ROCK HILL, S.C. — Things are slowly turning around in Football City, USA. Rock Hill is nearing the completion of the road connecting the now-failed Panthers practice facility to Mount Gallant Road and an interstate connector.
Mayor John Gettys says he’s hopeful the completion leads to more investors bidding on the 250-acre site so they can move forward with the next steps.
Until then, the lot that once brought hope and attention to the area now appears to be more of a burden.
“It really is an eyesore seeing these construction cones out here for months and months – probably a year now," said Rutledge DePass, owner of Rock Hill Gymnastics. "We had oak trees that had been here for 80 years, and they’re all gone now and it’s just red mud, orange cones."
Now, nearly a year later, businesses say anything would be better than an empty lot.
“Something that generates revenue for the entire city. Brings tourism to the area, just something that brings a lot of people to the area,” DePass went on.
“I’m hoping it’s something that attracts people from all over so some of Charlotte comes to Rock Hill and see what we have to offer,” said Jeremy Ray, the owner of Rock Hill Screen Printing.
Mayor Gettys says the road should be done this week. However, some of the workers say it could take much longer than that.
Contact Anna King at aking2@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X, and Instagram.