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Spectrum Center could begin substantial renovations as soon as this summer.
What’s happening: At Tuesday evening’s meeting, Charlotte City Council heard a proposal for $215 million in renovations for the arena.
Why it matters: Since the city owns the venue, which opened in 2005, they are contractually obligated to maintain it.
- Plus: The Charlotte Hornets brand already left Charlotte once over an arena.
- Flashback: When Spectrum Center reopened to fans, they had trouble getting in on time for tipoff at Hornets games because it took too long.
State of play: The current Hornets’ lease ends in 2030, and this deal would also include a 15-year lease extension through 2045.
Here are five things to know about the proposed projects:
(1) Arena upgrades: $215M in Spectrum Center improvements to the roof, elevators, bathrooms, entrances and a new HVAC.
(2) Practice facility: An additional $60M for a practice facility to be built on the site of the existing Charlotte Transportation Center, or in a gravel lot next to the arena if the CTC option isn’t feasible. If it’s built on the existing transportation center site, the bus facility would be moved underground.
- In August 2019 the city selected Charlotte-based White Point Partners and Dallas-based Dart Interests to redevelop the transportation center, which was built in 1995.
- Underground construction is costly, but there are examples of bus centers underground. There’s one in Denver, Colorado.
(3) How the city proposes paying for it: Since the city owns the Spectrum Center, they’re contractually obligated to a certain amount— which they said is $173M, but they’re willing to offer an additional $42M from tourism funds.
(4) The EpiCentre: It’s right next door to CTC, scheduled to be auctioned on July 26. City officials hope that it could be paired with the new practice facility and arena upgrades to create an entertainment district.
(5) Timeline: Council could vote on it as early as June 13. If it passes then, construction could begin this summer and stretch across several phases — which were explained as fiscal year 2023-26 for the arena and 2027 for the practice facility.
