New I-77 exit in SC will open within days. It was once meant for Panthers HQ project
Interstate 77’s newest exit, once planned for the Carolina Panthers headquarters that ultimately was scrapped, could open within days to serve another influx of sports fans. This time it’s world championship bikers.
Exit 81 also will serve as a new route for Rock Hill traffic, between Eden Terrace and Dave Lyle Boulevard.
“The interchange will open up, hopefully by the end of April,” Mayor John Gettys told The Herald Tuesday morning. “We believe it will be open before the BMX world championships.”
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The UCI BMX Racing World Championships run May 12 through May 18. The same event hosted by Rock Hill in 2017 brought 3,700 riders from 48 countries, plus an influx of fans. The city’s BMX Supercross Track is about a mile from Exit 81.
About the new I-77 exit area
The new exit was designed and built to serve a new Panthers team headquarters and practice facility for the Panthers, plus development around it that would combine for a $2 billion investment.
But the Charlotte team canceled its construction contract with the city two years ago amid a dispute between the two on the timing of bond financing for the project. The city is now fielding offers for possible redevelopment of the 240-acre site just southwest of the interchange.
Palmetto Parkway will open with the interchange.
That new road runs across the interstate, from Mt. Gallant Road to Paragon Way. Initially, traffic will be able to use it only to go toward Riverwalk Business Park.
Traffic won’t be able to go toward Mt. Gallant Road until the end of May, Gettys said. There’s culvert work on that side that still needs attention.
With large road projects like interchange configurations, there’s often a gap between when it opens to traffic and when it’s officially complete.
Two years ago, months passed between the traffic switch to a diverging diamond at Gold Hill Road and the final markings to complete that interchange upgrade on Interstate 77. Likewise, the new Exit 81 will phase in openings as it progresses toward a full completion by June.
The new exit will give drivers more options once it’s complete, but the city doesn’t yet know what growth might pop up around it.
The city owns the former Panthers site after bankruptcy proceedings from prior owner GT Real Estate. Calls and proposals are steady but the city isn’t in serious negotiations on any of them right now, Gettys said.
Rock Hill has a history of large developments, from Cherry Park or Riverwalk to the ongoing revitalization of former mills and plants downtown into offices, apartments, restaurants and retail space.
The mayor is confident city staff and elected officials will find the right deal for the former Panthers site.
