MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The city appears to be moving forward with plans to build a new soccer stadium at Liberty Park to replace the Mid-South Coliseum, but one group is fighting to save it.
A clearer picture may be on the horizon for the future of the historic coliseum and whether it could be demolished. Last week on WREG’s Live at 9, Mayor Jim Strickland didn’t mince words.
“I’m proposing that we tear it down and build a soccer stadium. That’s part of the sports ask, but obviously, the city council makes the final decision on that,” Strickland said during the interview.
Fast forward to Thursday, a meeting was held after the mayor’s office issued a call for designers interested in the Memphis Multi-Use Stadium project to replace the coliseum with a new stadium for the city’s professional soccer team.
“We are in the process of developing a soccer field, a practice field for 901FC group, and also a potential football field for the USFL team that will be playing here starting this summer,” said Vieste LLC and Fairgrounds Partner Member Don Currise.
The project also calls for a retail district.
“There will be a hotel, a 200-plus room hotel, apartments, retail, family entertainment. We are breaking ground right now. It’s under construction,” Currise said.
Marvin Stockwell is the co-founder of the Coliseum Coalition, a group that wants to modernize the Coliseum and opposes the city tearing it down.
“What we’re hearing is that the city is moving forward full steam and the mayor seems ‘hell-bent’ on destroying the Mid-South Coliseum. We don’t like that,” Stockwell said.
He said the state only set aside money for FedExForum and Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium upgrades, taxpayers shouldn’t have to foot the bill for a new stadium, and that spending 10 million dollars to tear down the coliseum is a waste of money.
“Why would we spend an additional $10 million to build it here when there is open land elsewhere in the city? Why not spend $10 million and build a better stadium for 901FC,” Stockwell said.
Stockwell said they’ll continue to fight to save the Coliseum.
“We don’t want to see it happen and we’re not giving up,” he said.
Mayor Strickland proposed building a new stadium for 901FC along with major renovations of the Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium, FedExForum, and AutoZone Park in October 2022.