Downtown Alliance board members and others are urging the Cumberland Board of County Commissioners to stay the course in plans for a $145 million Crown Event Center along Gillespie Street in Fayetteville’s downtown.
The mere thought of commissioners considering upgrading the Crown Theatre and Crown Arena along U.S. Business 301, they say, is not an acceptable nor a prudent consideration.
“We write to reaffirm our strong and ongoing support for locating the new Crown Event Center in the heart of downtown Fayetteville,” the alliance, comprised of downtown business owners, told the commissioners on April 16. “This is not simply a decision about updating infrastructure — it is about choosing the location that will deliver the greatest long-term return on investment for our county’s economy, identity and future.”
Alliance board members are Isabella Effon, president; Robin Matthews, vice president; Elaine Kelley, secretary; Molly Arnold, treasurer; Frank Duque, Daphne Fuller, Morineki Brooks, Isabella DePietro, and John Malzone, an ex-officio member and liaison to the Cool Spring Downtown District board.
The Cool Spring Downtown District is a nonprofit with advisory nonvoting seats on the board along with DistiNCtly Fayetteville tourism agency and the Arts Council of Fayetteville-Cumberland County.
In the beginning
Commissioners Glenn Adams, Toni Stewart, Jeannette Council, Jimmy Keefe, Michael Boose, Larry Lancaster and Charles Evans voted on Nov. 28, 2022, to build the Crown Event Center in the parking lot of the Judge E. Maurice Braswell Cumberland County Courthouse along Otis Jones Parkway and the old historic courthouse on Gillespie Street.
Multiple downtown sites were considered, the county said, as well as the Interstate 295 Outer Loop and the current Crown Complex location on U.S. Business 301, where the theater and adjacent arena are no longer compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
“Downtown was the right place,” Adams, then chair of the commission, said. “A lot of places have them in their downtown. Downtown will be energized. I hope it will bring hotels and restaurants.”
Adams called it a transformative project for downtown, the county and the Cape Fear Region that will elevate the community as a premier destination for entertainment, events and gatherings.
Architectural renderings revealed a 134,000 square foot center replete with glass exterior and a rooftop terrace with views of the downtown skyline at a cost of $131.7 million.
Along the way
Then came the red flags.
First, when commissioners learned in January of 2024 that the construction cost would jump from $131.7 million to $163.5 million.
“I’m ready to walk away, I’m so disappointed right now,” then-Commissioner Keefe said, according to a CityView report, after learning about the price hike from Matt DeSilver, an area manager for MBP Carolinas and project manager for the county construction of the center.
Commissioners Adams and Council shared in Keefe’s frustration.
Commissioners huddled and came back with another alternative: a redesign of the facility at a cost of $145 million, and not a dollar more.
A groundbreaking ceremony on Oct. 25, 2024, and the Event Center was a go.
“This facility will not only enhance our community’s cultural landscape but also serve as a catalyst for economic growth in Cumberland County,” Adams said, according to a CityView report. “We are proud to move forward with a project that reflects the aspirations of our community and positions Cumberland County as a regional leader in the arts and entertainment sector.”
Keefe, who would not seek re-election, called the groundbreaking an investment in the future.
“This facility is not just about meeting today’s needs; it’s about anticipating the future as Cumberland County continues to grow,” Keefe said.
Another red flag
It was March 5 when deViere announced a 30-day moratorium on construction of the project regarding what we learned were commissioners’ concerns about an additional $1.9 million architect’s fee from EwingCole.
“This 30-day pause reflects our commitment to transparency and accountability,” deViere said in a news release, “and we are taking this step to ensure that we move forward with confidence.”
He said the county would hire Fayetteville lawyer Scott Flowers of the Hutchens Law Firm as an independent third party to review the project. After receiving what deViere said was a 1,000-page report from Flowers, commissioners voted to rescind the moratorium.
But …
Commissioners also have hired the Davis Kane architecture firm of Raleigh, deViere said, to see what it would cost to “rehabilitate and modernize” the old Crown Arena and Crown Theatre on U.S. Business 301.
‘A missed opportunity’
Apparently, the news prompted the Downtown Alliance to reach out to commissioners in support of moving forward with the Crown Event Center downtown.
