County-Subsidized Arena Falls Short

CHARLOTTE — In the 1990s, Cumberland County joined many other communities in building a new sports and entertainment arena. While the Crown Coliseum is a state-of-the-art facility, one thing has been lacking: enough events drawing enough people for the building to break even. Through August, the county spent $748,471 on management and licensing agreements and has recovered only $201,209 from events. In other local stories of statewide interest: making firehouses accessible to disabed firefighters and merging the Triangle's transit systems.