by

How important is Memorial Stadium to Charlotte’s MLS franchise bid?



Charlotte’s political leaders see the importance of the historic site in the Elizabeth neighborhood and are working to put together a plan to upgrade Memorial as a soccer-specific venue. Mecklenburg County commissioners met in a closed-door session Wednesday to discuss funding the changes to support an expansion bid by Speedway Motorsports CEO and President Marcus Smith.



“There is a group of people, or a person, who is interested in submitting an application for the MLS,” Commissioner George Dunlap said. “Memorial Stadium is a part of that discussion. The terms have not been agreed upon, but I can tell you that the county is in discussion with the potential owners about the use of that site.”



With an application deadline of Jan. 31, the league will announce teams 25 and 26 in the second or third quarter of this year. Each team would pay a $150 million entry fee, and begin play in 2020. The cost of Memorial upgrades is reported to be around $180 million.





In July, the Charlotte Independence lobbied commissioners for a $24 million upgrade to Memorial to make it soccer specific. However, the panel tabled the proposal.



Last month, MLS announced Charlotte is one of 10 markets in consideration for expansion. Simultaneously, Smith, whose family owns Sonic Automotive as well as Charlotte Motor Speedway and tracks across the country, indicated his interest in obtaining a team.



Unlike the Independence, which average less than 2,000 fans per match at Ramblewood Soccer Complex off Nations Ford Road in Southwest Charlotte (with the exception of last summer’s friendly against English Premier League side Swansea City, which drew over 4,000), Smith’s family built a sports empire from New Hampshire to California through racing. Their ownership of Sonic Automotive augments their financial clout.



Charlotte Motor Speedway spokesman Scott Cooper said Smith declined to make a statement following the closed meeting. Dunlap said none of the potential investors were present.



At the July meeting, Commissioner Jim Puckett said refurbishing Memorial for soccer was the county’s best bet to preserve the facility.



“It’s something we save now, or it’s something that gets boarded up down the road and we lose it,” he said. “This is the best opportunity we have had to do something that saves it.”



Initial plans for renovations included widening the playing surface (the current dimensions are 140 yards long by 72 yards wide), reducing seating from 17,000 to 10,870 and replacing the grass surface with an artificial turf. The financial responsibility would rest with the county, city and the Independence. Construction of the stadium designed by HOK Sports (which oversaw Bank of America Stadium) would have concluded in 2019, allowing the stadium to expand if Charlotte received an MLS franchise.



“They’re moving on without me,” Independence President and Managing Partner Jim McPhilliamy said. “I think basically what they did was [they] took the deal that I negotiated and they just gave it to Marcus, but on a bigger scale. Right now we’re trying to figure out what we’ll do on our side.”



Charlotte City Council is scheduled to meet to discuss Memorial Jan. 9.



“My understanding is that the city council would also have to be a part of this deal,” Dunlap said. “We left the meeting last night with no real clear understanding of when we would get back together again. However, the commissioners were asked the basic question ‘what would the terms of the deal need to look like in order for them to say yes?’ Today, my guess is commissioners are continuing to weigh in by sending feedback to the county manager [Dena Diorio] about the terms of any potential deal. My guess is later on this month, maybe even by our next meeting, it will be more finite in terms of what the terms might be.”



A major historical attribute of Memorial is the stone wall from the original 1936 stadium. No one has been able to agree on how to renovate the stadium while still acknowledge the significance of the stones.



“The only subjective thing that was discussed was part of the original deal that they were going to maintain that stone wall,” Dunlap said. “One of the stipulations was that wall in some form, not necessarily the original form, but in some form it would have to remain.”



Mecklenburg County would own the land under any deal.



“The property would still be owned by Mecklenburg County,” Dunlap said. “All of the other terms were kind of up for negotiation.”



Should Memorial fall through, the commissioners would look elsewhere—such as East or West Charlotte.

“One of the things that we were able to do was also look at potential vacant land that could spur economic development around the stadium when it was built,” Dunlap said.

On Twitter: @QC_FC #readwatchrepeat

Instagram: @QC_FC

Facebook: Queen City Football Chronicle









Comments