8 replies to this topic

[UptownGrrl]

Sounds like a great event for the new arena...

Charlotte wins CIAA tournament

Economic impact estimated at $11.5 million

HAMPTON, Va. (AP) – Charlotte beat out fellow North Carolina rival Raleigh to host the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association’s men’s and women’s basketball tournament from 2006 through 2008...

The men’s and women’s tournaments, played in Raleigh since 2000, are credited with attracting thousands of fans and pumping millions of dollars into the local economy. The economic impact of this year’s tournaments has been estimated at $11.5 million....

Starting next year, the CIAA men’s tournament will enjoy expanded television exposure, as ESPN agreed last week to a three-year deal to televise games. That makes the CIAA the first NCAA Division II conference to have its games televised by ESPN as part of its Championship Week coverage....

The conference’s 12 schools are Bowie State, Elizabeth City State, Fayetteville State, Johnson C. Smith University, Livingstone, North Carolina Central, St. Augustine’s, St. Paul’s College, Shaw, Virginia State, Virginia Union, and Winston-Salem State.

[uptownliving]

This is very good news for Charlotte...not so good news for Raleigh.

[Neo]

I'm glad to hear that Charlotte won the tournament, I'm sure having it in Charlotte will not be a disappointment.

[monsoon]

[norm21499]

Some of those things in that article were just downright mean.the CIAA moved to Raleigh when theri arena was new. Now they are moving to Charlotte's new arena when it opens. Plus, Raleigh's arena to my knowledge is not downtown, and it doesnt offer the night life and luxeries of being able to walk to the games and events from your hotel room. I am sure when its time to elect another city again, the CIAA probably wont stay in Charlotte, but who knows. I just know they like to move around a lot.

[ElricSeven]

monsoon, on Dec 16 2004, 06:37 AM, said:

Local Raleigh people discuss why they lost the tournament.  Most of it has to do with the location of its arena compared to Charlotte.

Charlotte offers more for tournament fans
This is an interesting discription of Charlotte. lol



"We got jilted in favor of the more popular girl, with the name-brand clothes and the $70 haircut. The gal with the boob job, the derm-abrasion and Botox -- not to mention the collagen injections in her big, puffy lips."
..."So, for now, let's swallow our pride and agree to "just be friends." Because this is one of those breakups where you know the CIAA is going to come crawling back.

See, Charlotte's real pretty. She dresses up fancy. And she's obviously got a catchy pickup line.

She's the girl you want to take to the drive-in or the disco.

Raleigh's the girl you want to bring home to mom."

More in this article.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

What do they mean by the following:

Of course, Raleigh's social scene is still a work in progress -- not enough to compete against Charlotte's proposed "CIAA Village" or the Queen City's emphasis on belonging to "both of the Carolinas" as the conference looks to expand farther south.

What's the CIAA Village?  Is that part of the proposal, and if so, do we know what they promise in the proposal?  I'm curious as it might reveal some plans for the Entertainment District in First Ward.

E7

[uptownliving]

My guess is that they will close off part of Tryon or Trade like they usually do and throw up a band stage and some street vendors. I don't think they are talking about anything permanant.

[monsoon]

[UptownGrrl]

From what I remember in the Observer article, it was a comment made by city council -- that First Ward/Uptown would become CIAA Village, much like "Olympic Village" that you see at the Olympics. Basically, just a compact area where all the athletes and attendees can be housed, fed, entertained and easily transported. The biggest contrast between Charlotte and Raleigh was that Charlotte has all of this infrastructure either already built (or soon to be built) and the Raleigh arena is in the middle of the burbs with nothing around it. I would be very interested to see if the city proposed building other amenities just for this event - but I doubt it.