Band Shell 1

  Marshall Community Band applied for funds from Marshall Rotary Club, Marshall Rotary Foundation, Cronin Foundation, and Marshall Community Foundation. All responded with their very best effort, and a total of $87,500 was dedicated to this project. The contributions were as follows:

$25,000 Frances Stevens Stuart

$25,000 Rotary Club and Foundation

$25,000 Cronin Foundation

$12,500 Marshall Community Foundation

  This amount was close enough to the estimated $90,000 to begin the construction of a permanent band shell at the west end of Stuart’s Landing near the Kalamazoo River, the exact location suggested by Frances Stuart herself shortly before she passed away. The target completion date was set at June 16 (2004) which was the first scheduled concert of the 2004 summer season.

  The Marshall Community Foundation granted an additional $4,400 in 2005 for sidewalk improvements and musician seating at the band shell.

  Tom Johnson, a certified engineer, transformed the list of desired characteristics and rough sketches into actual blueprints. Dennis Smith, MCB President, became Project Manager, and he gathered bids from local businesses for the various stages of construction. The official ground-breaking ceremony was a cold Monday, March 22, at 9 A.M. Mayor John F. Miller and other city officials, Marshall Community Band members, and representatives from the funding organizations were on hand for this news event.

The following businesses were the builders of the new band shell: VanWormer Excavating, Duckworth Bros. Concrete, John Thomas Masonry, Marshall Welding, Cook Construction, Taylor James Concrete, and Sink Electric. The following businesses provided materials: Bosker Brick, Darling Hardware, Marshall Lumbertown, Quality Engraving, Marshall Building Components, A1 Flagpoles, Full Compass Sound Equipment, Wenger Music Corporation, and Mastellar Music.

Tom Johnson

Dennis Smith