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Charlotte finalizes bid to host CIAA Tournament through 2023

By Joe Bruno, wsoctv.com
By Joe Bruno, wsoctv.com

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The city of Charlotte is finalizing its bid to host the CIAA Tournament through 2023.

Bids for the NCAA Division II basketball tournament are due Friday.

The tournament has been a huge economic success for Charlotte. Last year it brought more than 140,000 fans to the Queen City resulting in an economic impact of $50.5 million. The city is contracted to host the men and women's basketball tournaments through 2020.

[Contract with Charlotte up in 2020; CIAA focused on future]

Charlotte City Councilman James Mitchell has been heavily involved in the city's bid. He says the city's biggest competitors are Baltimore, Maryland, Norfolk, Virginia and Richmond, Virginia.

"We don't need to lose an event like this that is so good for Charlotte," Mitchell said.

Mitchell predicts Baltimore to be the biggest threat. He says Baltimore has committed to $2 million in scholarships. Charlotte is currently at $1.2 million but Mitchell hopes additional corporate support is being sought to bring that number to the $1.7 million range.

Mitchell outlined three keys to keeping the games in the Charlotte. The councilman says it is important Uptown hotel rates are locked in a $200 a night. Mitchell also said the city needs to keep the games split between Bojangles' Coliseum and Spectrum Center. The third key according to Mitchell is getting more corporate support so additional scholarships can be offered.

"We are not afraid of competition and at the end of the day we are going to have to put together a good bid," Mitchell said.

When the CIAA announced the bid process last July, CIAA Board Chair and Fayetteville State University President Dr. James Anderson said it makes good business sense to re-evaluate the location.

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The CIAA footprint is in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania. The conference’s headquarters is in Charlotte.

Councilman Mitchell hopes Charlotte will bid for CIAA's baseball and football championships when bidding opens. He says it is especially important for Charlotte to be loyal to CIAA because after HB2, CIAA was one of the few major events that did not pull out of the state.

CIAA will announce the host city in December.

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