CIAA Board of Directors Voted Unanimously to Renew Tournament Contract with Charlotte

CIAA Board of Directors Voted Unanimously to Renew Tournament Contract with Charlotte

Annual CIAA Tournament will remain in the Queen City through 2014

 
HAMPTON, VA (November 2, 2010) The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association’s (CIAA) Board of Directors voted unanimously to renew the CIAA Tournament contract with Charlotte for three additional years.  The vote awards the Queen City the Tournament through 2014; extending the count to nine consecutive years in Charlotte.  Charlotte hosted its first CIAA Tournament in 2006.
 
“The CIAA Board of Directors voted unanimously to renew the Tournament contract with Charlotte for three additional years,” stated Dr. Jimmy R. Jenkins, Sr., President - CIAA Board of Directors. “The Board recognizes that our alumni and fans love Charlotte. The city has been a great partner for the CIAA and we look forward to continued success.”
 
Since 2006, the CIAA has generated over $156 million in economic impact for the city, welcomed over 821,000 alumni and fans and generated over $8 million in scholarship dollars for the CIAA General Scholarship Fund (GSF).
 
“As the CIAA celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2012, it is an important factor that we have a city partner that values the significance of the milestone,” stated CIAA Commissioner Leon Kerry. “Tim Newman and his team understand what the CIAA is all about and have demonstrated that over our six-year partnership.  We’ve experienced tremendous success while in Charlotte and anticipate nothing but future success over the next three years.”
 
Charlotte organizers are excited to host the CIAA Tournament until 2014. According to the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority (CRVA) research, the Tournament accounted for direct spending of $24.8 million and total economic impact of $37.7 million over the one-week period in February of 2010.
 
Key factors that attributed to the contract renewal included lowered hotel rates for CIAA alumni and fans, amenities provided by the city for official CIAA ancillary events, the yearly $1 million guarantee provided by the CRVA, which goes directly to the CIAA GSF and the room for future growth that the city continuously provides for the Tournament.
 
“On behalf of the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority and the entire region of Charlotte, we are thankful to the CIAA Board of Directors, Commissioner Leon Kerry and his magnificent staff for giving us the privilege to host the CIAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournament for three more years in Charlotte,” said Tim Newman, CEO of CRVA. “The hospitality community came together and as always, we gave the CIAA Board of Directors a united presentation to allow us to bring this economic boon back to Charlotte. We have long considered the CIAA our friends and partners, and appreciate their ongoing confidence in all of us in Charlotte to give them the best tournament experience their patrons can ask for. . .and we will again provide!”