Thunder Ridge expansion approaching its conclusion

Hundreds of construction workers are working around the clock on an expansion project at Thunder Ridge Nature Arena in preparation for a May 21 concert that kicks off a busy season of planned events at the Johnny Morris-owned venue.

Bass Pro Shops’ Thunder Ridge, located off Highway 86 in Ridgedale, sits on 1,200 acres with views of Table Rock Lake and the Boston Mountains of Arkansas. The 20,000-capacity amphitheater – a little over a mile away from the company’s Big Cedar Lodge property – is hosting its inaugural Concert for Conservation, which officials describe as a preview of the expansion work undertaken over the past couple years. The May 21 music event includes Chris Janson, Country Music Hall of Fame member John Anderson and The Ozark Mountain Daredevils. Tickets for the concert are available on Ticketmaster for $10.

The concert marks Thunder Ridge’s first major musical event since country superstar Garth Brooks played a trio of shows in conjunction with Bass Pro’s 50th anniversary in fall 2022. Reports of logistical issues gained attention after social media posts noted concertgoers waiting hours in traffic and experiencing parking issues. The delays led to some ticketholders missing all or part of the concerts, according to past Springfield Business Journal reporting.

Since those concerts, Bass Pro set out to upgrade the infrastructure in and near the venue, including doubling on-site parking and helping fund a $22 million expansion of Highway 86 to four lanes from two. Additionally, the construction of several areas of suites and premium seating areas, including a 12-story tower that includes bedrooms, private bars and outside decks, are part of the expansion project.

James Smith, regional general manager with ASM Global, said the venue and event management company oversees Thunder Ridge. ASM Global, which manages over 350 venues around the world, including Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, the Branson Convention Center, and Friends Arena in Stockholm, Sweden, signed a long-term contract with Bass Pro to manage the venue, he said.

“We handle all aspects of it,” Smith said, noting the work includes booking the property for events, as well as marketing and managing them.

As he walked around the Thunder Ridge property on a rainy May 13, Smith said construction crews for the project, for which Nabholz Construction Corp. is general contractor, are working 24/7 as the May 21 concert approaches.

“There’s all kinds of crews. There’s road crews, there’s landscaping crews, electricians, carpenters, rock masons, fence builders,” he said. “There is literally over 400 people here working every day right now.”

Most work is expected to be complete this month, except for the 12-story structure dubbed The Nature Tower, which is slated to be finished in late June. Thunder Ridge officials declined to disclose project costs.

Construction on Highway 86 lasted approximately seven months last year, and $9.5 million of the cost was covered by the state through a transportation cost-share program, according to the Missouri Department of Transportation. Bass Pro officials said the remainder, roughly $12.9 million, was funded by project sponsor Big Cedar Lodge LLC.

Aside from the highway’s lane expansion, project work included new turn lanes on U.S. 65, a new roundabout at Jones Road and a tunnel under Highway 86 between the north and south sides of Jones Road to eliminate cross traffic.

Parking plan
Smith said the expanded parking, which now numbers approximately 6,000 spaces, is a “significant increase” from what the parking situation was for the Garth Brooks shows nearly two years ago. A pedestrian walking path and tram route also have been added. Between added parking across Highway 86 from the venue and on-site spaces, he said there will be enough parking to accommodate every show planned.

For the Brooks concerts, ticketholders were encouraged to purchase a parking pass to the Fruit Farm parking lot, which is located near the Highway 86 and U.S. 65 intersection, over 2 miles from the venue. People had to be shuttled from that location, which Smith said is where a lot of the parking issues stemmed.

“They won’t have to park down the road; they won’t have to do anything like that,” he said. “It is first come, first serve. We park from front to back, so early arrivals are encouraged.”

Although recent rainy weather has proven challenging, crews will be chip-sealing the parking area soon.

“All those 6,000 spaces will be ready and available,” he said.

Jonas Arjes, executive director of economic development organization Taney County Partnership, said he’s sporadically kept up on the development of Thunder Ridge.

He said the road improvements will improve the visitor experience.

“Probably the bigger impact in my opinion is going to be the expansion of on-site parking,” he said. “That’s going to be huge.”

Arjes, who also is executive vice president and chief economic development officer for the Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce & Convention and Visitors Bureau, said there aren’t any economic impact numbers he’s able to share on the venue, noting the only work they’ve done to date was solely for Bass Pro’s use.

“I’m sure that that type of stuff will come out as we grow on down the road,” he said.

While Arjes said the expanded entertainment schedule should draw in more out-of-area visitors, he doesn’t think the limited flight options at Branson Airport, roughly 12 miles away from Thunder Ridge, will be much of a factor. Branson Airport’s lone commercial service currently is with Minneapolis-based Sun Country Airlines.

“Historically, though, this is a rubber tire market,” he said. “This is a drive to market.”

Taking the stage
Thunder Ridge has hosted professional bull riding the past couple of years, as Morris and Bass Pro own the Missouri Thunder, one of the teams in the PBR Team Series, according to past SBJ reporting. The league’s teams have come to town for Thunder Days, which includes a three-day slate of head-to-head matchups. The event is set to appear in Springfield during Labor Day weekend at Great Southern Bank Arena, according to PBR’s website.

A few days after the Concert for Conservation, country music singer Morgan Wallen is set to take the Thunder Ridge stage. The May 25 event is one of several the venue has announced this year, as Chris Stapleton, Luke Bryan, Imagine Dragons and Pitbull are among those set for concerts either this summer or fall. Smith said a previously scheduled airshow for July 4-5 was canceled after two main aircraft assets – an F-22 Raptor and MQ-9 Reaper drone – became unavailable due to being deployed.

“It’s not complete yet. We’re looking at filling up more dates in the fall,” he said, adding the venue’s schedule will likely run mid-May to mid-October most years. “That could fluctuate a little bit depending on how we feel like the weather might be during those times.”

While the stage for the Garth Brooks shows was portable, Smith said a semipermanent structure is nearing completion. Flanking the stage on both sides are a trio of concession tents.

“There’ll be a roof that’s completed on top of that stage that encompasses that whole steel structure up top, but there are certain elements they have to get installed before the roof goes on,” he said, noting that includes hanging lights and running electricity to them.

While the facility has capacity for 20,000, venue officials are looking to start smaller this year.

“Right now, we’re scaling the shows for 18,000 people. The capacity could grow,” Smith said. “We are going to test the waters at 18,000. Make sure the flow of everything works – your ingress, egress for parking and traffic for patron flow, for everything that needs to happen.”

The Garth Brooks shows had roughly 1,200 seats near the stage with the remaining as general admission lawn seating in addition to standing-room-only space.

“We’re forecasting 10,000 in the lawn, and then the remaining 8,000 will be down on the floor,” he said, noting the floor seats are padded chairs.

Amid a flurry of construction activity continuing on-site, Smith said he feels good about most construction wrapping in time for the musical shows set to take the stage this month. He also is confident the result will be worth the effort.

“This is going to be the premier amphitheater in the country when it’s done,” he said, noting other standout outdoor concert venues around the country include The Gorge Amphitheatre in Washington and Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado. “But when you look at the aesthetics and how beautiful it is out here in the nature of the Ozarks, it’s going to blow all those other amphitheaters away.”