BANGOR, Maine — From Pitbull to T-Pain to Hootie and the Blowfish, waterfront concerts brought in several big names to Bangor this season.
The Maine Savings Amphitheater saw performances from more than a dozen artists with Post Malone closing out the season.
Fans came from all over, providing a major boost for the local economy creating seasonal jobs and bringing new customers to local businesses.
"It brings tremendous opportunity for our restaurants," Biguita Hernandez-Smith, the economic development officer for the City of Bangor, said.
That rings true for local restaurant Geaghans Pub & Brewery located minutes away from the Maine Savings Amphitheater.
"Waterfront concerts has been great for all of Bangor but certainly Geaghans, we're close enough that whenever there’s an event we fill up," Peter Geaghan, the owner of Geaghans Pub & Brewery, said.
He said because they receive so many customers during concert season their staff is able to pick up more shifts.
“What we see is a lot of customers, a lot of new visitors to Bangor from southern Maine, Canada,” Geaghan said. “I know we get a lot from Canada, that may be here for the first time to have a really fun event in Bangor and for us to be a part of that is just wonderful.”
It's not just this Bangor business seeing more foot traffic during concert season but also local restaurant High Tide in Brewer.
“We get the benefit of having a restaurant right across the river from the concerts, people will come and park, come and eat, and have a nice meal," John Mason, the general manager of High Tide, said.
He said over the past few years they've seen even more customers during concert season, particularly people from out of town.
Business leaders are not just seeing the benefit to their business but to the whole city.
"Everything is a ripple I think, waterfront it affects a lot of different businesses, not just restaurants, people are getting gas, they're staying in hotels their shopping while they’re here,” Geaghan said.
Alex Gray, the founder and owner of Maine Savings Amphitheater, said they're always looking to hear from people about the artists they'd like to see next year.