The Atlantic Coast Conference announced that it is moving its headquarters from Greensboro to Charlotte.

According to the official announcement on Tuesday, Sept. 20, the move to Charlotte was a unanimous decision by the 15 member ACC Board of Directors.  It states, “The unanimous decision completes a comprehensive review and assessment, under the direction of the Board of Directors and Executive Committee, to ensure that the conference office is best positioned for the future and changing dynamics of intercollegiate athletics.

Greensboro Mayor Nancy Vaughan said, “The announcement is disappointing but obviously not unexpected.”

She noted that the decision had taken 14 months and that she was proud of the team Greensboro put together to negotiate with the ACC and the work that they had done.

Vaughan said, “Every time the ACC came up with what some people would consider a roadblock, we figured a way over it or around it.”

One example Vaughan gave was of the ACC’s desire to have access to an airport with a large hub with accessibility to all 15 member schools. Vaughan said to get around that the Greensboro team created a “concierge private jet service” for the ACC.

Vaughan said, “One thing we offered the ACC that nobody else could offer was the naming rights to the Greensboro Coliseum.”

Vaughan said that a roadblock that Greensboro could not get around was the fact that Charlotte has an NFL stadium and Greensboro doesn’t.

Even in the ACC – which is known as a basketball conference – football accounts for about 85 percent of the revenue, and the recent major changes in college athletics are being driven by football revenue.

Vaughan said, “We love the ACC and look forward to continuing to have a long and profitable relationship.”

ACC Board of Directors Chair and Duke University President Vincent Price in the press release said, “The Board of Directors is pleased that the conference headquarters will be joining the Charlotte community and is quite excited about the long term opportunities that will afford. The Board also recognizes and expresses our thanks for what has been a truly wonderful relationship with Greensboro over the last 70 years, and we appreciate the support shown by the state of North Carolina to have the league office remain in the state.  We are grateful to the city of Charlotte and look forward to a flourishing partnership.”

The current headquarters of the ACC is at Grandover, not far from where the ACC was created in 1953 at the Sedgefield Country Club.