David Tepper pulls out of Eastland Mall project and ‘no one at the city knows why’

Carolina Panthers and Charlotte FC owner David Tepper is pulling out of plans to build a youth academy and soccer fields at the old Eastland Mall site, Tepper Sports and Entertainment confirmed Wednesday.

“After a great deal of consideration, the timeline for the Eastland project posed challenges that led us to research expedited alternatives,” a TSE spokesperson wrote in a statement.

The company is continuing to work toward a practice facility for Charlotte FC, the club’s academy and its MLS Next Pro team, the company said in a statement.

But TSE’s plans no longer include a presence in Eastland, the company’s spokesperson said.

“We continue to have discussions with the City of Charlotte as we work towards driving economic engagement through sports and live entertainment,” TSE said.

The decision comes just a day after a Carolina Panthers executive left the group and in the wake of a failed deal for a Panthers practice facility and new team headquarters in Rock Hill.

A high-ranking city official told The Charlotte Observer “no one at the city knows why” Tepper Sports and Entertainment pulled out of the Eastland Mall project, as reported first by Axios Charlotte.

In a statement, a city spokesman said “the city has been working for years to redevelop the Eastland Mall site and will continue that work. The city’s priority is to create economic opportunity for the Eastside Community and for Charlotte overall, and we remain committed to doing that. Development of the Eastland site will continue with a groundbreaking on Aug. 3.

“ ... The city and Tepper Sports have a strong partnership and the city remains open to discussing opportunities with Tepper Sports at Eastland. We appreciate the significant contribution Tepper Sports has made in Charlotte and the city supports Tepper Sports’ efforts to increase sports and entertainment events, which benefits Charlotte’s businesses and residents.”

In a tweet on Thursday morning, City Councilman Malcolm Graham said he was disappointed TSE pulled out of the Eastland redevelopment.

“Public, Private, partnership is the hall mark of our city development,” Graham wrote. “It only works if there’s mutual understanding of the needs of both parties, and respect for a process that involves the public.”

Eastland development history

The city of Charlotte purchased the now-vacant property in 2012 after the mall closed. It had planned to transform the space into a hub for mixed-income housing, green space, businesses and Charlotte FC’s academy headquarters.

An Eastland redevelopment proposal introduced last summer included plans for Tepper Sports to occupy about 11% of the open space, with 22 acres set to house Charlotte FC’s academy complex. Plans called for two large fields for the academy, one large field for public use as well as four medium fields and six small fields for public use, according to the proposal.

Charlotte FC’s development academy sponsors multiple youth boys’ soccer teams (U17, U15 and U14) and a Discovery program (U13 and U12). It will also field a reserve team in 2023. The academy currently trains at a soccer complex in Rock Hill, S.C., called Manchester Meadows.

The 80-acre Eastland Mall site off Central Avenue was last used as an open-air flea market until city officials and police told vendors they could no longer set up shop on the property. The vendors have been displaced since. A group led by Charlotte City Councilman Tariq Bokhari organized a temporary site for vendors in uptown on Saturday, but few signed up to sell goods there.

Failed Rock Hill deal, executives leaving

The Charlotte pro sports scene has seen significant change since Tepper purchased the Carolina Panthers in 2018.

Since that transaction, Tepper has purchased and brought a Major League Soccer franchise to Charlotte, invested more than $70 million in facility improvements to Bank of America Stadium designed to improve fan and player experience and more than doubled the number of events held at the venue.

Eastland is just the latest shakeup at Tepper Sports and Entertainment along that changing landscape.

Effective Monday, Panthers Chief Operating Officer Mark Hart’s resigned from his post, spokesman Bruce Speight said. Hart was brought to the Panthers in 2018 from the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Tepper hired Hart and named him vice president of development. He previously served in the same role with the Steelers.

Nick Kelly stepped down as CEO of TSE after three months on the job, The Observer reported in May. At the time, Kelly’s departure was the latest in a list of top employees leaving TSE, including Tom Glick, who was TSE president.

Construction on the Rock Hill project was halted in March, and contractors received stop-work orders. By June, GT Real Estate Holdings LLC, the company Tepper established for the project, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The project came to a halt because of a disagreement between the city of Rock Hill and GTRE, even though construction had already started.

TSE is the ownership group of the Panthers and Major League Soccer’s expansion team Charlotte FC.