As MLS announcement looms, Charlotte leaders clash over funding

Charlotte City Council members are divided over how much they’re willing to pay to bring the 30th Major League Soccer team to the city, as an official expansion announcement from MLS looms.

David Tepper, the billionaire owner of the Panthers who is leading the drive for the soccer team, wants the city to contribute a substantial amount of funding tied to landing the soccer team. That includes money for Bank of America Stadium upgrades, including a center tunnel and new locker rooms, that could accommodate a soccer team. Built in 1996, the stadium is one of the oldest NFL venues.

James Mitchell, an at-large council member, said Monday the city is prepared to offer a much smaller incentive package than previously expected — about $100 million, funded by revenue from hospitality and tourism taxes.

“There’s enough funding to satisfy this,” Mitchell said. “This is something we felt was important to the city.”

But Julie Eiselt, the mayor pro tem, said the prospect of giving a $100-million package for Bank of America Stadium renovations is “not correct at all.” Eiselt said Tuesday that council members have yet to discuss specific dollar amounts and would not comment on what the city is willing to give Tepper for the stadium overhaul.

“I don’t think it’s appropriate,” Eiselt said. “It’s like saying, ‘Here you go, Mr. Tepper. Here’s a blank check.’ ”

Eiselt said the council is still trying to understand what exactly Tepper is asking for — and why.Funding streams

Charlotte’s Convention Center fund — one of three major hospitality revenue streams in the city — had a fund balance of about $75 million, according to the comprehensive annual financial report for fiscal year 2018.

That revenue stream, which includes a 3% occupancy tax and 1% prepared food and beverage tax, covers “capital maintenance, repair and refurbishment of the Charlotte Convention Center, Bank of America Stadium, and amateur sports infrastructure,” according to a May 2018 city council presentation.

Councilman Ed Driggs, of District 7, said that the hotel and motel taxes in Charlotte don’t generate sufficient funding to back a multi-million-dollar contract. In fiscal year 2019, that tax stream — under the Convention Center fund — will bring in about $55 million, according to the city’s budget.

“We would not be in a position to make a really substantial contribution in the financial framework we’re in now,” Driggs said Tuesday.

A pending decision

Las Vegas and Phoenix are also competing for the 30th team, although MLS Commissioner Don Garber has said Charlotte’s efforts have moved the city’s bid to the “front of the line.”

MLS announced in April it would ramp up to 30 teams, following steady growth this year in St. Louis and Sacramento, Calif.

Council members predict Charlotte will be awarded the MLS bid by the end of this year, though only two added city council meetings are planned for this December — unless Mayor Vi Lyles calls for a special public hearing.

“We have not received official word. The schedule is going to become an issue for us,” Mitchell said. “We want the public to really digest it.”