It’s embarrassing to see Charlotte having their day in the sun when we are the better soccer town in every possible metric except for those of “Willing Billionaires” and “Ready Stadium Not Occupied By a University”. We’re a growing metro, we have money, we have the fan support, why are we on the sidelines while NCFC keeps getting relegated?
Raleigh needs more pro sports. We are basically Sacramento with one team we got via relocation only because their former market just wasn’t working. And at least Sacramento has the Bay Area 90 minutes away, we sure don’t. Who’s with me?
Sweeney is trash like Goodnight and Goodmon. We need a David Tepper who will move here and do anything for his city. Even Tom Dundon won’t move here.
This town punches so below its weight. We can be like Cincinnati or St. Louis or Nashville if we gave a darn. Which we don’t because we’re the obvious beta in this state. Outside of the Canes there is no one area where Raleigh is better than Charlotte, convince me otherwise.
The reason billionaire don’t move here is because of Taxes. David Tepper doesn’t live here, he’s in South Florida. He just invested here we need investment. But he has a house there. But his residence isn’t in NC.
Raleigh is MUCH better at culture. Better art museum, better performing arts. And obviously education by a mile.
Charlotte’s a bit of a paper tiger of a big city - it has the obvious signifiers but misses on those important aspects that make a city an interesting place for smart people to live.
Why then does nobody invest here at all? We have the money and the demographics, we just lack the will.
That Tom Dundon doesn’t give a darn while David Tepper does speaks volumes and we could easily get an MLS team if he did. We are a third tier city at best, in envy of places like Cincinnati who got lucky because time was on their side while the clock was at 11:55 by the time we were ready.
I know that NC is going to be a problem for MLB in the coming years and that Raleigh is the closest thing MLB has to a de facto open market as the Orioles and Nationals do nothing to grow a fanbase here. However, MLS has a comparatively low barrier to entry and the only reason why we don’t have a team now was that David Tepper cared while our billionaires don’t.
This is true bit it is deficient in other areas and it seems to show little will to grow in those other areas. If it did we would have an MLS team and a plan to get into MLB and would do something to build a tourist attraction. Charlotte’s got a lot but it seems like in contrast we have bupkis.
I’d take that light rail system, better bus headways, and hub airport on top of the MLS team in a heartbeat without a second thought or regrets.
I would be happy with an MLS team, mostly if the stadium was downtown. I’m not losing any sleep with us not being like Charlotte or having things they have. If I wanted to live in Charlotte, I’d just move there. Hell, I can walk to the Canes games and I actually care about them, and still barely ever get over there.
Plenty of investment in the area. Just not in major league sports.
I think the main issue holding this area back is the Raleigh - Durham ‘rivalry’. Time to put that shit aside. Combined, the two cities are way better than the sum of its parts. Especially when you throw in Chapel Hill, Cary and others.
This does not just apply to sports, but for transit (rail), business recruiting (Amazon), & you name it. Combined, Raleigh and Durham would blow blow out any other metro area bound by DC, Nashville, & Orlando - except Atlanta, but including Charlotte, if we could just get over our petty regional issues…
That is too hard to force Raleigh and Durham to cooperate or even forcibly merge. Charlotte has done everything right.
If someone offered to buy you out of your lease or mortgage and move you to an identical place in Charlotte, nobody would crazy to say no. One is easier than 5.
Man, Charlotte isn’t as cool as you seem to be fixated on it being. Light rail, banks, the Panthers and an MLS team that has to play in their cavernous stadium aren’t everyone’s deal.
The Triangle has tech, museums and the arts, colleges and their sports, proximity to the coast, and some really distinctive, character-filled towns and neighborhoods.
It’s like trying to say SF or LA is better or NYC or Boston is better. They’re just different.
Boston is objectively better. But the weather and price and congestion are so terrible I moved here. LOL! I might be biased, and I’m mostly kidding anyways.
I am really, really confused why someone would repeatedly come to a message board for people who voluntarily choose to live in Raleigh – and frequent a message board created for people who care about Raleigh and what happens here! – and insist that we’d all secretly prefer to live in Charlotte if we had the chance to do so.
Nobody is forcing us to live in Raleigh, dude. We live here because we want to live here!
I want my Raleigh to be like Charlotte. I want more density, I want better transit, I want light rail, I want more sports teams and nonstop flights. Tourist attractions and theme parks seem to be nice too.
Nobody in Raleigh wants similar. The blueprint for Raleigh is called Charlotte. We can be better than them if we gave a darn.