Rams Head Exits Coffee Butler Amphitheater, Local Producer Eyes Takeover

Rams Head Promotions has operated Key West's Coffee Butler Amphitheater since it opened in 2019, but its management contract includes an option for a three-year extension in August that the company won't be taking. The decision, relayed to city commissioners in a March 4 email from Assistant City Manager Mike Turner, sets up the first real management transition for one of Monroe County's most prominent concert venues.

City officials recently met with the venue's operator, Rams Head Presents, to discuss the future of amphitheater operations, and Turner confirmed that while the company has a three-year extension available beginning in August, it does not plan to exercise the option. Turner wrote that "the city is currently exploring options as to how the amphitheater will be managed and will hopefully have a better idea of the future in the coming months."

Turner noted that the venue appeared to have a slower concert season than usual, with the decline partly attributed to financial losses from shows last season and increased competition from a new amphitheater in Clearwater, where some touring acts that previously performed in Key West have chosen to play instead. Rams Head Presents is a regional concert promoter based in Annapolis, Maryland, and in addition to managing the Coffee Butler Amphitheater, the company programs shows at the Key West Theater and produces the annual Key West Songwriters Festival.

The departure creates an opening that Kyle Carter has been waiting for. President and CEO of Oh Wook! Productions, Carter has been producing and promoting multiday music festivals at the amphitheater for nine years. Oh Wook! Productions owns and operates Mile 0 Fest and formerly produced RokIsland and Key Western Fest, all of which have brought big-name music acts and crowds to the venue. Carter told the city commission three years ago that he wanted to submit a bid for the management contract.

His interest has not cooled. "Obviously, we have a keen interest," Carter said. "Rams Head did me the professional courtesy and reached out, knowing we have calendars and dates booked five years in advance. We have nine years and a great deal of investment with the city and we want to grow that relationship. No one else could come in and say they know the city, the amphitheater and the infrastructure like we do."

Carter met with Commissioner Donie Lee on March 13 and said that Kelly Funkhauser, the city's special events manager, had contacted him a month or so ago. Whether Carter's company can formally bid depends on the procurement process the city attorney recommends. "One of my first questions was, what do the rules say? Does the city have to issue a request for proposals? If so, we'll certainly submit a bid. But now we're waiting to hear what the city attorney says about the necessary bidding and contracting process," Carter said.

That question may get a public airing soon. City lawmakers will likely seek guidance from the city attorney about the amphitheater management contract at their April 2 meeting.

The contract's financial structure gives context to what's at stake. Under the current agreement, for multiday events such as music festivals, the city gets 50% of all venue rental fees paid by third-party event producers. For single-day events, the city gets $5 from every $100 ticket sold, $3 for every $60 ticket, $2 on every $40-$60 ticket, and $1 on all tickets under $40. The city gets no revenue from the sale of food, beverage, or merchandise, according to the current contract, which ends in August.

The Coffee Butler Amphitheater at Truman Waterfront Park first opened in 2017 and has a capacity of roughly 3,500. The venue has also faced criticism from some performers and production crews who say the facility lacks amenities typically found at touring venues, including a dedicated green room, permanent restroom facilities, and backstage hospitality space for performers.

Carter has previously voiced awareness of those shortcomings. "It's incredible that the city built the venue," Carter said. "But it's no secret that there's been a plan for phased upgrades over the years." The question of who will be responsible for those upgrades, and under what contract terms, now falls squarely to the city to decide before August arrives.