Only 1 council member used Riverfront Park’s VIP box for ‘economic development,’ city still renews season tickets
Despite reported low use of the VIP table in 2021, the city has renewed its season tickets for 2022 at a cost of $13,911.60. The four-seat box is good for 20 shows. (Port City Daily photo/Alexandria Sands Williams)
WILMINGTON — It caused a bit of a stir amongst officeholders, local media outlets and attentive taxpayers when the City of Wilmington proposed spending $14,000 on VIP season concert tickets at Live Oak Pavilion last summer.
Before signing off on the invoice, city staff crafted a “ticket distribution policy,” which originally would have comped council members for VIP seats and given them first dibs on shows. The only permissible uses for the tickets would have been to promote economic development, recognize city employees or treat nonprofits or entities that are said to enhance the quality of life.
After news outlets picked up stories on the expenditure, first reported by WHQR, the city council faced…
