ROCK HILL, South Carolina — A heavily wooded site in Rock Hill, South Carolina now appears to be the leading contender to house the new Panthers team headquarters and practice facility.
The property is located just south of the Cherry Road exit off of I-77. It is bounded by the interstate, Anderson Road and Eden Terrace.
It appears to have plenty of room for the mega-complex that could one day see the Panthers’ facilities -- along with new bars, restaurants, retail shops, and a convention center.
Rock Hill Mayor John Gettys sounded confident it was going to happen.
“I’m the Mayor of Rock Hill and I better be confident, that’s for sure,” Gettys said Friday.
Gettys said the Panthers are interested in a Rock Hill location, but it is now up to the South Carolina legislature to act.
A bill to provide tax breaks and incentives to the Panthers has stalled because freshman Senator Dick Harpootlian has asked to see a breakdown of the economic benefits versus the loss of tax dollars.
The Mayor said he couldn’t understand that, since the legislature has already granted incentives to Boeing and BMW to lure them to the state.
Gettys said, “You wonder now why would there be a problem for something this big for our area?”
So for now, Rock Hill and the Panthers are waiting to see what the legislature does.