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Hamilton County unaware amphitheater deal includes transfer of public land

Staff File Photo by Seth Carpenter / Hamilton County was unaware that Jimmy White, president of Urban Story Ventures and managing partner of The Bend, agreed to get the county to transfer public land to a private amphitheater developer. White is pictured on a tour of The Bend site.
Staff File Photo by Seth Carpenter / Hamilton County was unaware that Jimmy White, president of Urban Story Ventures and managing partner of The Bend, agreed to get the county to transfer public land to a private amphitheater developer. White is pictured on a tour of The Bend site. Staff File Photo by Seth Carpenter / Hamilton County was unaware that Jimmy White, president of Urban Story Ventures and managing partner of The Bend, agreed to get the county to transfer public land to a private amphitheater developer. White is pictured on a tour of The Bend site.

By Daniel Dassow 5 min read

Hamilton County officials did not know that developer Jimmy White’s agreement with a private amphitheater developer included a contingency that the county transfer a block of land it owns to the out-of-state developer.

The purchase and sale agreement signed in May by White and JW Roth, CEO of Colorado-based Venu, states Venu will not close the land purchase unless White arranges for the county to transfer county park land to the private company.

Venu plans to build a $300 million, 12,500-seat amphitheater at The Bend, White’s riverfront redevelopment project that sits roughly between the end of West Main Street and the end of West MLK Boulevard.

The county’s 2-acre property at 1245 West Main St. is a green space and is not actively managed, said Haley Burton, press secretary for Hamilton County Mayor Weston Wamp.

“We were not aware of this provision in Urban Story’s agreement with Venu and have not discussed this vacant 2-acre parcel with the developer,” Burton said in an email. “However, we are always open to opportunities that would both enhance tourism and the quality of life in Hamilton County.”