A Nashville scene in Shakopee? Entertainment district and amphitheater could reshape suburb.

Erin McCoy is thrilled that a massive concert venue is coming this year to Shakopee, cutting down on the south metro resident’s commutes to the Twin Cities to see shows.

But McCoy, the vocalist of a genre-spanning cover band called the Indecisions, has another reason to get excited about the 19,000-seat amphitheater that Live Nation will run: A nearby entertainment district could bring breweries, restaurants and other lively establishments to Shakopee, giving local musicians like herself an opportunity to entertain crowds.

“I’d try to get my band to play there!” McCoy said while working behind the counter of Pearson Florist in downtown Shakopee.

Some 4 miles away, workers were busy building the enormous outdoor stage that will anchor the nascent going-out area. The venue — replete with two beer gardens, a sprawling turf lawn and “skyboxes” with room for 500 people — could open as soon as this summer beside horse racing and gambling hub Canterbury Park.

But it’s the 28-acre entertainment district soon to sprout in the amphitheater’s shadow that will transform Scott County’s largest city, Shakopee and business leaders hope.

Canterbury Park is undertaking the development, and ideas for its aesthetic abound. Jason Haugen, the company’s vice president of real estate, visited nightlife spots around the country for inspiration, from Nashville’s Broadway Street with its row of rollicking honky-tonks, to Dallas’ myriad entertainment districts with options for families, foodies and sports fans.

“What we’re envisioning really doesn’t exist here in Minnesota,” Haugen said, noting the company plans to spend the rest of the year refining plans for the district. “We’re thinking big.”

Shakopee already draws a diverse cross section of visitors, especially in the warmer months. Thrill-seekers flock to Valleyfair, gamblers go to Canterbury and Mystic Lake, and families pack the Renaissance Festival into the fall. The entertainment district could attract a previously untapped demographic year-round: revelers, foodies and music buffs.

That prospect excites officials like Council Member Jay Whiting.

“I think it’s just putting another cherry on the top of Shakopee as the entertainment destination of the region,” he said.

The story of Shakopee’s budding nightlife hangout arguably began seven years ago.

Around 2018, Canterbury Park realized that developing the land around its signature racetrack could be a boon for business, Haugen said. Sleek new apartments and townhouses went up. So did restaurants that will soon serve crowds of concertgoers grabbing a meal before a show.

Then came the amphitheater. Swervo Development Corp., the firm that transformed downtown Minneapolis’ historic Armory building into a flashy event center, is spearheading the project.

The entertainment district is the next phase of Shakopee’s facelift, with early plans showing a walkable cluster of restaurants, a vast food hall, retail options, greenspace and housing.

Canterbury and city officials will convene in May or June to discuss a more detailed vision, Planning and Development Director Michael Kerski said. And as plans crystallize, companies coming to Shakopee have taken a keen interest in the development, too.

GN, the global manufacturer of hearing aids and headphones, will relocate its North American headquarters from Bloomington to Shakopee this year, bringing 550 professional and manufacturing jobs to a former Shutterfly facility.

Mikkel Knudsen, president of ReSound U.S., said the city’s buffet of attractions was a big draw.

“You want to have options for employees before work, during their lunch breaks, after hours, maybe even moving their families closer to work,” Knudsen said. “This just seems like a perfect area for us. They have a vision.”

Part of that vision includes attracting a “full-service, first-class” hotel that could lodge bands, out-of-town concertgoers and visiting businesspeople, Kerski said. Employees visiting other Shakopee-based companies typically stay in Bloomington lodgings, he said, underscoring the need for a nice hotel within city limits.

“We’d much prefer them to stay in town,” Kerski said.

The combined impact of the amphitheater and entertainment district could bring a flurry of activity to Shakopee. But Police Chief Jeff Tate said his department is well-equipped to handle the surge in foot and car traffic, since officers routinely work big events at Canterbury Park.

Tate said he anticipates private security guards, Shakopee officers and possibly cops from nearby agencies staffing concerts. The amphitheater, he added, has become a recruiting tool for the department, attracting prospective officers who see in Shakopee’s lively landscape a departure from the typical demands of a law enforcement job.

“It gets officers out of a patrol car and doing something different and being part of an event,” Tate said. “Everybody has options of where they can go if [they’re] a good police candidate. [The amphitheater] is something that nobody else is going to have.”

The entertainment area will be some 4 miles from downtown Shakopee, a few densely packed blocks of florists, bakeries and bars. But business owners there aren’t worried about the competition.

“People will come downtown to go to the amphitheater, because they’ll start finding alternative routes, which benefits our downtown,” said Billy Wermerskirchen, the owner of menswear shop Bill’s Toggery.

Closer to the venue, signs of activity have already emerged.

Chris McCormick stood near a bustling kitchen, barbecue sizzling in the background, about a month after relocating his Shakopee restaurant, Mr. Pig’s Smokery, from a different part of the city to a strip of businesses a few hundred yards from the in-progress amphitheater.

“It was the biggest driving force in us deciding to build here,” McCormick said, pointing to the business the concert venue and entertainment district could bring. “Just to be part of the whole scene.”

Next door, Estefania Melo took a break from the busy lunch hour at Bravi’s Craft Mexican Kitchen to consider what the ambitious project could mean for the restaurant she manages.

“We’re ready for the concert rushes,” Melo said, noting her team has had two years to perfect their technique serving crowds from Canterbury events since moving to this spot in 2023.

Melo added that an impending social district — a designated place where people can stroll the streets while drinking — will round out Shakopee’s reputation as an entertainment destination:

“You have your margarita, get your tacos, go bet on some horses, go watch a concert, come back and get another margarita!”

The collective impact of all these amenities, Melo said, could elevate the identity of the city she calls home.

“I think it’s exciting to see Shakopee come on the map,” she said. “Everybody talks about the Cities. It’s time for Shakopee to get some recognition it deserves.”