‘No need for disappointment.’ City eager for Eastland progress, leaving MLS HQ behind

In less than two weeks, city leaders will cement their vision of transforming the former Eastland Mall site into a vibrant cultural hub, anchored by an amateur soccer complex, Atrium Health facility and green space.

But the Charlotte City Council’s pending contracts with developer Crosland Southeast and Tepper Sports & Entertainment won’t include what was once seen as a critical part of the deal: the headquarters of Charlotte FC, a Major League Soccer expansion team.

That’s partially the result of an upended economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the delayed start of play until 2022, officials told The Charlotte Observer this week.

Yet in an unexpected twist that’s viewed as a somewhat more consequential victory for Eastland, part of the roughly 80-acre vacant property will be used as the Charlotte FC Elite Academy headquarters.

Officials and neighborhood leaders say that likely creates a greater economic jolt, with the possibility for enhanced community use of soccer fields, plus camps, clinics, festivals and tournaments. Construction alone could spur nearly 3,800 jobs, plus 1,600 “recurring” jobs, assistant city manager and economic development director Tracy Dodson said.

“Frankly, the fact there aren’t some fancy offices for the time being on the site doesn’t detract from the overall vision and expectation for what we had, which was a Charlotte FC presence,” said City Council member Matt Newton, whose district encompasses Eastland.

“Any inference that somehow this is some scaled-back involvement is a little disingenuous,” he said. “We’re not doing the scope of the development justice without discussing the public park, and the retail, commercial and entertainment facilities that are also included.”

Gentrification threat

The City Council and Mayor Vi Lyles are already experimenting with an “international corridor” theme surrounding the Central Avenue and Albemarle Road corridor, in homage to the diverse immigrant and refugee communities there. It’s an attractive draw, they say, found in other major cities across the country, yet not in Charlotte.

Still, Ismaail Qaiyim, housing and community development coordinator for the Latin American Coalition, said the city has made little attempt to preserve existing neighborhoods — or listen to and protect thousands of residents who may be displaced through gentrification. (Similar fears exist along the Beatties Ford Road corridor in west Charlotte, where city leaders have also reignited efforts to bolster economic development and upward mobility.)

The scant amount of affordable housing — particularly for those earning at or below 30% of the area median — is a “violation of public trust,” he said.

The average household income around Eastland is about $31,000, nearly half of Mecklenburg’s overall average, census data shows. Black and Hispanic residents account for nearly two-thirds of the population. And Qaiyim said many residents are immigrants who are undocumented.

“The city has leverage it could use for having the (MLS) headquarters there and for building affordable housing,” Qaiyim said. “The city has taken a backseat and chosen to play a subservient role to Tepper and Crosland at this point. There should be a desire for the community to have a voice.”

Council members, by contrast, struck a jubilant tone during Monday’s meeting, celebrating the rezoning milestone in spite of COVID-19. Dodson said the plan incorporates perspectives from more than 700 residents, though some in-person dialogue was scuttled in March as the pandemic hit.

The city has drastically slashed its public investment for MLS, underscoring a spliced agreement that, for now, no longer also hinges on the Carolina Panthers and the team’s commitment to not relocate to Rock Hill, where a new practice facility and headquarters are under construction. The fate of an entertainment district near Bank of America Stadium — another hallmark of the celebrated MLS deal that was never formalized — remains an open question.

“The $110 million deal was supposed to get us the uptown entertainment district and football,” Council member Ed Driggs said. “This current transaction actually doesn’t lock in some of those things. The plans that are being made for the rest of Eastland are much more fleshed out — we have a much more substantial commitment.”

Charlotte and David Tepper

Eastland, once a bustling mall with a signature indoor ice-skating rink, closed in 2010, crowded out by competition from shopping destinations in SouthPark and Northlake. The city bought the property in 2012 and demolished the buildings.

Earlier proposals, such as turning Eastland into a movie studio or ski slope, flopped, leaving east Charlotte residents skeptical about progress — until Panthers, and now Charlotte FC, owner David Tepper entered the conversation.

“The return on investment is really compelling, and otherwise, we’re just looking at an empty lot there,” Newton said. “We’re all anxious to talk about the future of the Panthers in Charlotte, but those are are conversations we’re going to have in the future.”

Council member James “Smuggie” Mitchell said Charlotte has a “great relationship” with Tepper, backed by the promise of future collaborations. In recent Zoom meetings, Tepper Sports, the city’s economic development team and Council members revised their thinking on the MLS headquarters to “be very sensitive to the coronavirus,” Mitchell said.

”Having the Elite (Academy) headquarters will do a lot...it will now be a regional destination,” Mitchell said. “The citizens at Eastland have really embraced. It’s like Plan A didn’t work out well, but I think Plan B is going to be a great opportunity for the east side.”

The development’s first phase — featuring the public park, some affordable housing units and local minority-owned businesses, among other amenities — could be ready by the end of 2022, Dodson said.

City Council member Malcolm Graham said residents shouldn’t feel frustrated about the shifting plans, emphasizing this is only the start of revamping Eastland.

“This is a major deal — there’s no need for disappointment,” Graham said. “I think we should embrace what we have. It’s better than what we have today. It’s going to be a really, really great development.”

Bobbi Almond, who represents the Wilora Lake/Verndale Glen Neighborhood Association in the Eastland area, said she’s not concerned about the loss of the headquarters.

After more than two decades of attending community meetings about Eastland, she’s confident the city will deliver this time. Almond said Crosland has done its due diligence seeking feedback, adding younger families have already begun moving into her neighborhood that typically skewed older.

”I’m ecstatic to have something that’s actually going to be voted on Nov. 9,” Almond said. “I just want people to come to the east side.”

This story was originally published October 29, 2020 at 6:00 AM.