Parks staff proposes combining concert series with Saturdays in the Park to boost attendance

Parks staff proposed combining the summer concert series with the popular Saturdays in the Park events into a coordinated "Pack the Park" program aimed at increasing attendance and making the events more family-friendly. Eric, speaking for Parks and Recreation, told the committee that Saturdays in the Park currently draw "about 700 to a thousand people every Saturday," while summer concerts have been subject to weather and competing events in St. Louis. He said staff were considering changing timing (Thursday evenings, midday weekend slots or spring months), pairing children's activities with concerts and exploring focused musical themes to improve turnout. "One of the things that our Cheryl, our special events person thought of was, what if we kinda combine them and looked at something like maybe...pack the park," Eric said. He explained combining activities would "give kids something a little bit more to do for the parents to then sit down and listen to the band." He also raised the possibility of moving some events to earlier in the day to reduce neighbor complaints about evening noise. Committee members provided informal feedback: one alderman said the concerts "might draw a slightly different crowd" and suggested targeting a music genre for marketing; another noted food trucks can be "notoriously unreliable" and that Friday or Saturday evenings compete with venues that already attract built-in crowds. "Our hope is that the people who've come to Saturday's in the Park have been very happy. They've gotten a lot of business," Eric said when discussing whether food trucks would attend. No formal action was taken; staff were asked to research the idea further, refine potential schedules and return with more detailed proposals and data for committee review and future budgeting consideration for 2026 events.