(Murfreesboro, TN) It’s been one-year since Legacy Sports announced plans to build a $350-million sports and entertainment venue in Murfreesboro. The announcement was made at a highly publicized press conference inside the Murfreesboro City Hall, where Legacy Sports talked about their intention to build the venue on Broad Street near I-840. Now, plans to move forward may have been stalled… That was Murfreesboro Mayor Shane McFarland.
In December of 2021, Legacy Sports CEO Chad Miller told residents of Rutherford County about their intention to build a 6,000-seat arena, outdoor amphitheater, basketball courts, a gymnastics center, 57-indoor volleyball courts, baseball fields, football fields and more. The proposed facility in Murfreesboro would be similar to the Legacy Sports USA venue in Mesa, Arizona at Bell Bank Park. The property is reported to be the largest privately-owned multi-sport complex in America and a nonprofit organization known as Legacy Cares, Inc., was reported to be the owner of the sports park. The grand opening for the Arizona venue took place earlier this year in January (2022).
Several months after Legacy Sports announced the opening of the sports venue in Arizona, problems began to arise. An October (2022) article in the Arizona Central newspaper suggests that Legacy Cares, the owner of Bell Bank Park, is losing an average of $880-thousand monthly.
In Murfreesboro, Mayor McFarland said…
According to a report filed by KPHO TV in Arizona, Legacy Cares has missed monthly payments and failed to submit audits and financial statements to investors. As a result, a formal notice was issued by bond trustee OMB Bank to investors about missed payments on October 18, 2022. The news report also highlighted ten subcontractors that reportedly filed liens against the property that equals millions of dollars.
The sports complex at Bell Bank Park in Arizona is financed through a mixture of municipal bonds and loans.
If Legacy Sports is unable to move forward with plans to build a massive sports and entertainment venue in Murfreesboro, the land that was earmarked for the project on Broad Street at I-840 may sit vacant. Legacy Sports has yet to purchase the property that is currently owned by a local family… Mayor McFarland said the future of the land will be up to the Hord family…
WGNS reached out to Ryan Woodcock with Legacy Sports to ask for a statement regarding their proposed investment in Murfreesboro. On December 12th, Woodcock told WGNS in an email, “Chad Miller with Legacy Sports is going to reach out to you here shortly to provide some comment – He’s the CEO of Legacy Sports.” As of December 14, 2022, WGNS has not received anything from the CEO of Legacy Sports.
