New concert venue at Central NY animal park announces first show

A new Central New York concert venue is set to open this coming summer.

Pop-country singer Ashley Cooke will perform at The Haven’s first-ever concert on Saturday, July 26, 2025. Former “The Voice” singer Charity Bowden will also perform at the show, which begins at 6 p.m.

Tickets go on sale Friday, Dec. 6, at 10 a.m. at thehavenofthewild.com/events. Prices are $30; additional fees may apply.

The Haven is a new wedding and event center near The Wild Animal Park in Chittenango, which announced the $10 million-plus expansion project in 2022. The outdoor music venue is currently under construction and is expected to be completed well before Cooke’s concert, according to owner Jeff Taylor. Weddings that will use the indoor space are also being booked beginning in the fall of 2025.

Cooke is a Florida native best known for the radio hit “Your Place,” which won her first CMT Music Award in April for Breakthrough Female Video of the Year. The rising singer-songwriter has also appeared at the ACM and CMA awards and currently averages 2 million monthly Spotify listeners with a catalog that includes songs “Never Til Now” (with Brett Young), “Over When We’re Sober” (with Brantley Gilbert) and “Sunday Morning Kinda Saturday Night.”

Cooke opened for Jordan Davis at the Empower FCU Amphitheater in Syracuse this past summer.

Taylor says he’s interested in booking up-and-comers like Cooke for The Haven. He plans to book a “handful” of additional shows in 2025, including a day-long Oktoberfest event that will feature local acts and a national headliner.

Admission to the Wild Animal Park, a zoo with a drive-thru safari located about 17 miles east of Syracuse, will be separate from The Haven. Concerts will have a capacity of about 2,500 people, according to entertainment coordinator Jake Malbouf, and feature views of the park’s African savanna.

The venue will also offer a bar and food, plus glamping options like bungalows, African luxury tents, and even an Airbnb house.

“It’s gonna be a really nice outdoor venue,” Taylor told syracuse.com | The Post-Standard.

Taylor says he’s trying to create an “all-around entertainment venue” that will also combine animals from the zoo. He previously teased ideas like penguins as a ringbearer for weddings at The Haven, and envisions weekly outdoor restaurant experiences where people can interact with an animal and enjoy local music from solo or duo acts.

The Haven is located at 1863 New Boston Rd, Chittenango, N.Y. The Wild Animal Park is located nearby at 7621 Lakeport Rd in Chittenango.

For future events and updates on The Haven, visit thehavenofthewild.com or Facebook. For more information about the Wild Animal Park, visit thewildpark.com.