BOUCKVILLE -- Country fans will have have their own music festival in central New York this summer.
Event marketer Tom Tarry has been working for years to bring a big name country music festival to Central New York. On Thursday morning he was finally able to show off an impressive lineup for the first year of NY Country Jam. Eight nationally known acts - including Bo Bice from American Idol, Steele Magnolia, Gretchen Wilson and Big and Rich - will all be in Bouckville in Madison County on July 13th and 14th
Businesses along Route 20, are looking forward to the economic boost from tens of thousands of people looking for hotel rooms, food and shopping.
"That's something we need in the area. Things have been slow for the last year and half and they're picking up a little bit but you know you need people and good advertisement to bring people in," said Bouckville antique dealer Donald Mann.
The festival will be held at the site of the Madison Bouckville Antique Show with tickets priced at $59 dollars until April 15th. Tens of thousands of people are expected but Madison County says the site will be well equipped to handle the traffic and crowds.
"We understand how to manage the traffic flow, how to get parking in and out. There's amenities in town, lots of extra parking for people. We've done it before so it's not like we're just picking a farm field and saying lets throw a concert here," said Madison County Tourism Director Jim Walter.
Organizers say the field in Bouckville can accommodate up to 100,000 people.They don't expect a crowd anywhere near that large this year but they are already looking at the future.
"Our talent budget will double every year for the next five years and it will end up in the millions by year five," said promoter Tom Tarry. "Everything about this festival has been planned meticulously even the date so we're routing for a much larger festival."
