CityView Magazine

54 | April 2017 a Class A Advanced ball club here for the next 30 years, hypothetical conversations shied to discussions about the revenue this partnership will bring to the area, parking around the stadium, hotel accommodations and other logistics. Behind the scenes have been people like Huff and board members of Vision 2026. "To me, it didn't make sense to put the baseball stadium in a part of town where everyone couldn't enjoy it," said Huff, amidst sketches of previously proposed locations of the stadium drawn on scraps of paper at his desk. "It's a visible asset. Instead of building it and hiding it, put it downtown where people can then go to our restaurants, buy our t-shirts and visit our museums. at's what Vision 2026 is all about. We're working behind the scenes to affect these kinds of decisions." And there are a lot of decisions of its kind being made these days. In January of this year, the Cumberland County commissioners voted unanimously to endorse and fund up to $7.5 million for the construction of a state-owned and state-maintained Civil War History Center. ere are also the two senior centers, a Cape Fear River park, a tennis complex, an athletic field complex, seven splash pads, three skateboarding parks and improvements to seven neighborhood parks with the Parks and Recreation Bond Package to think about. And then, the "feather in the cap" according to Vision 2026 board member, Lucy Jones is the highly anticipated Performing Arts Center. "Durham went through a very similar transformation with its Performing Arts Center," said Jones. "Before that, it had a less than reputable downtown, and now look at it. It's amazing." Future Fayetteville Vision 2026 chose 2026 to include in its name and made it an affiliated target timeline because of Cumberland County's food and beverage tax, which current law requires the commissioners to stop in 2024. It is also when the debt on the Crown Complex, a multi-purpose arena minutes from downtown, will be paid off. With the non-profit officially filing for establishment in 2016, Vision 2026 gave itself this ten-year timeline to keep some of these key community projects on a deadline. eir foundation is around the Baseball Stadium, the Civil War Center, the Performing Arts Center, as well as two additional pillars, county water and storm water. With bad wells impacting residential access to safe drinking water and Cumberland County being crippled by storm water regulations non-conducive to the sandy soil the region is made up of, Vision 2026 also has these priorities in mind for future projects and initiatives it takes on. But they are also looking to do one other big thing. ey are looking to spark unity. And not just among the towns within Cumberland County or the diverse population of people who live here – but to ignite the same flame of volunteerism in their younger constituents. Huff asked those in attendance at the launch party under

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