Hospitality‑tax panel recommends $23.5M for 12 Wake County projects, staff to place awards on Feb. 16 consent agenda

Michael James, Wake County’s assistant county manager, presented the evaluation panel’s recommendations for the competitive hospitality‑tax funding process and said the panel put forward $23,500,000 in awards across 12 projects in nine municipalities.

James told the board the pool being recommended includes $15.5 million that requires joint approval with the City of Raleigh and $8.0 million that is county‑only. He said the round drew a record 22 submittals requesting nearly $76 million while the process had $23.5 million available. “If you all are comfortable and prepared, you could be voting on the award decisions and recommendations as soon as your regular meeting next Monday, February 16,” James said during his presentation.

The panel’s recommendations included a mix of new facilities and improvements. New‑facility highlights were a multipurpose field expansion at Zebulon Community Park and Rolesville’s Frasier Farm athletic complex (a 116‑acre first phase with five multipurpose/soccer fields and an operating partnership with NCFC), an administrative and event‑support facility at WRAL Soccer Park for NCFC, a 25,000‑square‑foot skate park and 2,700‑foot pump track in Wake Forest, a ~1,700‑seat performance stage at Apex Town Hall, and a mixed‑use relocation and ballet facility ("Star Line at South Hills") proposed by Carolina Ballet with a private developer partner.

The recommendations also included renovations and capacity upgrades at existing venues: Triangle Aquatic Center hospitality‑suite renovations, drainage/lighting and two additional pitches at Morrisville’s Church Street cricket complex, turf conversion at Fleming Loop Park in Fuquay‑Varina, ballpark improvements at J.B. Flirty Park in Wake Forest, and targeted field‑turf and infrastructure work at Holly Springs’ North Main Athletic Complex (formerly Ting Park). James emphasized awards are capital only, county funding is reimbursed on a reimbursement basis, and county dollars are “last in” for funding packages.

Denny Edwards of the Greater Raleigh Convention & Visitors Bureau, who participated on the evaluation panel, told commissioners the county still has unmet demand for fields and tournaments: “There is absolutely demand, not only for soccer… NCFC, they do about five tournaments a year that we just don't even have enough fields right now,” he said, noting some tournaments must travel out of the county for space.

The board indicated informal support to move the recommendations onto the Feb. 16 consent agenda, subject to any last administrative clarifications and with the City of Raleigh’s concurrent action planned for Feb. 17.