Last year was rough for a lot of people in a lot of places. From our contentious presidential race to the Brexit vote in the UK and all the issues surrounding both votes, the whole world seemed split into separate camps.
The Charlotte region did not buck the trend. Many of us have never seen our city so divided. And we’re still feeling the consequences from businesses and large events taking their projects elsewhere to avoid our mess. No matter where you stand on the issues, the loss of potential business hurt—a visceral pain right in the gut.
But you can’t keep a good city down. Cornwallis didn’t call us a hornet’s nest for nothing. Small businesses in particular keep right on trucking. Resilience is part of that special brew that sets small business owners and entrepreneurs apart from others. Finding opportunities amid a great big heap of crap is another—a sense of optimism that says the sun will always rise tomorrow.
Charlotte, and by association the region surrounding it, shares many traits with the entrepreneurial leaders who have made their home here. This can-do city always seems to find a way to dream big and make its dreams happen. So despite a rough year, the region has much to celebrate and many exciting projects peeking over the horizon. Let’s take a look around town.
The Sun Rises in the East
Native Charlotteans of a certain age, as well as citizens who have gone native, may feel a bit nostalgic about Eastland Mall. The iconic sunburst logo brought to mind warm sunshine on a beautiful Carolina day, and the mall directory boasted “every kind of store under the sun.” From the mid-1970s to early ’90s, it was the place to be. In addition to two levels of shopping, it had a food court, a movie theater, and an ice-skating rink, features that not only made it an entertainment destination, but also set the benchmark for malls that came after.
In the 1990s, a variety of factors contributed to the decline of the Eastland area and the mall along with it. As areas like Plaza-Midwood and NoDa became trendy destinations and Matthews and Mint Hill became family‑oriented suburbs of choice, what was once the heart of East Charlotte shriveled up into a dry, concrete hole that has lingered for too long.
Pat Mumford, director of neighborhood and business services for the City of Charlotte, thinks it may feel longer than it has actually been because the slow demise of the mall was ongoing for years—at least a decade by b2bTRIBE’s account. J.C. Penney, one of the original anchor stores, departed in 2002. The city purchased the property in 2012, demolished the buildings in 2013, and spent two years considering alternatives for redevelopment, including a movie studio and various other entertainment‑related ideas. In 2015, city planners finally realized that selling the entire property to a single developer wasn’t going to work, so they presented a plan that incorporated public green space, recreation, housing, and commercial space. City Council approved the plan, but nothing happened for another five months.
Astrid Chirinos of the Latin American Economic Development Corporation believes redevelopment of the Eastland Mall site is crucial to promoting change and growth in East Charlotte. She often says the property is even shaped like an uppercase delta (Δ), the Greek letter used in math to indicate difference or change. Frustrated with false starts and what felt like a slow pace of redevelopment from city government, in 2016 Astrid raised funds to bring Alejandro Aravena, 2016 Pritzker Prize laureate and principle of Chilean architecture firm Elemental, to Charlotte to create a plan for the site. (The Pritzker Prize is the international architecture industry’s highest professional honor.)
Elemental’s plan was presented to City Council in June 2016. It was similar to the city’s plan in many respects: public green space, a mix of residential and commercial space, and transportation infrastructure that made the site easily accessible. Unlike the city’s plan, Elemental’s ideas include an eye-catching monument or light display that would be visible from miles away to draw visitors in.
At that same meeting, City Council authorized staff to prepare a request for qualifications (RFQ) for the next steps—hiring a team to examine both the city’s and Elemental’s conceptual plans, test them in the market, vet them with engineers and financial analysts, and turn them into a framework that will guide development. Pat Mumford said a thoughtful planning process is essential, even though leaders have a sense of what is needed.
“What won’t happen is another million square feet of retail,” he said. “There will be a need for some element of residential and then a small‑scale approach to commercial—support services for the neighborhood, restaurants, or professional offices. We really think this is an opportunity for the small business, entrepreneurial, and growing international community in that part of town to be a part of this development and part of this economic upswing.”
City staff hopes this team of consultants will test the economic viability of these assumptions and how development will affect existing business and residents to avoid the negative impacts of gentrification.
On March 27 (shortly before this edition went to press), City Council approved hiring a team of urban planning firms to complete Eastland redevelopment phase one—a series of due diligence workshops and a developer forum to understand what has inhibited progress. With those findings in hand, City Council will consider phase two, which may include a market feasibility study, a master plan, design guidelines, a regulatory framework, and a marketing plan to solicit development partners. It’s not as much progress as city staff recommended, but it’s a step in the right direction.
