you can fly in a wind tunnel, and not even have to go back to your car to get a new parking spot.”
“We're just excited to have it coming in, and it's going to nice to be able to sit out back here after work and listen to bands as they go through Colorado Springs,” said Chris Frayer, who is the lead instructor at iFLY.
Meanwhile, Roth said he believes the new amphitheater is one more piece to the entertainment puzzle, and will help turn this part of Colorado Springs into an entertainment hub.
“We don't have big outdoor music coliseums and this will be the most luxurious music coliseum ever built,” Roth said.
When asked about accommodating for nearby neighbors and homes and noise complaints, Roth also said: “When we first submitted this to the city, the first thing that happened was the city calling a community hearing. So we had a community hearing and everybody that showed up was in total favor of what we're doing up here. They get it. It brings such a vibrance to this end of town.”
The amphitheater is expected to open in September 2023 with concerts scheduled throughout the year in 2024.
For more information about Notes Live opening The Sunset, click here.
