S.C. Gov. says he talked to David Tepper about Panthers stopping Rock Hill construction
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster told reporters in Greenville, S.C., on Tuesday that he has spoken with Panthers owner David Tepper about why the organization halted construction on its headquarters in Rock Hill.
Last month, Tepper Sports & Entertainment announced that construction on the state-of-the-art facility had been placed on hold because the City of Rock Hill hadn’t secured the funds to pay for the construction.
It was expected to be built by 2023.
McMaster said Tepper explained the issues to him and said it was only a pause.
“I’ve had a number of conversations with him over the months, but they (TS&E) are at an impasse now — reading the paper — with the city and the county,” McMaster told reporters. “I hope they get everything worked out because we’re ready to go.”
The city was to secure $225 million in bond money to help pay for the facility. It’s still unclear where things went wrong.
But if the facility is not completed by 2024, TS&E won’t get the tax credits it was promised from the state.
“Those tax credits would ultimately confer $115 million in an economic benefit to the Panthers organization in pursuit of this project,” South Carolina State Senator Wes Climer said. “But if the team doesn’t move its payroll here by 2024, then the state’s contribution goes to zero.”
It was initially supposed to open in August 2022, but since starting construction, the project has run into multiple issues, including the COVID-19 pandemic.
A spokesperson for the Panthers declined to comment.
The Panthers broke ground on the 240-acre property in July 2020.
The nearly 700,000-square-foot training facility is supposed to include an indoor practice field and is expected to help promote growth in the surrounding area, while also upgrading amenities for the team, which plays in one of the NFL’s oldest stadiums. It will be one of the largest facilities in the NFL, if not the largest, and compete with the Dallas Cowboys’ headquarters in Frisco, Texas.
It will also be a sports-and-entertainment venue with the potential to hold a variety of events, including soccer games, high school sports championships, corporate events and concerts.
The Charlotte Observer toured the facility, nicknamed “The Rock,” last August. At the time, 340 workers were on-site to help construct the headquarters.
Today, there are none, with only security guards at the entrances to the gate, where the half-built facility stands.
This story was originally published April 13, 2022 at 1:08 PM with the headline "S.C. Gov. says he talked to David Tepper about Panthers stopping Rock Hill construction."
