The latest plan for a new North Carolina FC MLS stadium will emerge next week, when club owner Steve Malik and developer John Kane unveil a proposed development south of downtown Raleigh.
Currently competing in Division II USL Championship, North Carolina FC has sought to make itself an MLS expansion contender under the ownership of Malik. In the summer of 2017, Malik unveiled plans for a new stadium on state-owned land in downtown Raleigh (rendering above) that would anchor a larger development initiative. That proposal has not come to fruition, and it was learned this March that Malik and Kane were planning to shift the stadium site to a proposed development south of downtown Raleigh.
Few details have emerged over the months since, but that is expected to change with a formal unveiling of plans next Tuesday. In addition to revealing the exact site of the proposal, Malik and Kane are also expected to share the vision of how the facility would tie into the broader development plans.
To help get the plans off the ground, the pair has been seeking Interlocal Agreement funding, putting the potential development in a competitive race that includes proposed renovations to PNC Arena. More from the News & Observer:
They hope to receive funds from the Interlocal Agreement to finance the project. That money comes from the Wake County room occupancy and prepared food and beverage taxes. The tax generated around $55 million in the 2018 fiscal year. Money generated by the tax can only be used on tourism-related projects that are likely to bring more visitors to the county.
The group is one of several applying for the money, including the Centennial Authority, which wants to renovate PNC Arena. Malik and Kane are asking for more than $300 million to help fund the stadium, which would be paid out in $11 million chunks each year for 30 years beginning in 2022, they told the N&O previously.
And if public money isn’t allocated for the potential “billion-and-a-half-dollar” project, Malik said he and Kane would develop the land in another fashion.
The city has long targeted attracting development to the South Saunders Street corridor, which it views as the southern entrance to downtown. Malik said he thinks that will help the project win local funds, though in recent years concerns over gentrification in that part of town have increased.
More exact details should emerge next week, though previous indications from have been that the stadium would serve as the hub of a mixed-use sports and entertainment complex developed on 40-plus acres.
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