Rock Hill plans to rezone the former Carolina Panthers headquarters site off Interstate 77, eliminating what could be one of the few hurdles to redeveloping the site.
The city planning commission will hear a rezoning proposal at its April 1 meeting. The property is 220 acres at Eden Terrace and Mount Gallant Road. It’s bordered by the interstate and a rail line just off Exit 81, an interchange built for the failed $2 billion Panthers project.
The city doesn’t have specific development plans, according to information submitted by planners ahead of Tuesday’s meeting, but expects commercial and industrial development for the site.
City officials have marketed the site for more than a year as a potential life science company campus or headquarters. Advanced manufacturing is another option.
That’s still the plan, Mayor John Gettys said Friday afternoon. “We want jobs that don’t exist in Rock Hill,” he said.
No sale or announcement for what company might build on the property is imminent, he said. Interest from developers has been significant for the site, Gettys said, though he didn’t provide details.
The city hired a consultant that determined the Rock Hill site is one of the prime development opportunities in the region.
But, Gettys said, one issue the consultant found was the zoning. The Rock Hill site might not show up for companies or site selection firms doing a high-level property search since different pieces of the former Panthers property have different zoning classifications.
The rezoning would allow several parcels to be combined, making them easier for future development. The meeting Tuesday at 6 p.m. at Rock Hill City Hall, includes a public hearing.
A brief history of planned Panthers HQ site
The former farm plot just off the interstate became one of the most anticipated economic development sites in the area’s history six years ago when the Panthers announced a headquarters move from Charlotte to Rock Hill.
But the estimated $2 billion project fell through due to disagreements between the team and city on timelines for public financing. The fallout prompted a series of bankruptcy and other court cases involving the Panthers development group, the city, York County and others.
The final legal case related to the project, a breach of contract dispute between York County and Rock Hill, is over, The Herald reported this month.
The change from a master plan zoning negotiated for the Panthers to a new industrial listing could be a concern for the city since industrial zoning allows a wide range of factory or processing uses.
But Gettys said there’s one big difference compared to another property owner asking for the zoning change.
“The city taxpayers own that property,” he said, “so we’re not going to agree to anything that would be noxious to our future. We know what we’ll sell it for, or work out agreements for, and what what won’t.”
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John Marks graduated from Furman University in 2004 and joined the Herald in 2005. He covers community growth, municipalities, transportation and education mainly in York County and Lancaster County. The Fort Mill native earned dozens of South Carolina Press Association awards and multiple McClatchy President’s Awards for news coverage in Fort Mill and Lake Wylie.