CHARLOTTE — Leaders of city government’s reshuffled economic development committee hinted at upcoming decisions on taxpayer investments in the NFL stadium and the NBA arena during their first meeting of the year today.
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“Public-private partnership is one that’s obviously going to get a lot of attention over the next 18 to 24 months in terms of some of the things we are working on with some of our local partners,” Councilman Malcolm Graham told the committee. “We want to be in a position where we can help shape some of these conversations, so that we are not just saying yes or no, but we’re providing feedback along the way.”
Graham, a Democrat, replaced Tariq Bokhari, a Republican, this month as head of the committee. Mayor Vi Lyles, who is also a Democrat, makes committee assignments. Bokhari is no longer part of the economic development committee.
Instead, the 11-member council’s only other Republican, Ed Driggs, was added to the committee as vice chair. Driggs comes from a financial-services background. He is in his fourth term on council and had previously served on the committee.
Without mentioning the NFL Carolina Panthers or NBA Charlotte Hornets by name, Graham and Driggs alluded today to the challenges of negotiating anticipated taxpayer funding to help pay for a new or renovated stadium in the case of the Panthers and what are expected to be significant and expensive upgrades in the case of the Hornets.
Such public-private partnerships, as well as corporate relocation and expansion incentives, have come under scrutiny by some council members. Their main complaint: City government administrators negotiate with teams and companies without allowing council ample influence until it’s time to decide whether to approve what’s been proposed.
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“We have to manage the tension between confidentiality and a responsibility to council in making decisions,” Driggs said. “And, with any luck, try to establish this committee as the portal to the business community — this is the place where the interests of business and their creation of jobs and their growth in Charlotte should find a welcoming audience.”
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