Memphis in May officials have released a look at proposed sites they say could hold Memphis in May events in 2020 if Tom Lee Park construction moves ahead as plan. But they say those sites are “not compatible” with hosting events like Beale Street Music Fest and the World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest.
In an email statement, MIM says:
As you are aware, yesterday Memphis in May received the test-fits from our local architect at Architecture Inc. which showed that contrary to what has been reported by MRPP, the Beale Street Music Festival and World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest will not fit in the current proposed redesign of Tom Lee Park but will instead be significantly reduced…
As a follow up… I wanted to provide you with the attached document (FIND THAT HERE) from the DMC listing the sites they propose for hosting the Beale Street Music Festival and World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest. A cursory review of the sizes and infrastructure of the suggested sites reveals that these simply are not compatible to host our world-class events, and reaffirms our President and CEO Jim Holt’s assertion yesterday that aside from Tom Lee Park, there are no other sites in downtown Memphis that can accommodate Memphis in May. This is why we have requested a phased construction schedule to allow Memphis in May to remain in Tom Lee Park and downtown Memphis in 2020, as it is the only viable downtown location for our events.
Thank you for allowing me to provide more clarity to these previous statements and reinforce our reason for requesting phased construction.
