By Samantha Geiger
Staff Writer

Festival Pier at Penn’s Landing won’t be returning to host shows in the summer of  2019. One of Philadelphia’s most iconic venues is claimed to be going on a “sabbatical,” according to Geoff Gordon, the regional president of Live Nation.

This “sabbatical” is seeming more like a permanent closure, though. This venue held dozens of concerts for people all over Pennsylvania. The Roots Picnic was one of the festivals this venue was best known for. After 11 years, The Roots Picnic will be held at The Mann Center.

For many students at KU, Festival Pier was a summer spot for them. Being only an hour and a half away, this was one of the biggest venues nearby.

“I’m so upset that I won’t be able to experience another concert at the Pier. I had so many good memories there,” says Thalya Creswell, senior cinema, television & media production major.

Philly.com spoke with Gordon regarding the closure. He states, “A confluence of growth and change in the city, and timing, didn’t line up to pull off a season this year.”

Gordon assures that Philadelphia will not lose any shows this summer, and they will all be held in different venues near or throughout the city.

There has been talk of another outdoor venue opening in 2020, as well, but as for this summer and the capacity of Festival Pier, these concerts will have to wait until then.

There may be an upside to the reconstruction of Festival Pier. After some work, there is potential for a more ideal venue, such as one with a roof that would prevent rain cancellations and provide shade coverage. Other rumors say future plans for Festival Pier don’t include music venue ones.

The placement of the venue was ideal for a lot of Philadelphians with public transportation being so accessible, so hope for a new venue is strong for a lot of local concert goers.