1 year later, officials 'cautiously optimistic' for Sports Center's federal funding

The pool was later relegated to a second phase of the project due to costs and the lack of space. Even without a pool, the project will cost an estimated $70 million.

Missing $7 million

One year after demolition began, the Macy’s site stands empty. Drawings haven’t been finalized. And the funding plan is missing $7 million due to a lack of Congressional action on the budget, said Ben Salango, Kanawha County Commission president and one of the project’s spearheads.

Salango said a funding plan for the project was in place late last year. The City of ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä and Kanawha County were each going to use bonds or other financing for a combined $50 million. (They had already contributed a combined $10 million.)

Salango said he believed he could raise $3 million through corporate sponsorships, a similar amount raised for the Shawnee Sports Complex.

The final $7 million was requested last year by the City of ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä through a Congressionally Directed Spending Request to Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va. Congress had previously approved a $2 million request for design of the project.

But Congress didn’t pass a budget.

“Otherwise, our Congressionally Directed Spending Request would have most likely been in there,� Salango said.

Another request

The city has put in another request for the $7 million, ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Mayor Amy Shuler Goodwin said.

Goodwin said she thought the project was feasible without federal money, but she emphasized that Capito has been a “champion� for the project.

A spokesperson for Capito said that the initial $7 million request was not enacted "because Leader [Chuck] Schumer chose to not take up the Appropriations bills passed out of committee at the time."

If Congress doesn’t include the $7 million request in their upcoming budget, Salango said the Capital Sports Center Development Association would have to look at scaling the project back or raising additional corporate funds.

Tariff costs

Another funding hurdle has appeared with President Donald Trump’s tariffs. Salango said the prices of steel and aluminum are much higher now.

“Now we need to see if what we had designed is still within that $60 million realm,� he said. “If the construction materials have increased substantially, then we have to go back and look and see ‘Can we bring this project in budget?’�

Goodwin said building out horizontal instead of vertical would save millions of dollars in construction.

“ There are a lot of moving parts and certainly a lot of moving parts in and around that property and in and around the mall,� Goodwin said. “And while the future is always uncertain, I have been working with the folks who have an interest in the mall to possibly see if — if the mall could ever be, or that property in and around the mall could ever be reimagined.�

Even though the ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Town Center mall is regularly losing businesses, Goodwin said the former Macy’s site is still the best location for the Sports Center because of the proximity to the ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä Coliseum & Convention Center.

Salango said the project will not save the mall. Instead, he believes the project will “transform that entire area around the mall.�

“This project is designed for development for 10, 20, 30 years in the future,� he said.

Other options

The county and city haven’t approached the state yet for help with funding. Salango said that $7 million would probably be “a little more than the state would be willing to help,� but he said the state maybe could provide funding for a few million if all of the $7 million request didn’t come through.

Goodwin said the city could potentially increase the amount of bonds to make up part of the $7 million difference if needed.

“We probably could, but we have other projects going on as well, and we are very fiscally conservative,� she said.

Design and development of the Sports Center is now on pause, with Salango saying it would be “irresponsible� to start the project without the $7 million.

“I don’t want [ZMM Architects and Engineers] to press forward to do the detailed drawings, which take a significant amount of time and a lot of money, until we know,� he said. “Because if we have to scale back the project, that would change the entire process.�

Local impact

Varian Cunningham, a youth basketball and travel basketball coach, said having the facility would help with hosting practices and games for local youth leagues. Cunningham is the president of the West Side teams for the Kanawha Valley Youth Basketball League.

Currently, teams use local middle and high school gyms.

“The middle schools and high schools [have] so much stuff going on so it’s hard to get gyms, but they do make time … for us to use their gyms,� he said. “It would be a huge burden, I’m sure, off of them and off of us if we had one facility that could host everything.�

Cunningham said he had coached travel basketball for over 20 years.

“We go out of town and see playing facilities like this all the time, and it’s long overdue here if you ask me,� he said.

'Cautiously optimistic'

Goodwin said ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä is a decade behind in getting the facility.

“ The City of ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä is committed to the Capital Sports Center because it's important for economic growth,â€� she said. “You know, some projects happen very quickly, and some projects take a while to come to fruition, but this is what I know — in the sports tourism and industry world, this is a win.â€�

Salango said the county has several projects, such as water and sewer infrastructure projects, that are designed and then “sit on the shelf for seven, eight, sometimes over 10 years� until financing is available.

But he doesn’t think he’ll be waiting for 10 years.

“I don’t think this is going to last forever, and so that’s why I saw we’re cautiously optimistic,� Salango said.