Building a Community
Nonprofit association Monroe Road Advocates (MoRA) began forming as a grassroots group several years ago and hit its stride last year. Its mission is to bring together residents, businesses, and other organizations to guide positive growth along the Monroe Road corridor, focusing on the stretch from Sharon Amity to Sardis Road North. (Some residents call this area East Charlotte and others prefer Southeast Charlotte—tomayto, tomahto.)
Its vision is an urban, walkable, bikeable community that is prepared to support its growing population, which will become even more important as plans for the Charlotte Area Transit Systems’ Silver Line emerge. Kathy Hill, MoRa’s board chair, said part of that vision is looking at what sorts of businesses the area is missing and bringing them in. A brewery and a coffee shop were two at the top of her list.
MoRA’s big push recently has been Art@thePoint, a $150,000 iconic landmark sculpture to define the area. MoRA has secured a twenty-year agreement from the property developer to use the area around the sculpture as a public gathering place for events and other fun things to be determined. Positioned at the corner of Monroe Road and Conference Drive, the sculpture will feature ceramic tiles created by members of the community placed into a mosaic by artist Leslie Scott. (View a 3D rendering at moraclt.org/art.) Ninety percent of the funding has been raised from individual and community donations. The push is on for the final 10 percent.
Environmentally Friendly Development
The River District is a 1,378-acre master‑planned community that will snuggle between the Charlotte Douglas International Airport and the Catawba River. (Think a waterfront Ballantyne with airplanes.) It will include 8 million square feet of office space, 500,000 square feet of retail, 1,000 hotel rooms, 4,500 homes and apartments, a public riverfront park, two new public school sites, a two-mile greenway, a system of nature trails, and road improvements and widening to accommodate new traffic patterns. The estimated economic impact of the project over the next few decades is $3 billion in new commercial tax base.
Building close to the river raises water quality concerns, but property owner and developer Crescent Communities has a long‑standing commitment to environmentally friendly development. Working in partnership with Lincoln Harris, the River District plan includes 552 acres of undeveloped land, particularly around streams, and identifying and preserving old-growth trees throughout the development. According to Charlotte Observer reports, the Sierra Club has been critical, but the Catawba Riverkeeper has expressed confidence in the project.
A complete and approved memorandum of understanding between the developers, city, and county officials regarding the necessary roadway improvements is anticipated in early 2017. These improvements will take several years to complete and are required before other aspects of development can take place. So patience will be a virtue if you’re ready to live, work, and play along this segment of the Catawba River. We’ll meet you there with our hiking shoes in a few years.
West Is Best
In between Mosaic Village and the Arts Factory on West Trade Street, a minority‑focused incubator, accelerator, and coworking facility is in the works. Words like “incubator” and “accelerator” conjure up programs focused on high‑growth and technology-related companies. But the West End tends to take a more inclusive approach. This facility will focus on Main Street businesses—dry cleaners, hardware stores, boutiques, bakeries, cafés, restaurants, and so forth.
A Main Street business incubator makes perfect sense on property that was once home to Griffin Brothers Companies’ flagship tire and auto location. Griffin Brothers, still a family‑owned company, can trace it roots back as far as 1928, when it began as Honest Tire. The company has worked closely with Johnson C. Smith University and the city to redevelop this corner of the Historic West End. They hope to have the facility complete in time for the Gold Line streetcar’s phase two opening in summer 2020.
Austin Helms, Griffin Brothers’ entrepreneur apprentice (love the title!), cautioned b2bTRIBE that plans are still in the very early phases and subject to change. Once rezoning is approved, they’ll know better what they have to work with. The current plan is for 60,000 square feet divided between four to six floors. Entrepreneurs wishing to enter the incubator program will likely undergo a screening interview and will then have access to use the facility’s resources. As those businesses evolve, they may choose to apply to the accelerator program, which will likely be a three- to nine‑month program of training and mentoring on all aspects of raising capital and running a successful business. If all goes well, those companies would then take advantage of the coworking space.
Austin said the developers hope to raise enough sponsor commitments to fund a startup competition and to make the facility entirely free to participants, especially since many will likely be students from nearby universities and colleges. They’ll need $600,000 to $800,000 per year to make that happen. In addition to spearheading the project, Griffin Brothers has committed to $300,000 over five years. If you are a successful entrepreneur and want to pay it forward, here’s a project that might wet your whistle.
