Waco Community Invited to Enjoy Summer on Turner Plaza at Foster Pavilion
Baylor University, City of Waco and Baylor Athletics partner on summertime series of family-friendly events each Thursday in July on Foster Pavilion’s Turner Plaza
Contact: Lori Fogleman, 254-709-5959
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Baylor University, the City of Waco and Baylor Athletics have joined together to partner on Summer on Turner Plaza, a series of family-friendly events for the Waco community each Thursday night in July on Turner Plaza at Foster Pavilion. The events are free and open to the public with cold drinks and snacks available for purchase from some of Waco’s favorite food trucks.
Summer on Turner Plaza will kick off on Thursday, July 9, from 6 to 8 p.m., with the event continuing July 16, July 23 and July 30. Families and kids are welcome to enjoy all kinds of summer fun, including bounce houses, water slides and activities, arts and crafts, live music, giveaways and opportunities to meet Baylor student-athletes and coaches.
“We are thrilled to welcome the Waco community to Summer on Turner Plaza and to partner with our city to showcase the relationships that make our hometown such a special place,” said Jason Cook, vice president for marketing and communications and chief marketing officer at Baylor. “Using the vibrant Turner Plaza for an event like this, where we can enjoy a summer night together and experience the Baylor spirit, is exactly what we looked forward to when Foster Pavilion was built. We hope nights like this inspire our neighbors to connect with the university and become diehard fans of our Baylor Bears.”
“Summer on Turner Plaza will create a lively, welcoming space for Waco families to gather and enjoy summer together each week in July,” said Jonathan Cook, director of City of Waco Parks and Recreation. “We’re proud to partner with Baylor University and Baylor Athletics to strengthen community connections and showcase the spirit of collaboration that makes Waco such a special place.”
Turner Plaza is located in front of Foster Pavilion on University Parks Drive. Street parking is available around Foster Pavilion and surrounding areas, along with limited parking in the Clifton Robinson Tower parking lot.
Home of Baylor Basketball, A-List Concerts and Live Events
Opened in 2024 along the Brazos River, the Paul and Alejandra Foster Pavilion is home to Baylor men’s and women’s basketball teams and serves an additional role as a premier concert venue, firmly placing both Baylor and the City of Waco on the radar of national touring artists.
Over the past year, Foster Pavilion has welcomed top Christian artists Forrest Frank (B.B.A. ’17) and Lauren Daigle, comedian Jeff Dunham (B.A. ’86), country music stars Tucker Wetmore and Hudson Westbrook and the Harlem Globetrotters 100 Year Tour. Baylor also expanded its concert program to other university venues, with the Boys From Oklahoma Texas Encore at McLane Stadium, rising country music star Ty Myers at Howdy at the Hurd, comedian John Crist and world-renowned trumpeter Wynton Marsalis at Waco Hall and legendary icon Willie Nelson at Magnolia Field at Baylor Ballpark.
“Live music and entertainment are tangible symbols that a community is alive and vibrant,” Jason Cook said. “We see these concerts as Baylor's gift to the Waco community and Central Texas. We have been able to bring people to the Baylor campus and to Waco who are eating in our restaurants, staying in our hotels and enjoying everything that our community has to offer.”
The wave of momentum for A-list entertainment in Waco continues in the fall and spring. Foster Pavilion’s upcoming slate includes:
- Old Dominion, one of mainstream country music’s most popular live groups, on Friday, Sept. 18,
- Country music’s next biggest star Braxton Keith on Friday, Oct. 2, and
- Chart-topping música norteña artists La Fiera de Ojinaga & Los Pescadores del Río Conchos on Sunday, April 11, 2027.
More concert announcements are coming soon on the Baylor Concerts website and across Baylor’s official social media channels.
ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked Research 1 institution. The University provides a vibrant campus community for 20,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 100 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions. Learn more about Baylor University at www.baylor.edu.