MANKATO — Years of planning the $3 million Riverfront Park project will culminate in a summer of outdoor concerts, beginning with a free grand opening show June 26 featuring Martin Zellar.

The Verizon Wireless Center announced the lineup of Riverfront Park programming today , as well as details about how the amphitheater will operate.

The summer schedule isn’t complete, but Eric Jones, marketing manger, has a few shows firmed up.

The free Wednesdays in the Park series begins June 16 with the Mankato Symphony Orchestra — the first official event to be held at the park. Other bands in the series include Useful Jenkins and Brandon Scott Sellner. (See accompanying list for details.)

RibFest also will be held at the park Aug. 5-8. Headliners will be rock band Soul Asylum, which played RibFest in 2007, and Diamond Rio, a 25-year-old country band from Nashville.

Other ticketed events will include Lorie Line and Her Fab 5 on June 27; hip-hop, folk and blues artist Citizen Cope on July 11; and country artist Pat Green on Sept. 11.

Zellar, best known for the “Zamboni Song,” will perform with the Hardaways during the grand opening June 26, which also will include local bands.

People will be allowed to bring their own food and beverages at some of the concerts, including the grand opening, Lorie Line and the Wednesdays in the Park series, said Burt Lyman, executive director of the Verizon. But no glass containers will be allowed.

“I think cheese and wine would be a good fit for Lorie Line,” Lyman said, adding that it would have to be boxed wine or poured into a plastic container.

Parking is limited in the area surrounding the park, but there are designated lots between Cherry and Rock streets (see map). Lyman said there is ample on-street parking in the residential neighborhoods on the east side of Riverfront Drive, which will be discussed at a public meeting in June. Lyman doesn’t expect much backlash from residents about the extra traffic and cars during events.

“The park is going to revitalize that area,” he said.

Much of the parking will be across Riverfront, a busy street in Old Town. But Lyman said there will be traffic guards to help pedestrians cross the street. In some cases for big concerts, such traffic officials will be positioned from the park to the civic center, about eight blocks away. Also for big concerts, a shuttle will pick up concert-goers at the Verizon and take them to the park, as well as return them after the show.

The capacity of the amphitheater is up to 15,000, Lyman said. But during the first several months, the Verizon is aiming for smaller shows. Jones said a big-name country star was interested in playing at the park this summer, but the Verizon won’t be ready yet to handle that level of attendance.

“This is definitely a learning summer,” Jones said.

For now, there is no affixed seating at the park. Concert-goers can bring blankets or lawn chairs to sit on. Originally, planners had the idea to bring in large blocks of Kasota stone for seating, but they decided to leave it open.

During the summers, which has typically been a slow time for concerts at the civic center, Jones will push to bring shows to the outdoor venue. The goal, Lyman said, is to offer diverse programming that offers something for all ages and interests. The hope is also that the beauty of the outdoor venue will be an attraction in and of itself.

“We’re cooped up too much in the winter,” Lyman said. “It’s really quite beautiful.”