What's next for PNC Arena upgrade after city, county approve financing plan
Wake County and Raleigh approved a financing plan to pay for upgrades at PNC Arena. The renovation project won't begin until next summer.
Posted — UpdatedAnd it's going to be another year before the $300-million renovation project at PNC Arena even starts.
PNC Arena is home to the Hurricanes, NC State men's basketball and a slew of music concerts and other events.
The county and city will provide the Authority $545 million, paid over the next 28 years, to finance the projected renovation project for the arena, which opened in 1999. That financing is expected to yield $300 million for construction, though interest rates could influence that.
The money, which is in addition to $9 million annual payments to the Centennial Authority from the city and county, comes from existing hotel occupancy and prepared food and beverage taxes.
The next step is reaching final terms on the lease agreement and the development plan.
The arena renovation term sheet, signed in August, calls for a 20-year lease extension to begin after this season. After the 2038-39 season, the parties will meet to discuss "the future of PNC Arena or a replacement arena."
It was accompanied by a PNC Arena District Redevelopment term sheet that laid out a high-level agreement to give the Hurricanes' parent company the right to develop up to 80 acres of state land located around PNC Arena over 20 years.
Gale Force, the Hurricanes' parent company, would be able to develop 20 acres in each phase, provided the assessed value of the improvements exceeded $200 million each phase.
The agreements – from the city and county financing plan to the lease extension and renovation to the redevelopment plan – all work together.
Trying to write a document to account for 20 years of contingencies and possibilities is difficult, Centennial Authority board chairman Philip Isley said.
"Papering this is always the hard part and making sure it's right and making sure we thought through all these other issues from next year to 15 years from now," Isley said.
"We hope those will be done as soon as possible. This month, next month, we want it as early as we can get it," he said.
The lease extension, redevelopment agreement and renovation plans must be submitted to the city and county before the first funds are released. The Centennial Authority will be able to borrow $100 million as soon as July 1 and can borrow another $200 million as soon as July 1, 2026. The Centennial Authority said it may seek funding in September or October,
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