LETTER: New Johnson Park roof already aiding Liverpool performances

To the editor:

The Liverpool Is The Place Committee sincerely thanks Liverpool Mayor Gary White, the board of trustees and especially Trustee Christina Fadden Fitch who, as the board’s liaison with the DPW, personally coordinated arrangements for installation of a roof at Johnson Park this year.

On June 15, members of the Town of Salina Highway Department joined a Village of Liverpool Department of Public Works crew and representatives of Colorado’s WeatherPort Shelter Systems to install the durable fabric cover over the stage at Johnson Park.

A grant from Onondaga County Department of Transportation paid for the new stage roof. The Liverpool is The Place Committee, which books 24 concerts every summer at the park, had long lobbied for the canopy which would allow musicians to set up, plug in and keep their equipment dry in the event of rain. Over the past three years, 13 concerts were canceled due to inclement weather.

Since it went up, the new roof has already functioned as planned. Three 2017 events — the June 19 concert by Matt Chase & Thunder Canyon, the June 26 concert by the Stock Market Swing Orchestra and the July 12 concert by the Easy Money Big Band — were performed regardless of wet weather. Those shows would’ve been canceled had the roof not been there to keep the musicians dry.

The Liverpool Is The Place Committee sincerely thanks:

Onondaga County Fourth District Legislator Judy Tassone
Liverpool Mayor Gary White and the board of trustees
Liverpool Village Trustee Christina Fadden Fitch
Onondaga County Director of Purchasing Andrew Trombley
Liverpool Village Codes Enforcement Officer Bill Reagan
Liverpool Village DPW Superintendent Bill Asmus and crew
Salina Town Supervisor Mark Nicotra
Salina Town High Department Superintendent John Vito and crew
WeatherPort Shelter Systems
Liverpool Is The Place Chairperson/First Ward Town Councilor Colleen Gunnip.

We look forward to finishing the project with new stage lights to be installed soon. Meanwhile, we applaud the village and its DPW for moving ahead with construction of a short stairway to help our audience members access the park from Oswego Street.