nowensone

Flaherty is quoted as saying in the article that the delay was due to a complicated property rights issue that they were sorting through with county building-code officials, and "We have come to terms with the county, so we are really in the documentation stages of that...". To me that sounds vague, is the issue (the relevant codes, the property rights, etc.) he was having not a matter of public record?

^ Thats my take on it as well, we're so intent on being in that big city category that some things are falling to the wayside in the climb, like the justice and education systems. Taking a breather and getting these up to par would make the next growth spurt much smoother. Infrastructure/transit being the other more obvious ones.

No, but we took enough pics and walked around enough this weekend that I am sure we passed by some UP'ers along the way. I am curious about the Carowinds picture taking "incident", I mean, who wouldn't have the towers/skyline on their cards? I'd probably take pics of the amusement park too if I felt my camera safe enough to bring along. Regardless, this is all unnecesary because if someone wanted to attack these places and was committed enough, then a whole different level of diligence would be required to stop them. Like blocking the access of cars to DT entirely. And how urban a concept...

Don't think these vantages have been posted in a couple of months. From near Royal Court The view one will get at 101 Tremont sans the lower blockage

Good analysis. A few have questioned the site's proximity to Wachovia HQ, but I think a few decades more growth would make that irrelevant. And given that these are pencil-like towers then they should not distract as much. For those that shop at Saks, I don't really think there could be a recession or depression capable of stunting their ability to continue shopping at Saks. Maybe enough to delay plans for the really expensive purchases, but not at the retail places they normally frequent. ------------ I'm still perplexed about the corporate relocation idea though - it would be a solid 4 years if not more before a company could begin moving into their new home, is it normal to line up deals for office space that far in advance if you aren't doing the building yourself?

True, and an optimist would say that when the doors open on a project of this size 6 years from, our economic problems will be a thing of the past. Mighty big gamble though.

Damn fine view, you should take pics every day until you leave, since those were taken when it was foggy...

Didn't see that, they misprinted the Charlotte Hornets ??? Or are you lamenting the loss of our rightful name? Sorry if I'm missing the obvious. Friday evening, I think 7. Agreed it will be great to see these guys go further, for me it is neat mainly because it is another NC team in the tourney, I don't pretend to know anything about Davidson other than having a very close loss to UNC, and of course it will be fun to have a few beers and talk smack during the game...

Don't think anyone here would disagree with this, but as far as society at large, or at least the demographic of those who can afford the tickets, they are not likely doing this research, or care about the drive. Regardless though, I think it would take a very hard heart to not be impressed by uptown and it's scene, and having the tourney here; perhaps in a few years the powers that be could be convinced that CLT would make a great home. My in-laws are in town (30 mins north of Milwaukee) this week, I just informed my FIL that Davidson was in the CLT vacinity, suffice to say this game just gained importance about tenfold. The good news is that UW will not have much of a home court advantage in Detroit, I can't wait to watch it with him...

Probably one of the best density revealing shots I've seen. Or density enhancing, take your pick.

GSO or CLT, or even Raleigh (RBC Center would be cool), whatever causes the tourney to stay focused here in our state, and not be something that we see going more and more to ATL. Greensboro's coliseum is lamentably not downtown, but it's visitors don't really care about that, see below. It's great to see someone who takes note of this, but is angled to support the CLT getting the tourney more argument. Most of those who have the will and means to go to these tourney's could care less if they have to drive the mile and a half to go downtown and drink in GSO or the mile and a half back to their hotel at Koury. So it isn't superior to Greensboro yet, not until that mindset has changed to the point that boosters use their weight and will to make a Bobcats Arena the majority home. I am kind of surprised DC isn't used more though.

Agreed, we there for Stomp, and walked for several hours afterward enjoying a drink at a few different places, it was a zoo. I loved it, and it was notable how many sidewalk vendors were out, you'd think you were somewhere else.

The architecture migth not be stellar, but I like it, especially after the last realistic rendering that tozmervo posted - because I think this would be a great building to work in. Very open and bright, looks like you could get away with natural lighting throughout the day (assuming they don't butcher the interior design by placing offices on the outside edge). And as a contrast to the beige and dark glass of the surrounding buildings.

Agreed on the need for more frequent runs (speaking personally on the weekend runs), I wonder if they are exceeding their forecasted operational costs and finding places to cut down?

That's frickin' awesome.

Lake Ray Hubbard (near Dallas, TX)

A few more, the last 3 I "made" into B&W's by tweaking the contrast and brightness and then converting into grayscale, if there is a better way I'm all ears (though I do like how these turned out).

Here are a few from today, took quite a few more but think they have been "done" before. Caught this while walking, any fellow UP'ers?

The inscription thing is popular but represents a different tact, and most will not spend the $75, I think a simple 'Buy a Brick' for an amount no one will miss would work better, though you could still offer the personalized ones for more. Whether it raised enough, the point would be some kind of public effort to subtly admonish the county for going "cheap" on this aspect of the project. CCP does sound like a good candidate, know we have a member here who is on their staff, will have to track them down and see what they think..

Hmm... if those numbers are accurate I would say brick is not the more expensive option, factoring in 'costs' such as aesthetics and ability to allow absorption, etc., not to mention that long term the repair costs of concrete would have to add up and make a difference. Perhaps we can start a campaign in which people 'buy' a single brick via small donations (such as a dollar). Even the specter of such a thing might influence the county to push the brick issue if not LandDesign itself.

^ You appear to want to get back already, and it may be about that time for singles and young professionals. I have friends living in California (various), NYC and Boston who left Charlotte for reasons many have noted before such as the family town/little nightlife feel. They are in the financial [services] industry and without exception have a view of "waiting" for Charlotte to mature so they can return from their current locations and continue that "hip" lifestyle that CLT did not afford them 5 and 10 years ago. One such friend never sold his house right outside of 277, and has watched it double and then triple in value. In 2-3 years he'll be able to convert that into a nice high-rise condo when current builds are all on the market. Perhaps at that time Charlotte will begin to become a hip place for a certain class of professionals which will really begin to change the national perception.

Yeah, I would say this entire area is already well-established and therefore a "star" as far as the premise of this thread goes. Is that a pirate ship?!?

I found this an amusing read, McCrory goes to Europe, don't get me wrong, it's awesome, and I want to go too. My question is, how much time has Tober spent over there since he suggested it to McCrory? I remember reading somewhere that he did study their systems, so I'm surprised he doesn't have more rebuttal material when faced with budget/overrun type issues, certainly European systems have come to terms with those already.

Yeah, I debated registering an account to go on the attack but anyone who is willing to argue unethically is not likely to be swayed from their point of view. Especially if they have an agenda. Like mentioning transit is stepping on our freedoms. Huh?

What filter/color mask did you use for that? And specific color/channel settings? Or did you combine different layers together? Nice work.