Charlotte Group Not Giving Up On MLS Bid Despite Lack Of Public Funding

The group spearheading Charlotte's bid for an MLS expansion team said it is "not giving up" after Mecklenburg County commissioners this week voted to not contribute any public money to a proposed stadium, according to a front-page piece by Harrison, Morrill & Peralta of the CHARLOTTE OBSERVER. SMI President & CEO Marcus Smith and his group, MLS4CLT, saw $101.5M in public money being considered for a stadium "vanish" with the county's decision. The question now becomes "how badly" does Smith "want" to bring an MLS team to Charlotte (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 8/4). A CHARLOTTE OBSERVER editorial states Smith either "overplayed his hand" or was "indifferent to the proposal's flaws and to the intensity of the public's opposition." Now Smith will have to "decide whether land and the city's contribution is enough." MLS in Charlotte "would be a good thing, at the right price" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 8/4).