ertley

I actually really love the Regions building--it would make my top 5 (of high rises) in Charlotte easily.

I didn't realize until this morning, when looking up something else on Wikipedia, that Cesar Pelli died on Friday. RIP. www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2019/jul/21/cesar-pelli-obituary

I wasn't specific enough when I said artery. What I should have made clear is that I'm talking about secondary or even tertiary arteries--not thoroughfares or boulevards, but increased routes throughout the city that don't abruptly terminate or require turns and maneuvers through neighborhoods. I just want--all over Charlotte--more secondary and tertiary arteries to be created by (re)connecting streets, primarily to provide people who live within neighborhoods greater options to move from theirs into neighboring areas without having to use the primary arteries that are burdened with commuters, etc. And this is absolutely within the framework of prioritizing mass transit and multiple modes of transportation. (I think a good road or street is just as much about encouraging bikers and pedestrians alongside it as car traffic.) I didn't mean to actually advocate for people to actually take, or want to take, Park and then up through Dilworth etc. to go across town. I was trying to speak in physical terms of how connected extending Tremont would make those incredibly far flung neighborhoods--Ballantyne connected by one continuous street to Seversville! Of course commuters are going to, and should, take the interstate or major arteries as far and long as they can, if traffic is flowing normally. But traffic doesn't always flow normally, and now we've got Waze and host of other apps that can guide people through neighborhoods that formerly escaped their notice, which just reinforces my belief that cities need to endeavor to increase route redundancies, multiple ways to get between places. A priori, limited arteries are bad because they create congestion. Charlotte's historic traffic issues principally result from the regular street grid being abandoned after WWII in favor of neighborhoods with cul-de-sacs and dead ends and limited entrances and exits that force traffic, even those of short trips, to take the limited number of arteries available. Then of course came the interstates shortly thereafter, cutting the city in wedges--and I bet that Tremont, or something like it, formerly did continue west before 77 came through and cut it off; and Remount was just decided to be a better route at the time, and when there was so much less density, it was probably an o.k. call. I genuinely mean that making Tremont (and other streets like it) as arteries--secondary or tertiary--make them streets that connect well to others to take people from neighborhood to neighborhood, and thereby will principally benefit the people who live nearest them, by allowing them to not have to join longer term drivers on the arteries generally bordering their 'hoods. Two lane streets that also happen to be arteries are physically limited in the amount of traffic they can handle, and I wouldn't ever advocate widening them or diverting traffic to them. But we need *more* of them--and not for commuters, but for the increasing density that cities are encouraging. And then of course there's the worst case scenarios of major accidents or major inclement weather or mass exoduses that necessitate more than a few routes across specific areas of town. And to ensure improved traffic flow throughout the city doesn't impair walkability and safety, something that I myself hate, in principle, is the ideal solution: Speed cameras. I hate, hate, hate them personally--and no matter what on major roads and expressways--but when safety is an issue, and people are using neighborhood streets and throughways, they're the perfect solution. People start getting speeding tickets in the mail, and there's no chance of ever again evading that camera, they'll either adapt an appropriate mode of driving or abandon the route. I HATE speed bumps even more than I hate speed cameras, so I'm in favor or replacing the former with the latter. But that's just an opinion.

The city is doing a pretty good job, I think, of planning for future street (re)connections, but there are tons of places I think should be given more careful attention. I realize road construction costs a ton of money, though, and those funds are finite. I've long thought, though, that a smart investment would be bridging Tremont across I 77, to terminate on Remount, instead of ignominiously as a dead end next to 77, and to feed onto both Remount as well as directly to the exit onto (only) south 77: As far as major road projects go, it wouldn't be all that complex, and I think it would achieve several things: 1. Tremont, which is becoming an increasingly vital part of the South End (who would've thought?), can have a real connection on its west end that actually leads somewhere, making it a true city street, an artery through the area. It effectively becomes Park Road on its east end, and of course then intersects with Scott and Kenilworth to then become The Park Road. So, with this relatively do-able project, you can travel-south to northwest, all the way from Carolina Place or Ballentyne, through Dilworth, South End and Wilmore, and cross 77 to take Remount, which is planned to connect to Camp Greene Street and thus take you across Freedom and all the way to Tuckaseegee. 2. I think this would, more importantly, reduce traffic congestion on South Tryon and even South Boulevard--during afternoon rush hour (it wouldn't change things in the morning, because of the nature of the 77 exit). There's no additional exchange with 77--neither egress nor entrance--just reducing the amount of time cars spend traversing South End and Wilmore. Instead of having to go an additional five or six blocks south on either--and in rush hour that's a fair amount of time--with added distance once on Remount, to get to 77, afternoon rush hour commuters just hang a right on Tremont. 3. Except for the few units at Brookhill (who's days are surely numbered) that back onto Tremont, it's not a residential street--at least now, before the new stuff being built and planned get finished--so it's not something that would disrupt a nice, quiet neighborhood street that also happens to dead end. 4. By making Tremont a true artery, it will provide further impetus to develop it west of Tryon along TOD lines. It'll be a little extra walk to East/West or the planned Atherton station from there, but it's still within a reasonable walking distance. I know that sort of development is already happening there, but it could intensify the type of future projects planned. Perhaps the future widening of 77 would obviate this, but it's just a bridge, so I don't see how it couldn't be achieved, if prioritized.