Team-Building Fun
All work and no play makes your team dull as dishwater. Options for getting out of the office for some team-building fun will expand when Frankie’s Fun Park moves in to Bryton Town Center off Old Statesville Road in North Charlotte. While still in the rezoning phase, the park holds lots of promise for team and family fun with easy access from I-485 and I-77. Plans filed with the rezoning petition include a 67,548-square-foot arcade, a mini‑golf course, and several styles of go-cart tracks. The Raleigh location’s arcade includes laser tag, a fun house, a “spider web” (where was this when we were kids!?), and a drop-zone ride. Our fingers are crossed for similar amenities in the Charlotte location.
Central Business District Meets Research University
The Lynx Blue Line extension project is exciting for everyone living and working between Uptown and the University area—and really for the whole city. This extension will run 9.3 miles from 7th Street Station to UNC Charlotte. So a year from now, you will be able to ride the light rail from Pineville to the University area.
Even though completion has been delayed from August 2017 to possibly March 2018, excitement rather than disappointment is still the prevailing emotion. Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) shuttles will further connect business parks and UNC Charlotte to the train, and the area’s extensive greenway system will connect neighborhoods and parks.
So why should people living and working in areas not connected to the light rail care? One reason is the potential increase in the tax base created by development along the extension. A broader tax base means more money for infrastructure maintenance and improvements throughout the city, without any of us paying more. That applies to any major development mentioned in this article.
Another reason—and really the more exciting one from this nerd’s perspective—is the physical connection between our city’s central business district and the UNC system’s only “urban research university.” That term means a huge part of UNC Charlotte’s mission is to address the cultural, economic, educational, environmental, health, and social needs of our region. A few examples: The Small Business and Technology Development Center (SBTDC) provides free online and classroom training to small and medium-sized businesses on topics ranging from starting a business to government contracting. The Charlotte Research Institute helps technology startups move to commercialization more quickly with fewer risks and costs. And the PORTAL building leases office space with access to UNC Charlotte’s campus resources. And those are just examples from one building on the sprawling campus. Various colleges within the university have partnerships with related organizations and industries in the region.
In the past few decades UNC Charlotte has grown tremendously. In 2016 alone, the university won 445 new research grants totaling over $40 million. And it’s currently ranked number two for the number of business start-ups per million dollars of research funding. So that $40 million will have a direct impact on local jobs. Go Niners!
Around the Region: The Fast Lane
Put on your flip-flops, and let’s head to the beach. After several years in court with the Southern Environmental Law Center, the North Carolina Department of Transportation can finally move forward on the Monroe Expressway, a twenty-mile toll road that will run from U.S. 74 (Independence Blvd.) near I-485 to a few miles past Wingate University. The toll road will offer an alternative to stop‑and‑go traffic. While environmentalists aren’t fans of the expressway, the $1 million settlement they won in court will allow them to purchase and conserve lands throughout Union County.
More good news in Union County—in November voters approved three bond referendums totaling $104 million. The funds will relieve overcrowding and some accessibility issues in the public schools, build a new library, and expand and improve South Piedmont Community College.
We Just Want to Celebrate
If you read this and thought, “Yeah, but that project will cause such-and-such bad thing, and this other one could have an impact on blah blah blah,” we humbly ask you to push pause on your concerns. Few things in this world are all rainbows and unicorns. We know that. And in another place and time, we might talk about all the pros and cons.
If your concerns are about feeling left out with all these big projects happening, knock it off. Each one of these projects has opportunities for small business owners and entrepreneurs. Make up your opportunity if you like—that’s what entrepreneurial minds are good for. But you could also bid on some of these projects.
The Charlotte Business INClusion program is infused in all city practices and procedures. In 2016, the program led to $41,048,305 spent with local small businesses on projects ranging from construction to human resources. Take advantage of the program’s certifications for small businesses and minority- and woman-owned firms.
Our region has so much going for it. Every time we prepare this magazine and get to speak with entrepreneurs and small business owners, we’re enamored with the ideas, values, and personalities that comprise our tribe. You all consistently rise to the occasion, and you bring the community along with you. Thanks to you, we know that Charlotte will always have reasons to celebrate.
Melisa Graham is the communications director at SPARK Publications, editor of b2bTRIBE magazine, author of Used Cow for Sale (a collection of poetry, mom, and wife.
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