Left: The original design graphic for the amphitheater. Right: What stands on the site today.
When Menifee City Council members approved a $3.9 million contract for the proposed Central Park amphitheater in 2021, words such as “world-class” and “iconic” were used to describe their vision for the entertainment venue.
The words being used by many residents to describe the project these days are far less complimentary.
As we mark the 10th anniversary of the first discussion of an “iconic” amphitheater within Menifee Town Center, the project site doesn’t look much different than it did when the original concrete slab was poured in 2018. Back then, total cost of the stage and eventual shade cover was estimated at $100,000.
Since then, several contracts have been signed and a number of contract change orders (cost increases) have been approved, building upon a 2019 decision by council members to seek a “more robust” structure. The increasing cost estimates, as they have changed over the years:
Aug. 2019: $500,000
March 2021: $3.9 million
Dec. 2023: $6.1 million
June 2025: $6.6 million
Add to that another $50,000 approved by the City Council last week for the eighth change order in various contracts on the project. According to the staff report, the extra expense to be paid to contractor Southstar Engineering and Consulting, Inc. is “to continue providing required labor compliance and support for construction document management.”
Mayor Ricky Estrada, just returned from a six-month military deployment, had a difficult time seeing justification for the additional expense. Perhaps coming home to see nothing different in a bare framework with no sign of a cover had something to do with that.
“When was the last time work crews were there?” Estrada asked Public Works Director Nick Fidler.
“Last fall,” responded Fidler, adding that the extra cost would cover “Southstar inspections when work resumes.”
And when will that be? No one is quite sure. For years, since the recommendation of council members Lesa Sobek and Dean Deines to pursue “world-class dreams” for the project, the unusual design of curved glue-laminate wood beams has morphed into an international waiting game.
Blumer-Lehman, the second company to attempt such a structure, is located in Switzerland. Since August 2025, engineers there have been working to complete a project that previous contractor Tridome was unable to, according to Phil Southard, communications director for the City of Menifee.
How far along is Blumer-Lehman? Either Menifee officials don’t know or they won’t say. The latest projected completion date is Dec. 31. But we all know how that goes.
“The City’s Capital Improvement Program team remains in constant contact with all of the project entities and the 3D modeling for the beams has been approved, however pending calculations,” Southard said in an email to Menifee 24/7. “Blumer-Lehman is currently finalizing engineering calculations and working with a California Licensed Structural Engineer to validate that the connections meet California codes. We expect the manufacturing process to begin in the next few weeks.
“Blumer-Lehman was brought onboard in Summer 2025 by Optima after it was determined that their originally selected glue-laminate beam manufacturer (Tridome) was unable to demonstrate that their beam construction would meet the required structural integrity standards for the project. The change in the beam manufacturer combined with the modification of the construction sequencing is the reason the timeline for completion of the project was pushed back to the end of this year. This time extension was necessary to allow for the design and engineering of the beams, sourcing of the wood, construction, load testing, transportation, and installation.”
Blumer-Lehman did not respond to an inquiry from Menifee 24/7.
Meanwhile, asking council members for more money isn’t a popular request around town. Estrada was the only one willing to vote against the latest change order, which passed 4-1.
Perhaps the other council members figured they’re too far into the multi-million-dollar project to delay things any further. Not so with Estrada, who has opposed the project from the beginning as being way too expensive. Even former Mayor Bill Zimmerman, who is a champion of better entertainment sources in Menifee, joined Estrada in voting no twice, as the price tag ballooned from 500,000 to $3.9 million.
“I don’t feel comfortable pouring more money into a project that’s stalled,” Estrada said before the vote. “All I’m seeing is delay, delay, amendment, amendment. I think we should see if staff can go to Southstar to negotiate a better flat rate. And we don’t know when the beams are coming.”
The City’s response to critics who complain about the cost of the project is to state that a majority of the funds are those restricted to parks and recreation projects and can’t be used for street projects and other needs.
Southard said that 96 percent of the project is funded by restricted and one-time funds (43 percent restricted, 53 percent one-time). Here is a funding breakdown that was published by the City about a year ago:
Across the way in Menifee Town Center, weeds continue to grow on the site of what was billed as a world-class theater complex. Right now, Menifee is in danger of going 0 for 2 in world-class entertainment venues. Time will tell whether the amphitheater project will battle back from a two-strike count.
And even if it does, questions remain. Who will go there? Who will the city get to provide world-class entertainment — and at what cost?
Sometimes, shooting for the stars is more fantasy than reality.
