Waste of the Day: N.C.’s Half-Finished Event Center
Topline: The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners voted this June to stop construction of a new event center, but the county has already sunk $36 million into the project, according to the Greater Fayetteville Business Journal.
Key facts: The Crown Event Center in Fayetteville, North Carolina, includes an 11,000-seat coliseum, a ballroom, theater, arena and exposition center.
In 2022, the county board decided to relocate the event center downtown and renovate its facilities. They hired a design team, approved blueprints, and held a groundbreaking ceremony in October 2024 — just days before a new county board was elected.
The new county board paused construction this March and voted 5-2 to axe the project on June 4. According to the new board, the original proposal did not factor in the cost of building a new parking lot, among other expenses. The final price tag would have been as much as $192 million.
A county-led survey of 13,000 residents also found that a majority did not want the event center to move downtown, ABC11 reported.
It’s unclear how much of the money Cumberland County will recoup, if any. The $36 million already spent included $6 million for architectural services and $6 million for steel.
County Board Chairman Kirk deViere told ABC11, "Our goal is to see what parts of those materials can be reclaimed or reused, either working with our manufacturers, working with our vendors to see what can actually be recouped.”
The county will now find a new way to spend $185 million raised through its Prepared Food and Beverage Tax, a 1% tax on “any food or beverage which has been altered by preparing, combining, dividing, heating or serving in order to make the food or beverage available for immediate consumption.”
Search all federal, state and local salaries and vendor spending with the world’s largest government spending database at OpenTheBooks.com.
Summary: Cumberland County likely made the right decision by cancelling a project that would have cost taxpayers almost $200 million, but doing so only after $36 million was spent is a classic example of mismanagement.
The #WasteOfTheDay is brought to you by the forensic auditors at OpenTheBooks.com
We're proud to make our journalism accessible to everyone, but producing high-quality investigative pieces still comes at a cost.
That's why we need your help. By making a contribution today, you'll be supporting RealClearInvestigations and ensuring that we can keep providing in-depth reporting that holds the powerful accountable.
Donate now and help us continue to publish distinctive journalism that makes a difference. Thank you for your support!
Support RealClearInvestigations →
