Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/1054352
4 UCW NOVEMBER 21-27, 2018 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM PUBLISHER'S PEN STAFF PUBLISHER Bill Bowman Bill@upandcomingweekly.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER/ EDITOR Stephanie Crider editor@upandcomingweekly.com OPERATIONS DIRECTOR Paulette Naylor accounting@upandcomingweekly. com ASSISTANT EDITOR Leslie Pyo leslie@upandcomingweekly.com SENIOR SPORTS EDITOR Earl Vaughan Jr. EarlUCWSports@gmail.com REPORTER Jeff Thompson news@upandcomingweekly.com GRAPHIC DESIGNER Elizabeth Long art@upandcomingweekly.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS D.G. Martin, Pitt Dickey, Margaret Dickson, John Hood, Jim Jones, Shanessa Fenner SALES ADMINISTRATOR/ DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Laurel Handforth laurel@upandcomingweekly.com MARKETING/SALES Linda McAlister Brown linda@upandcomingweekly.com ––––––––––– Up & Coming Weekly www.upandcomingweekly.com 208 Rowan St. P.O. Box 53461 Fayetteville, NC 28305 PHONE: (910) 484-6200 FAX: (910) 484-9218 Up & Coming Weekly is a "Quality of Life" publication with local features, news and information on what's happening in and around the Fayetteville/Cumberland County community. Up & Coming Weekly is published weekly on Wednesdays. Up & Coming Weekly welcomes manuscripts, photographs and artwork for publication consideration, but assumes no responsibility for them. We cannot accept responsibility for the return of unsolicited manuscripts or material. Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of the pub- lisher. The publisher reserves the right to edit or reject copy submitted for publication. Up & Coming Weekly is free of charge and distributed at indoor and outdoor locations throughout Fayetteville, Fort Bragg, Pope Air Force Base, Hope Mills and Spring Lake. Readers are limited to one copy per person. ©2018 by F&B Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of editorial or advertisements without permission is strictly prohibited. Cover photos credited to the following: Soldiers walking in a line in desert, a U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Alejandro Pena; Color photo at bottom credited to VisitFayettevilleNC.com, the rest are con- sidered public domain via wikimedia. Various ads with art graphics designed with elements from: vecteezy.com and freepik.com. As a child, when I took more food than I could eat my mother would say, "Your eyes are bigger than your stom- ach." Well, the same may be said of Fayetteville and Cumberland County's appetite for initiating future economic development projects. Currently, public opinion is posi- tive and cautiously optimistic about the economic development projects taking place in our city. Residents are excited and supportive of our new Houston Astros Advanced Class A minor league baseball team, the Fayetteville Woodpeckers, and the forthcoming new $37.8 million sta- dium. is structure, along with the $17 million renovation of the historic Prince Charles Hotel into apartments plus a parking deck, hotel and office complex, is the nucleus of a much- needed healthy economic boom for the revival of Fayetteville's downtown community. Add to that the prospects of a statewide Civil War and Recon- struction History Center, and this becomes a masterful undertaking. Is it needed? Yes. Will it succeed? Well that depends on how our elected leadership manages our resources. And from that point of view comes plenty of healthy skepticism. After all, the sports complex center, skate board park and east side senior citizen facility, all of which were in- cluded and approved in the $35 million parks and rec bond package, are still in the planning stages. Before the first Woodpecker home game or the first lease on a Prince Charles apartment is signed, our elected are spending tens of thousands of dol- lars with consultants on feasibility and location studies of a potential perform- ing arts center in downtown Fayetteville. e need for a performing arts center has been talked about and even debat- ed for more than a decade. ere was a need then, and there is still a need. With new construction taking place and the number of future projects yet to be completed, even ardent supporters of a performing arts center feel it may be prudent to slow down the development frenzy to make sure we don't overex- tend our resources. We need to be able to support and adequately pay for these cultural amenities without adding an undue burden on local taxpayers – a reasonable request. No doubt the need is upon us with the deteriorating condi- tions of the Crown eatre. However, the question remains – will the de- mographics of Cumberland County support such a facility? With a potential price tag of $50 million-plus, there are still plenty of other questions that need to be addressed. What shows will it attract? And at what price? Recently, tickets at Durham Per- forming Arts Center for the tour- ing company of "Hamilton" sold at Broadway prices. Given a choice, why would big-show promoters choose Fayetteville over larger markets like Charlotte, Raleigh, Durham, Greens- boro and Winston-Salem? What effect would it have on other local cultural institutions like Cape Fear Regional eatre, Charlotte Blume's annual "Nutcracker" ballet, Community Concerts and the "Heart of Christmas Show?" And, the most critical question of all: How do we pay for it? Sure, the consultants say once built the facility will pay for itself. Histori- cally, there are many who will dispute that claim. Besides, when it comes to taking advice and direction from any consultant, always pay close atten- tion to who is paying them. It is a good indication of the outcome. A Fayetteville Performing Arts Cen- ter is a good, feasible and honorable idea. However, residents must first see and experience the positive effects of the economic impact promised as a result of the current downtown development and investments. Success here will add excitement, enthusiasm, confidence and support to a Fayetteville performing arts center proposal and any future projects that will enhance the quality of life in our community. Let's develop Fayetteville on a solid foundation of proven successes and not on speculation. ank you for reading Up & Coming Weekly. Is a Fayetteville Performing Arts Center in our future? by BILL BOWMAN BILL BOWMAN, Publisher, UP & COMING WEEKLY. COMMENTS? BILL@upandcomingweekly.com. 910- 484-6200. HIGH 63 LOW 44 HIGH 52 HIGH 66 LOW 44 HIGH 52 HIGH 65 HIGH 57 WOO! LOW 47 LOW 49 LOW 39 LOW 29 NOVEMBER 26 NOVEMBER 25 NOVEMBER 23 NOVEMBER 24 NOVEMBER 27 Sunny AM Showers Partly Cloudy Mostly Sunny Showers Mostly Sunny NOVEMBER 22 e need for a performing arts center has been talk- ed about and even debated for more than a decade.