PAW PAW, Mich. (WOOD) — A winery in Paw Paw is looking to expand its concert space ahead of this summer, but plans will first need approval from village leaders and some neighbors already have noise concerns.
With the old stage already torn down, Warner Vineyards wants to add a bigger stage and a 120-foot deck along the riverfront. Seven sets of double-stacked, 20-foot-long modified shipping containers would serve as bathrooms, a concessions stand and another viewing deck — an upgrade from tents that that venue teams have previously had to scramble to put together ahead of each show. Documents show that there are plans to create a new stage on top of four shipping containers and leave room for future building expansion.
The goal is to support a larger showcase for a slate of shows scheduled to begin in May.
“It’s exciting, though the time frame is short, but we’ll get her done,” Warner Vineyards owner and President Patrick Warner said. “The biggest thing is we want a better customer experience and we believe it will do that. We were at a crossroads of why we are building a new stage, we got turned down more than we got accepted because of our stage size.”
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The vineyard is awaiting the green light from the Paw Paw Planning Commission, which was expected to discuss the project at a public hearing Thursday evening. Over the phone, the village manager told News 8 that leaders need more engineering details, which Warner said was being addressed.
While the venue has been a popular summertime destination, it has drawn mixed reviews from neighbors. They say that while they enjoy the free music from time to time, trouble starts when the bass is turned up…