They had them at hello.

It was a foregone conclusion that a new $10 million, 5,000-seat downtown amphitheater would cruise to quick approval by the Winston-Salem City Council.

And yet it was disappointing all the same, to see it happen this fast, before tenants in the venue’s closest residential neighbor, the Crystal Towers public housing high-rise, were given a say.

Amphitheater supporters planned to meet with Crystal Towers residents on Friday — two days after a council vote had already essentially greenlit the project.

The amphitheater will be built primarily on private property but the developers wanted to lease a 1-acre sliver of adjacent, city-owned land for dressing rooms, restrooms and other staging requirements.

Hence the need for the council’s blessing.

But city leaders’ fe

See Full Page