“While modernizing the existing Crown Theatre and Arena on Highway 301 may appear to address immediate structural needs, it would ultimately be a missed opportunity,” the alliance wrote in its letter to commissioners. “The current location is isolated, underutilized and disconnected from the cultural and economic momentum driving Fayetteville forward. Audiences come and go without setting foot in a local business. Visitors to the Crown’s present site often leave with a limited — and often unfavorable — impression of our city. They arrive for a show and leave without experiencing the true Fayetteville.”
It is a reasonable thought on the part of the alliance.
“A downtown Crown changes that,” the letter states. “Placing the new Crown Event Center downtown positions it within a thriving cultural and commercial ecosystem. Within steps of the future venue are historic streets, vibrant restaurants, boutique shops, public parks, galleries, nightlife and a walkable environment designed to leave a lasting impression. It becomes part of the Fayetteville experience — not just an isolated event. It generates energy that spills into nearby businesses, creates memories and invites people to return. Guests won’t just attend an event — they’ll explore Fayetteville, dine here, stay here and come back.”
A downtown venue, the alliance says, will attract national touring productions, conferences, and performances; draw regional visitors who will shop, dine and explore the downtown; encourage private investment in downtown development; and reinforce the city’s identity as a vibrant and creative hub.
“The Crown Event Center is more than a building,” the alliance wants commissioners to know. “It’s a symbol of who we are and what we aspire to become. Its placement will either reinforce the status quo or elevate our community into a new era of cultural, economic and civic leadership.”
The alliance does not argue that the current location of the theater and arena can be upgraded, but…
“Your goal is not to just build a better box for shows,” the alliance told commissioners. “We ask that you invest in a downtown anchor that lifts everything around it — shops, restaurants, services, hotels, housing, the tax base and civic pride. You cannot renovate your way to that kind of regional impact.”
Alliance board members want Kirk deViere, Veronica Jones, Glenn Adams, Jeannette Council, Marshall Faircloth, Henry Tyson and Pavan Patel to know downtown is the right venue for the Crown Event Center and a once-in-a-generation opportunity.
“Downtown is where this project can do the most good,” the alliance wants commissioners to know. “We stand behind that vision and are ready to continue supporting it through advocacy, partnership and boots-on-the-ground engagement.”
Others will argue the Downtown Alliance is on a self-serving crusade.
‘We must be good stewards’
No matter, Kirk deViere says he welcomes the alliance’s position and concerns.
“I appreciate the Downtown Alliance’s ongoing commitment to Fayetteville’s city center and your thoughtful perspective,” the 54-year-old commissioners’ chair responded by email to the alliance. “ … The public investment in downtown Fayetteville has been significant over the last 10-15 years.”
But he reminded the alliance that Cumberland County faces a myriad of needs to include public schools’ infrastructure, water system issues, public safety and mental health services.
“These are critical funding priorities that directly impact our residents’ daily lives,” deViere told the alliance. “While the current funding model for the Crown Event Center uses tax revenue from a separate food and beverage tax along with part of the [motel] occupancy tax, we must be good stewards of these funds and the capacity of the funding model so that we protect the resources from the general fund for our critical funding priorities.”
He does not dismiss the alliance’s concerns or anyone reaching out to commissioners.
“I appreciate your organization’s commitment to Fayetteville’s downtown development,” he told the alliance, “and your important voice in this conversation.”
Epilogue
The ultimate decision on the Crown Event Center will rest in the hands and decision of Kirk deViere, a former state senator who made a difference for this community in his time in Raleigh; a certified public accountant in Marshall Faircloth; a real estate developer in Henry Tyson; a deep-thinking business entrepreneur in Pavan Patel; longtime commissioner Jeannette Council; Veronica Jones, a nonprofit businesswoman; and Glenn Adams, the Fayetteville lawyer who has told us from the start that downtown is the right place.
Most all of us have an opinion, but only seven people will tell us where the Crown Event Center will be, and that’s all we know for now.
Bill Kirby Jr. can be reached at billkirby49@gmail.com or 910-624-1961.
We’re in our third year of CityView Today, and so many of you have been with us from day one in our efforts to bring the news of the city, county, community and Cape Fear region each day. We’re here with a purpose — to deliver the news that matters to you.
