Park City to get 200,000 visitors at music festivals in 2027

Park City would be among the big winners next year if more than 200,000 additional visitors come to the north Wichita suburb to attend one or more of the music festivals and new music concepts hosted by Gilley’s Gambling Hall under terms of a new agreement with Kustom Entertainment.

Stan Ross, chief executive officer of Kustom Entertainment, predicted the number of music festival attendees during a June 10 press conference at Gilley’s, where he joined Gilley’s owner Phil Ruffin to talk about the details of the multi-year agreement between the two entities.

Just how big a benefit these musical festivals could be for Park City remains to be seen, city officials told The Eagle after the June 10 press conference.

Park City has a 1-cent local-option sales tax that went into effect in 2023 and already has been used to add amenities and help mitigate property taxes for residents of the town of 9,460.

City Administrator Sean Fox said via email that it is going to be difficult to predict how much additional sales tax revenue will be generated in Park City next year. But he said the economic impact is expected to be significant, since every dollar spent at a local hotel, restaurant, gas station, store or entertainment venue will mean extra money for Park City.

“The bottom line is it should provide both direct and indirect benefits to local businesses and the community as a whole,” Fox said.

Assistant City Administrator Joe Dessenberger agreed.

“I think our challenge will be that Park City has never experienced a venue like this before with the current community we have,” Dessenberger said during a phone interview with the Eagle. “There used to be the Kansas Coliseum, but Park City really didn’t have a lot of retail. I think it will be a wait and see kind of experience for Park City in 2027. We can say with some certainty that Park City stands to benefit from this, obviously.”

Dessenberger said the size of the benefit will depend largely on the city’s ability to get hotel guests to stay in Park City instead of going into Wichita or elsewhere.

More hotel beds for Park City are on the way.

Two hotels planned for Park City

Across from Gilley’s, CrossWinds Casino is building a 15-story, 238-room hotel, according to information supplied by Park City officials. And at the press conference, Ruffin announced plans to build a 110-room hotel of his own on the 80 acres where Gilley’s is located.

Country Stampede Kansas and other, as-yet-unnamed music events will combine for a total of 20 event days at Gilley’s next year.

Ross said at the press conference that there will be a minimum of six different festivals or concepts coming to Gilley’s next year.

The events will offer a range of musical styles, according to Matt Tholen, vice president of operations for Kustom 440, the production side of Kustom Entertainment. Tholen spoke to The Eagle by phone on June 8.

“They’ll be all different genres,” Tholen said. “We are literally looking at all genres. Obviously country, but we’ll potentially be bringing in EDM (electronic dance music), rock shows, possibly jazz. There’s nothing out of the picture.”

Park City officials are still working out the details on how things like security at next year’s events will be handled, Dessenberger said.

“I don’t think the city expects it’s going to shoulder the full burden of security for events like this,” he said.

Fox went further.

“No doubt it will require advanced planning and coordination from the city and the Park City Police Department with Kustom Entertainment and Gilley’s, as well as surrounding law enforcement agencies, but ultimately, the overall security of the event resides with the event organizers,” Fox said.

This story was originally published June 10, 2026 at 12:04 PM.