Capacity turnout for Gluckstadt meeting on $100M Megadome sports complex. What was proposed
A proposed $100 million sports tourism complex would bring a projected $50 million annual economic impact to Gluckstadt, a developer told city officials in a special meeting Thursday night.
If built, the 400,000-square-foot complex would also affect local businesses.
On Tuesday, 828 Sports Ventures based in Madison announced their plan for the 43-acre Gluckstadt Megadome at the corner of U.S. 51 and Weisenberger Road in Gulckstadt.
The project is still in the early stages of development and has yet to receive approval from the Gluckstadt Board of Aldermen. Larry Fortune, chief investment officer for 828 Sports Ventures, presented proposals to the board in Thursday evening's special meeting.
Initial announcement: Gluckstadt to be home of $100 million sports tourism destination if project approved
The Megadome's plans are not yet concrete, but the potential amenities Fortune presented will support just about any indoor and outdoor sport.
Baseball, basketball, football, soccer, dance, cheer, swim, E-sports and more were included in Fortune's proposal. The Megadome would include four baseball diamonds, which Fortune called "flex fields," meaning they can be converted to become fields and courts for other sports, including football, soccer and more.
The plans include three domes, one of which will be an "aqua-dome" that may include heated pools and an indoor water park.
Fortune emphasized the complex’s potential impact on the economy of Gluckstadt, which officially became a city in 2021 and is rapidly developing. The projected $50 million annual impact comes from third-party analysis, Fortune said.
Fortune and his partners have been trying for the past five years to bring this complex to Gluckstadt, which he described as the perfect location given its distance from major cities including Memphis, New Orleans, Atlanta and Dallas, all of which are within a 6-hour drive from the proposed site.
Thursday’s meeting saw a packed room of more than two dozen locals who came to hear Fortune’s pitch. While many seemed to support the proposal, the Megadome was not without opposition.
During the meeting’s public comment section, Karla McCullough approached the lectern to express concerns directly to Fortune and the board. McCullough is partnering with former NBA and Mississippi State star Erick Dampier to bring a sports tourism facility to Jackson.
The proposed Jackson facility, called City Plaza, would focus on basketball and volleyball. The $58 million project is 33 acres, 10 fewer than the Gluckstadt Megadome, with a fraction of its budget. City Plaza has yet to break ground, but McCullough said she and Dampier are going through with their plans in the near future.
At Thursday’s meeting, McCullough said she is concerned that two sports tourism facilities within 20 miles of each other could create an oversaturation in the market. The oversaturation, McCullough said, is a potential threat to both developments’ future revenue.
More on City Plaza: A $58 million development could bring sports tourism to Jackson. See where and when
McCullough is also concerned that the Megadome would create strain on her business, which she said would serve Jackson's youth, a population that is “historically underrepresented and under-resourced."
“Our development is a non-punitive solution to curb many of the challenges that are continuously discussed and are often assigned to the youth in the capital city of Jackson,” McCullough said. “Our development will provide the youth with access to spaces where they can be themselves, feel safe, breathe and find refuge while offering ample room for any youth that can drive to our facility.”
McCullough, who was the last to comment during Thursday’s meeting, asked the board to seriously consider the potential negative effects of the MegaDome if it is approved as presented without amendments.
Fortune did not directly address McCullough’s concerns before the board moved into a closed executive session to discuss the project further. However, Fortune did address similar concerns from Alderman John Taylor, who encouraged Fortune to consider local businesses.
Fortune assured the board that he and his partners are keeping local businesses in mind as they move forward and are already planning to partner with small, “mom-and-pop shop” type businesses.
Fortune is a native of Mississippi and grew up in South Jackson, a point he emphasized before laying out the plans in Thursday’s meeting.
The next stage for the Megadome is zoning the land owned by Turn Key properties. The board will not vote on the proposal until developers take several more steps, officials said.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: $100M Gluckstadt MS sports tourism complex meeting reveals details
