Staff photo by Matt Hamilton / Mayoral candidate Matt Adams speaks during an interview at the Chattanooga Times Free Press office on July 11.Hamilton County mayoral candidate Matt Adams, a Democrat, is calling on Hardball Capital – the owners of the Chattanooga Lookouts – to release “several communications” involving his opponent, Republican Weston Wamp.
“There has been a lot of talk about transparency in the race for county mayor, especially since we will see one of the largest transitions in county elected leadership in decades,” Adams said in a news release on Friday. “Hardball Capital, the parent company of the Chattanooga Lookouts, had several communications between Weston Wamp and management of the Lookouts allegedly pertaining to Weston Wamp heading the stadium project.
“I believe that it is in the interest of transparency for these documents to be released to the public immediately. As we are less than two weeks away from electing a new county mayor, the public deserves to know the stakes at play.”
City and county officials recently announced plans to construct a new minor league baseball stadium for the Chattanooga Lookouts at the former Wheland Foundry site in the city’s South Broad District. It’s a $79.4 million project that proponents say will spur upwards of $1 billion of investment in a long-blighted property at one of the city’s most visible gateweays.
Wamp has been a vocal skeptic of the plan, citing the timing so close to an election and perceived deficiencies in the funding mechanisms for the project.