As a native (but no longer resident) of Charlotte, I've always harbored an antipathy to Atlanta--please, no arguments! It's just how I've felt since childhood, like a sports rivalry! But I genuinely do think Charlotte is going to eclipse Atlanta, and most other prominent Sunbelt cities, sooner than people think, precisely because Charlotte's development came later. Charlotte has benefited from being a generation behind, when we've made so many improvements in how we engineer urban environments--and in no small part from looking at what cities like Atlanta and even Houston and L.A. did wrong. So, when Charlotte hits its next epoch, which it seems like is happening now, it's doing so--as A2. said--by "build[ing] em’ dense and keep the quality of life high (as well as the skyline)." When Atlanta was at this stage, probably in the early '80s, civil rights were--well--nearly 40 years less advanced (regardless of how much you think they've actually advanced), and climate change wasn't seriously regarded by anyone outside of scientific circles, so it just grew and grew and grew outward--and mainly in one direction, northward, because the South was still highly prone to segregation (not that it's still not, but not nearly so now in cities at least). Atlanta's amoeba-like sprawl north and northeast and northwest is directly tied to the racial makeup of the city's west and south sides in the '70s, '80s and '90s. Charlotte wasn't any different--that's why it was historically so pear-shaped--but because it was a generation behind, it didn't totally alter the DNA of the city. But who in their right minds would even want to walk from lower downtown Atlanta to Midtown--and then to Buckhead, which is farcical--today? Atlanta stretched endlessly towards whiter and whiter suburbs, making it the unmanageable behemoth it is today. Charlotte's lucky to come later, because it's solidifying its (formerly vibrant, then hollowed out, like most cities) core before building out--at least compared to its predecessors. But even Charlotte's incredible stretch southward now down the Blue Line is nearly (and will definitely be soon) a contiguous experience, that you can conceivably walk block after block and not encounter long dead zones. More importantly, because of the racial progress we have made, to whatever extent, Charlotte is now re-developing in *every* direction from uptown. (And I totally get all the arguments about gentrification, which isn't applicable to the South End but is west and north; but I would argue, even with its real issues, it's better than the former/alternative.) In 10 years people are going to have to debate which way they want to go, for dinner or drinks or whatever: north, east, south or west. Even if Atlanta rectifies some of what it's done wrong, it's just too sprawling to become a cohesive experience. When I read about other comparable cities (just incidentally) I'll sometimes look in on their downtowns via Google Street View, and Charlotte's already got a much better, more integrated and contiguous, downtown experience than many of its peers, although it's not as big. And that's the point: By solidifying its core first, Charlotte is developing a downtown that's going to put its peers to shame. (As I wrote in a forum earlier this year) North Tryon isn't as sickly as people think: It's really the library redevelopment that it's waiting on, and when the hotel and Carolina Theatre are done, and The Ellis a block back is complete, you're going to be able to walk a full mile--from 9th all the way south to Tremont--and experience complete, decent blocks along the entire way, with something worthwhile therein. As people keep talking about, there's now going to be a locus of activity at Stonewall and Tryon, in addition to The Square, and I think Camden and Tryon, and/or Tryon and Bland, are going to do the same; and possibly even Tryon and 6th. And even though Tryon is Charlotte's main street, it's only one: Several others will soon give it a run for its money. I'll close by saying something Super Controversial. I know the hate for Daniel Levine on here knows no limits, but I'm going to stick up for him, if just to play devil's advocate. Even if completely inadvertently, by keeping those blocks in First Ward undeveloped all these years, it's (at least in part) forced some of this more intensive development along Tryon and thereabouts I'm talking about. If he had gone ahead with whatever plans that would've been drawn up in the '80s, '90s and aughts, there'd be blocks of tired, passe buildings there, and/or some of the stuff we're all salivating about near Tryon might be being located in First Ward instead, with parking lots remaining on Tryon, etc., and parking lots separating them all--like so many of Charlotte's peer cities. And I think--maybe, even if totally by dumb luck on his part--that it could be a good thing to have most of those other spaces filled before First Ward is re-done. (Just something to think about!) Anyway, I think we all agree, Charlotte is an amazing place to be a part of (or watch) today!

