Less than a month after submitting a letter of intent to bid for the return of the CIAA tournament, details of the requirements for Charlotte, North Carolina’s offer have been made public.
According to a report by Mary Ramsey of the Charlotte Observer, the conference’s requirements for a competitive bid include a minimum 7,500-seat venue, a ban on ticket resales, and the CIAA controlling all sales and revenue for the championship games.
Charlotte’s key concern is the pricing of hotel rooms, which allegedly drove the CIAA away from the Queen City following the 2020 tournament.
Host cities are required to have a hotel headquarters that accommodates 500 rooms for conference staff, sponsors, game officials, media, and guests at a maximum of $200 per night. Cities should also work with the conference to secure blocks of hotel rooms for fans and tournament attendees at a maximum price of $225 per night.
Some of Charlotte’s game plan to bring the CIAA back features a hotel package that secures rooms for $125 per night for teams, $200 for staff and $225 for fans, a minimum $1.5 million dollar scholarship fundraising campaign, and a venue package featuring the Spectrum Center, Bojangles Coliseum and the Charlotte Convention Center.
Charlotte may not be the only one interested in the CIAA Tournament. According to the Observer, cities invited to bid include current host Baltimore, Maryland, Washington, DC, Philadelphia, PA, Richmond, VA and other North Carolina cities Raleigh and Greensboro.
Bids are due to be submitted to the conference by Apr. 15.
