The 17th season of summer concerts at Point Loma Park featuring four new acts and a crowd favorite on the main stage, and musical groups from Point Loma and Ocean Beach on the junior stage, kicks-off July 8 with Betamaxx playing ’80s hits.
The annual live concert series runs every Friday night from 5 to 8:30 p.m. July 8 through Aug. 5 at Point Loma Park, 1049 Catalina Blvd. Concerts on the junior stage start at 5 p.m. and the main stage band goes on at 6:30 p.m.
There is free parking and shuttle service available at All Souls’ Episcopal Church, 1475 Catalina Blvd., two blocks north of the park. Additionally, there will be a free bike valet at Point Loma Park.
Food can be purchased from an onsite vendor the night of the concert. Guests can bring their own picnic dinners and are encouraged to bring their own blankets or chairs. The Peninsula YMCA will also host games for kids during the Junior Stage bands.
Kerri de Rosier, committee volunteer, noted the event began more than a decade ago and was an idea first advanced by the Peninsula Chamber of Commerce and Bridget Wear, wife of then-City Councilman Byron Wear.
“The Point Loma Association (PLA) stepped in to be a sponsoring body the first year, before it was taken over by nonprofit Point Loma Summer Concerts which is run by a board of volunteers,” said de Rosier, herself a volunteer.
Concert crowds which were 300 to 500 the first couple seasons has swelled to 2,500 to 3,000 per concert today, de Rosier said.
“We’ve been able to get more grant money and sponsors over the years, as well as getting Alpha Project (homeless aid) to help us set up and clean up,” de Rosier said noting what’s new in 2016 is that “we are bringing in four brand new bands including a country band, The Highwaymen.”
The concert lineup is “quite a mix with some country, blues and good ole rock ‘n roll,” de Rosier said.
While many aspects of the concerts have changed, the warm community atmosphere remains the same – as do many of the concert’s sponsors, including original presenting sponsor Willis Allen Real Estate (which hasn’t missed a season), the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture, the County of San Diego and many local businesses and local civic groups.
For more information visit www.plconcerts.org.  Point Loma Summer Concerts
When: 5 to 8:30 p.m. Fridays
Where: Point Loma Park, 1049 Catalina Blvd. Schedule:
July 8: BETAMAXX – Features pop music from Michael Jackson and Madonna to New Order and Depeche Mode to the rock ’n’ roll of Def Leppard and Bon Jovi.
July 15: Sully & the Blue-Eyed Soul Band – A nine-piece band playing blues, soul, funk and rock ’n’ roll.
July 22: The Highwayman – Tony Suraci and his 10-piece band channel the spirits of the original Highwaymen — Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson — in a tribute capturing the essence of the outlaw country movement.
July 29: Arena – This tribute band showcases the musical, visual and sensory experience of large rock concerts in arenas and stadiums from the mid-’70s to the mid-’80s. Aug. 5: Atomic Groove – A quintessential variety band with renditions of sophisticated jazz, treasured soul, classic rock and dance jams from the ’60s.