I've always thought a significant change that should occur in Ballantyne--even if only symbolically--is to take down those not-very-interesting "arches" at the Johnston Road and Commons Parkway intersection and replace them with four buildings--they don't have to be gargantuan in size--abutting the sidewalks, as in a real town or city. If designed well, they could actually be notable and actually do what they hoped those 'arches' would do, create a noteworthy locus for the area, while making Ballantyne actually look like a more organic place and not a corporate-planned and -owned entity.

Random Trivia: Before Independence was created, the street it replaced was Westmoreland (street or avenue). I actually am fine with gradually inching Independence towards being a controlled-access highway. Even if most progressive locales have moratoriums on building new expressways, for a city of its size, the east side is a gargantuan area to not have an expressway or any sort. I think it's now so many degrees removed from its origins as a boulevard that it would be even more disruptive to try and re-create it--and I do think utilizing its margins for the Silver Line is going to be a wonderful thing. What I wish the city would do is dedicate funds to build more bridges to cross Independence, and reunite some of the neighborhoods. I first nominate re-connecting Bascom from Chantilly to at least McClintock; but I also think Veterans' Park could be redesigned and Bascom could continue as its western border and go all the way through to Central--understanding, of course, that equally as important as car travel lanes would be good sidewalks and bike lanes wherever practicable.

I won't quote myself, but I'll reiterate my argument from the other week--when the merits of tunneling and new developments in the field were being discussed--that with Blue Line extensions being considered as likely, and planning for the Silver Line, both of which are likely at least a decade away from being completed or even partially finished, CATS should start making more ambitious plans for other modes, including tunneling, for the mid- and long terms. If measurable progress is somehow achieved in tunneling technology and cost over the next decade or two, it may not be as unfeasible then as it seems now. The established, low density, high priced nature of the Charlotte "wedge" not only means it'll be extraordinarily difficult to weave light rail through that area, and even more so later as property values rise even higher, but it's also the kind of area that tunneling was developed for, and because of, precisely because of its residential nature and cost. The built elevated and surface lines in New York and London through working class and poor neighborhoods, but they had to tunnel through the high rent areas for the exactly the same reasons. I argue for a circular route that starts from Uptown--and could even manifest that tunnel under Trade so many people want to see--with stops at Midtown/Cherry, then Dilworth/East Boulevard (where there are actually empty lot(s) that could be partially allocated now for a future stop), maybe even an intermediate stop at the Park Road/Scott intersection, which needs some kind of focus--then maybe CATS could work with the YMCA to put a stop in front their facility at Townes--then definitely down to Montford, where the Park Road Shopping Center also has plenty of space to be designated for a future stop--then another potential intermediate stop near where Selwyn runs into Park--then over to South Park, then to Strawberry Hill at Providence, then Cotswold, where again the shopping center has plenty of space for a stop--then there's plenty of county land to work with for a stop on Billingsley by Randolph Road Park--then a stop somewhere along Randolph in Elizabeth, east or west of Novant Presbyterian, where it could then go back uptown through the Trade tunnel, to the Gateway Station. It's ambitious, but if Charlotte keeps growing in population and importance, at its current pace, planning for something like this to *follow* both the Blue Line extensions and the Silver Line, sometime in the 2030s or even '40s, isn't totally ridiculous. Charlotte, by that time, may be in the actual top 10 of most populous American cities. And I still don't see a realistic way of putting surface area rail continuously through the "wedge."

I know there are lots more important factors that go into the decision of where to build/lease for a corporate HQ, and apparently BB&T has a reputation for being extraordinarily value-conscious, but I wouldn't want to put my HQ building chockablock with a tower named for my largest competitor. I'd definitely search for an independent plot or block.

I know it's the most basic sort, but I always do consider walking an essential T component, so even without (hoped for longer term) integration within a public transit system, reasonably sized blocks with ample sidewalks and bike lanes--so two components--could be--eh--half the T? My own little metric for a truly great city is whether most of its residents can walk to a grocery, pharmacy, decent restaurant or two... So even just having that area provide a real walking destination for the surrounding 'hoods would be better than the now.

