Panthers’ Pause on $800M Facility Jeopardizes $115M in Tax Credits

One South Carolina state senator said that David Tepper’s pause on building the Carolina Panthers’ practice facility and headquarters could result in no tax credits for Tepper Sports & Entertainment — if the $800 million facility is not completed by 2024.

“Those tax credits would ultimately confer $115 million in an economic benefit to the Panthers organization,” South Carolina Sen. Wes Climer said. “But if the team doesn’t move its payroll here by 2024, the state’s contribution goes to zero.”

• The Legislature agreed to the tax breaks in 2019 for moving the team’s operations from Charlotte, North Carolina, to Rock Hill, South Carolina.
• The original plans had the facility opening in August of this year, but there have been multiple delays.

Tepper paused construction in early March, reportedly due to Rock Hill failing to distribute $225 million worth of bonds for infrastructure improvement. Neither Tepper nor the team have spoken about it publicly since, but they had already invested more than $170 million in the project at the time. 

Panthers Plans

The project is supposed to include a 5,000-seat stadium, an indoor practice center, and medical, training, and nutrition facilities. Tepper owns the plot and has plans to develop it over the next two decades.

It’s still unclear when or if construction will resume, but South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster told reporters last week that he has had multiple conversations with Tepper, who ensured the construction was only paused.