A proposed 2,000-person waterfront amphitheater could be coming to Lake of the Ozarks, next to Backwater Jack’s restaurant and bar. However, some neighbors have concerns about the development.

The amphitheater would be constructed at the back of the cove, with a parking lot for 300 vehicles on Sunset Dr.

A hearing before the Osage Beach Planning Commission was well-attended by members of the community and homeowners in the surrounding area who feel they may be affected negatively by the amphitheater. It’s the latest iteration of the ongoing challenges between Lakefront businesses and homeowners, who sometimes feel they have conflicting interests. Often in those situations, the governing entity has required the business owner/developer to take steps to mitigate impacts to the nearby residents.

“We are working to address the concerns voiced at the planning and zoning meeting,” said Andy Prewitt, spokesperson for the developer.

Osage Beach City Planner Cary Patterson said the city acknowledges the development would have some impact on the surrounding area, but his and the Planning Commission’s job is to make sure the impact is minimal, and not negative or debilitating.

“There’s definitely been an effort to try to make this something [where] they can use 65 acres with as little impact as possible,” he said.

One property owner in the area, Tina Cantwell, says she and her husband moved to the Lake full-time from the Dallas area about three years ago, and her concern is the amount of traffic the amphitheater could bring through the area, on roads that may not be sufficient to handle that kind of volume.

Patterson agreed: he says the biggest hurdle could be the roads that connect Osage Beach Parkway to Backwater Jacks and the new amphitheater: Beach Dr. and Sunset Dr. Patterson said a traffic analysis is under way, “to make sure our roads and intersections can handle the kind of traffic that might take place.”

Patterson said he doesn’t think noise will be a major concern. The concert noise would be directed toward the woods—away from the Lake—and he said the trees and foliage should absorb a large amount of the sound. He contrasted that with other waterfront venues that direct sound directly across the water, much to the chagrin of homeowners in those coves.

The development needs rezoning in order to proceed; it’s currently a mix between General Commercial and Resort-Residential zoning. The Planning Commission tabled it after the Jan. 14 meeting.

Patterson said if the traffic study results show the roads will not handle the volume of vehicles, then the city would look at any opportunities to easily improve the roads so that they could do so. If no immediate or simple fixes were possible, he said the developer could have the opportunity to contribute to infrastructure upgrades, though he said those kinds of upgrades could become significant.

Amphitheater Preliminary Plans

Download PDF Backwater Jacks Amphitheater Plan

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