My long-held hope is that Simon has a strategic plan for its holdings, and recognizes the re-development potential of South Park. I want to see the entire site redeveloped as TOD, with some moderately high (as much as surrounding neighborhoods will allow) buildings in a street grid, almost all with ground floor retail, including those facing Fairview and Sharon. I *loved* the original, almost minimalist structure of the mall, but Simon ruined it and made it look like every other mall in this country, so I won't be sad to see it go.

...and Charlotte shouldn't be making all of its infrastructure plans based on current technology and pricing. There should be long term plans formulated now that don't simply focus on more light and commuter rail. The (relatively) short term plan for the Silver Line makes sense because it's practicable, in terms of most of the real estate and roadways where it's planned, and commuter rail is obviously a next step--let's say, mid term--but I think long term planning should start seriously considering an actual underground subway line. Even if it's going to 50 years in the future, the time to start envisioning where such a thing is now; didn't discussion of light rail in Charlotte start 30 years ago? Time flies, CATS! I think the obvious solution to the challenges Charlotte's (forgive me for stereotyping) pear-shaped , bougie, NIMBY core presents for infrastructure development is tunneling--and it's not like tunneling is some crazy impractical fantasy I've dreamed up. Perhaps a spur to South Park could be built in the next few decades, but I think starting to plan for a tear-shaped line--reminiscent of DC's red line--that travels from uptown and with its vertex at South Park would hopefully eventually address the challenges of getting all of Charlotte relatively good access to mass transit. My fantasy subway line would stop at Dilworth, Montford (which I still think of as just the Park Road Shopping Center), South Park, Strawberry Hill at Providence/Sardis, Cotswold, Novant Presbyterian/East Elizabeth and "Midtown" (a moniker I hate because I think Atlanta has a lock on it). If you start planning for it, you can make sure ensuing development over the next few decades provides for it--i.e. locations for future stations are set aside, etc.

The forecourt on Trade is slightly trapezoidal too--the courthouse isn't exactly parallel to Trade--all due to the fact the original structure of the courthouse, the old post office, faced Mint. The Trade facade is a later expansion, but the entire structure is still oriented to Mint, which doesn't intersect Trade at a precise 90 degree angle.

I took the survey, and chose Option B for Pineville as well--a No Brainer. For Ballantyne, I chose Option B as well, but offered (of course, realizing any comments won't probably matter) a specific site for the station: the middle of the "Brixham Green" office park. Currently there's nothing but a tree'd mini park or plaza there (I hate losing trees, but obvs hundreds of trees are going to be cut anyway). The Brixham Green site would mean no existing buildings would have to be demolished, and there's SO much parking in that zone it provides ample room for a station along with a generous parking deck (or two), since certainly the Ballantyne station will have to have one, which could also compensate for the lost surface parking. Is there a reason, too, why the line is being taken along 485 after leaving Carolina Place instead of down the Lancaster Highway, where the county owns most of the land on the east side of the road? Unless there are engineering or environmental regulations why, it seems to me that routing would relieve a lot of right of way issues, and having the line come down the east side of the Lanc Hwy means you could even plan for an eventual intermediate stop there, before turning it east to go into the heart of Ballantyne. I would just make it immediately parallel (again, unless its not practicable) to Duke's transformer right of way, from Lancaster Highway to Brixham Green. IMHO.

One point, though: If you look at the footprint of the current stadium on Google maps, it would *barely* fit within the Pipe & Foundry property, and that's covering Clarkson and envisioning a complete re-routing or elimination of the street. I'm not an engineer or architect, so I'm not in any way stating it can't be done, but it looks to me, just from a side by side comparison, it'll take a high degree of ingenuity. Maybe rounding the corners of a new stadium and building more vertically is a workable solution...

I actually think 129 West Trade is a really cool building--and not necessarily because it's beautiful--but because it's so unique. I'm all for preserving old buildings solely for history's sake, but the other, equally important, reason for preserving them is because it keeps a city from being generic. A city that doesn't preserve as much of its older building stock as it can ends up looking like every other comparable city. IMO the proportion of buildings built, in any era, that are truly distinctive, is well under half. Compounding that--and I know I'm stating the obvious here--is the tendency in architecture, as in any arena of design, to follow current trends and fashions. Even if the first few buildings of a cycle are noteworthy and interesting, the ensuing similar dozen or more will reduce their distinctiveness. 129 West Trade, love it or hate it, keeps that corner and adjacent blocks of West Trade from being indistinguishable from any other similar-sized city in North America, and for that reason alone I think it should stand as long as it can. As someone pointed out, the Grand Bohemian is being built very much along the lines of its sister structure in Orlando--and the last thing I would want is for Charlotte's downtown to be analogous to Orlando's. I'm super glad that terrible facade of its lower levels is being undone. I don't know if the proposed design is as good as it could be, but it's definitely an improvement.

