Officials with Fayetteville’s Crown Coliseum suspended
Two officials with the Crown Coliseum in Fayetteville were suspended after allegations about venue operations, officials say.
Posted — UpdatedCEO Paul Beard and Director of Marketing and Sales Windy Lawson were put on paid leave Friday after an emergency meeting of the Cumberland County Civic Center commission. The move came hours after Beard fired an employee, officials say.
That employee called his firing "unfair" but did not disclose why he was let go when interviewed by a Fayetteville newspaper.
Beard took over the coliseum in March after seven-year CEO Rick Reno left to manage Roanoke Rapids' theater.
The Civic Center Commission also put Herman Bullard, director of the Cumberland County Fair, on paid leave, said Bob Smith, chair of the commission.
Smith said state personnel laws prohibit him from saying what prompted the suspensions. He added that he planned to meet Monday with County Manager James Martin to discuss the allegations.
All three positions have been filled with interim employees, and operations at the Crown Coliseum will run seamlessly, Smith said.
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