North Carolina's loss could be Jacksonville's win but will HRO get in the way?

Jacksonville is no stranger to hosting big tournaments featuring NCAA teams, earlier this year the SEC Women’s Basketball tournament was held at the Veteran’s Memorial Arena.

Bottom line is these tournaments big money for the city but the question is can Jacksonville overcome its own a hurdle known as the HRO, especially after the NCAA has made it clear it will work with cities that are inclusive.

The state of North Carolina is feeling major backlash after the NCAA announced its relocating seven championship events from North Carolina for the 2016-17 post season.

The NCAA board of governors blames the “cumulative actions taken by the state concerning civil rights protections.” Namely a law known as HB2 that some say discriminates against the LGBT community.

The law requires transgender people to use restrooms at schools and government buildings that correspond with their gender at birth, it also excludes sexual orientation and gender identity from antidiscrimination safeguards.

Jacksonville is now vying for a chance to host the games. Everything from the soccer to lacrosse championships are up for grabs.

In a statement to Action News Jax, Jaxsports President Rick Catlett said. “We are in constant contact with the NCAA and it is fully aware of our desire to host any and all of its championships. We will continue to monitor this situation and are fully prepared to discuss the possibility of relocating these championships to Jacksonville.”

A source close to the process tells Action News Jax the sports council is meeting with the city, local NCAA schools and SMG facilities to see if hosting the games is feasible.

But Jacksonville has also been the focus of national attention and criticism for the reluctance to expand the city’s human rights ordinance to protect LGBT people.

Supporters of the expansion say businesses and events won’t want to come here if there are no protections for the LGBT community.

Mayor Lenny Curry doesn’t seem too concerned. In a statement he said:

Anyone comparing Jacksonville to North Carolina is fundamentally wrong.  North Carolina actively pursued restriction of certain rights.  Here in Jacksonville, under my leadership, we convened community conversations to consider the rights of people under the law.  I moved to codify the City of Jacksonville's policies procedures to ensure that they are consistent with civil rights protections under federal and state law.  I believe now, as I stated then, we have taken an appropriate action. There is no question in my mind we are an open and inclusive city.  To that end, we will continue to pursue NCAA events and expect to have success."

It’s unclear at this point if Jacksonville’s HRO battle will impact its bid for future games but the city has already applied to host NCAA basketball tournament games for 2019 through 2022.

North Carolina hasn’t only lost sporting events because of the controversial law but celebrities like Ringo Starr, Bruce Springsteen, and Pearl Jam have all canceled their plans to play there as well.

A decision on whether Jacksonville will apply for the games that North Carolina lost will be made in the next few days.

Cox Media Group