Mr. Willie A. Green is big on sports. And has two Superbowl rings to prove it.
At the February 6, 2017 Commissioner’s Meeting Mr. Green presented his well thought out and well prepared proposal for a Private-Public Partnership with Cleveland County and possibly the City of Shelby on a Sports Complex to be built on 16 acres of land Mr. Green has already purchased and improved adjacent to Shelby High School and Holly Oak Park. Mr. Green’s proposal was based on a win-win-win-win situation where needs have already been determined and adopted into long term County government masterplans, the economic developed potential is based on reputable information and has been conservatively calculated, the Complex would complement both the American League World Series as well as the Holly Oak Park facility development, provide advanced athletic training for local athletes as well as provide tournament draws from various sports year round. So, Cleveland County wins. The City of Shelby wins. Shelby High School Facilities and the ALWS wins. And Mr. Willie Green’s dreams of giving back to the community wins too. What is not to like about such a proposal as this?
On top of that, as I sat there listening to this proposal and examining the material presented, I realized that, after all my times attending Commissioner’s meetings, School Board Meetings and Community College Board meeting, this was the first time I had heard of a proposal to the County Commissioners where the person making the proposal was putting up a significant portion of the construction money out of his own pocket. Add another win for Cleveland County Taxpayers to the list of wins.
And then, Mr. Green has been quoted by WBTV News saying he demands transparency. “I want to make sure that everyone in Cleveland County who pays taxes knows exactly where their money is going, knows exactly what they’re going to get back from it,” said Green. This is a new concept for Cleveland County and one that needs to be repeated across the board for all County Agencies.
But don’t just believe me. For more details of what Mr. Green proposed to Commissioners regarding his Sports Complex idea please read the following articles from the Shelby Star and WBTV News for the rest of the story.
Also note that the Cleveland County Commissioners hesitated to express a commitment to this Sports Complex proposal even though Commissioner Chairman Eddie Holbrook stated to the WBTV Reporter “The dream is excellent. The county’s interested in it. It certainly enhances the quality of life for our people so it’s just something we’ve got to work through,” said Holbrook. Folks, it is Election Year for the majority of Cleveland County Commissioners. Candidate filing starts Monday noon. Let the commissioners know that it is about time to jump on this worthwhile project. No ifs, ands or buts allowed.
