Nothing good can be said regarding the Charleston County School District's plans for the new football stadium in North Charleston.
Can we start with lack of input from the community it serves? "No public hearings or listening sessions took place before the Charleston County School District's recent $11.5 million purchase of a 38-acre vacant lot in North Charleston for a regional high school stadium . . . The board made its decision behind closed doors and the district did not publicly announce the site even after it made its purchase Jan. 31."
How about its awkward location, far from the centers of population it will serve? "Near the intersection of West Montague Avenue and Dorchester Road in North Charleston" equals nowhere near any of the high schools it will serve. Great for out-of-towners.
Then the intersection with Todd Garrett's old buddy real estate firm stinks. "Rushmark sold the property to the Charleston County School District on Jan. 31," making $5 million on the deal only two years after purchasing it for $ 6.5 million. That's what you might call a great return on investment. Rushmark owes Todd Garrett's real estate firm a great debt, so to speak. Of course, Garrett claims he had no personal interest in the sale.
Yeah, right.
Finally, the price tag begs credulity. The expensive land deal pushes the stadium's cost well over $20 million. Maybe chump change to the school board but not what voters expected.
Who decided that North Charleston needs a stadium that large? How many people usually attend a game for the schools involved? Taxpayers who voted for the additional tax had no say in how large it would be since the stadium was part of a take all or nothing deal.
The whole project stinks of CCSD's delusions of grandeur.
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