(Money Matters - Photo Illustration - MetroCreative)

PARKERSBURG — The Point Park Concert Series, which have been staple events for the area for the past few years, will only able to do one concert this coming summer due to loss of funding.

Downtown PKB which has organized the concerts for 10 years announced on its Facebook page Tuesday that the series, which has traditionally hosted three concerts during the summer months at the park’s amphitheater down by the river will only be holding one concert in July.

“The concert series is a huge expense (which we lose money on), but up until this point, we have been able to support them through our partner program, sponsorships and funders,” the Facebook post said. “With the reduction of funding we are receiving, we are no longer able as a small, non-profit organization to incur the large expense of three concerts.

“We know the series is enjoyed by many, so if we are able to find a new funding source, we would be happy to add one or both concerts back to our event schedule.”

Downtown PKB Executive Director Amanda Stevens said they are looking at every possibility as they are trying to move forward.

“We lost a significant funder that paid for the concerts,” she said.

Stevens did not name the organization they are losing funding from. She said they have supported them a lot in the past and Downtown PKB is appreciative of the support they have regularly received from them and called them “a great supporter.”

The organization is committing funding to projects within their own organization, Stevens said.

“We haven’t had a chance to replace that funding yet,” she said. “It is a substantial amount of money.”

Each concert costs around $20,000 to put on.

They aren’t ruling anything out and are in the process of trying to secure other funding with the hope they might be able to bring back one or two of the other concerts.

Right now, they can only commit to one concert which is scheduled for July 11.

“We feel that right now, we don’t have another option,” Stevens said. “We are not ruling anything out.

“We are seeking other sources of funding.”

The band for July 11 has not been booked yet.

The series has traditionally booked tribute bands. In 2024, they had Fleetwood 2 The Max (Fleetwood Mac tribute), Epic Eagles (Eagles tribute), and Right Now (Van Halen tribute).

Each concert brought in several thousand people, Stevens said of people coming down to Point Park and boaters who gather in the river near the stage area.

Downtown PKB is continuing everything else they do in a typical year. The concerts have traditionally operated at a loss so they felt they had to put two of the shows on hold.

If they can find the funding, they need then they can schedule the other two shows, Stevens said.

“At this time, we don’t know how to make that happen,” she said.

If people would like to make a donation towards the concerts, go to https://www.downtownpkb.com. Donations will be returned if not enough funds are raised.