Edmonton Metcalfe Chamber of Commerce hosts groundbreaking for new stage on Edmonton Square

EDMONTON, Ky. – A new project in Metcalfe County is set to showcase the arts and bring some attention to downtown Edmonton.

On the corner of the square facing the Post Office, a stage for the community to showcase their talents is set to begin construction soon.

“This is a project that’s been in the works for a long time. I’ve been with the chamber for seven years, and we’ve been thinking about this and talking about this since then, and we actually formed a committee four years ago, and we’ve raised enough money. We’ve got the plans finalized. The city and the county are both in agreement, and we’re excited to get it started,” Daniel Bragg, the president of the Edmonton Metcalfe Chamber of Commerce said.

One of the main things the Chamber hopes to achieve is to allow many different forms of entertainment in downtown Edmonton.

“Whether that’s music, whether that’s Shakespeare in the Park, whether that’s plays, whether that’s anything you wanted to have to draw people to downtown Edmonton for free entertainment. That’s the best thing we can do to support the local economy here,” Bragg said.

The Chamber couldn’t have raised the money to build it without the support of the community.

“We are so fortunate in Metcalfe County because we have the support of so many of the people in our community and our businesses. So we just… we’re really blessed today and so excited about what’s going to come in the next few weeks as far as progress on the stage,” executive director Kim Harwood said.

“Raising the money seemed like a momentous hurdle… like we would never get this much… we raised $50,000 to build this stage. But once we got the first businesses on board, and then individuals started jumping in and the money kind of poured in… you know, we thought this was a hurdle we’d never surpassed. But the community came together and we came up with the money, and we’re excited to get started,” Bragg said.

But in the end it’s all about a legacy of love for the talent and the people they have.

“Gaye Shaw, our former director, came up with this idea originally, something she really wanted. She retired, and we’ve still been carrying that torch trying to do it… and our motto and our ethos that we live by is to promote pride and progress in Metcalfe County, and we think that showcasing local talent and driving business to downtown Edmonton is the best way to do that,” Bragg said.

News 40 will keep you updated on this project as it moves along.