That new light--I'm almost certain--indicates the city's intention to realign the west end of Hartford to connect directly to Clanton.

...or how about connecting the SouthPark and River District spurs, for a contiguous east-west line intersecting with the Blue Line--and eliminate the River District spur portion from the Silver Line?

My wish would be, when they redevelop Hal Marshall, is to simply preserve Phifer Avenue, and then cut 10th through as planned. The resulting area between Phifer, 10th, Tryon and College would be a nice, self-contained urban park. They could route Phifer in whatever configuration they wanted, based on what was constructed on its SW side.

That 500 block of North Tryon--the NE side is already great--it just needs to be situated among more intensively developed ones, for people to walk along it and appreciate it. I hope the city realizes that all of those buildings need to be protected.

I first posted this in the "Creating Culture" thread, but as it's specific to Elizabeth, I'm re-posting it here... [Speaking of murals] One specific idea I've had for a while involves murals and/or installation pieces for Elizabeth, specifically. To not only 'brand' the neighborhood, but introduce art and provide a (teensy) bit of cultural and historical knowledge--with a feminist bent. A series of murals/installations of famous Elizabeths throughout the Elizabeth neighborhood could be tourist draws, and liven up the relentless red brickness-of the CPCC and Novant/Presbyterian areas, while demarcating where the (commercial) boundaries of the neighborhood are. From English history: Elizabeth I (who was queen when North Carolina was first settled) and Elizabeth II (obvs presently the queen)--at significant entrance points--Charlotte is the Queen City, and making the connection to those two continues that larger theme... From American popular culture: Elizabeth Taylor (and maybe Liza Minnelli and/or Elizabeth Montgomery?)--perhaps coming from/seen from the Metropolitan area From Medicine/history (re: Novant/Presbyterian): Elizabeth Blackwell National politics/history/medicine (as early breast cancer advocate): Betty Ford--both of the preceding by Novant/Presbyterian From North Carolina/Politics: Elizabeth Dole (and Elizabeth Edwards, or too problematic?) From National politics/history: Elizabeth Cady Stanton--these two/three in the CPCC area?? There are others that can/should be added--these are just off the top of my head. If done well enough, and bold enough, and positioned properly, these murals could be Instagram and Snapchat et al. backdrops for thousands of people in CLT, and really help the city's image in the digital sphere... Some of these could not only be painted as large murals on sides of buildings, but I also think commissioning artists to create pieces that are three dimensional or two dimensional (multimedia, stained glass) on their own platforms would be great, to also make it have an artsy feel. I agree--on the Elizabeth thread (maybe I'll copy this over there) that the area would be great for expanded walkable retail. (I also think neighboring Cherry should have a similar effort, with actual cherry trees planted as well as a cherry motif on streetlights, etc.)

Speaking of murals, one specific idea I've had for a while involves murals and/or installation pieces for Elizabeth, specifically. To not only 'brand' the neighborhood, but introduce art and provide a (teensy) bit of cultural and historical knowledge--with a feminist bent. A series of murals/installations of famous Elizabeths throughout the Elizabeth neighborhood could be tourist draws, and liven up the relentless red brickness-of the CPCC and Novant/Presbyterian areas, while demarcating where the (commercial) boundaries of the neighborhood are. From English history: Elizabeth I (who was queen when North Carolina was first settled) and Elizabeth II (obvs presently the queen)--at significant entrance points--Charlotte is the Queen City, and making the connection to those two continues that larger theme... From American popular culture: Elizabeth Taylor (and maybe Liza Minnelli and/or Elizabeth Montgomery?)--perhaps coming from/seen from the Metropolitan area From Medicine/history (re: Novant/Presbyterian): Elizabeth Blackwell National politics/history/medicine (as early breast cancer advocate): Betty Ford--both of the preceding by Novant/Presbyterian From North Carolina/Politics: Elizabeth Dole (and Elizabeth Edwards, or too problematic?) From National politics/history: Elizabeth Cady Stanton--these two/three in the CPCC area?? There are others that can/should be added--these are just off the top of my head. These could be painted as large murals on sides of buildings, but I also think commissioning artists to create pieces that are three dimensional or two dimensional (multimedia, stained glass) on their own platforms would be great, to also make it have an artsy feel. I agree--on the Elizabeth thread (maybe I'll copy this over there) that the area would be great for expanded walkable retail. (I also think neighboring Cherry should have a similar effort, with actual cherry trees planted as well as a cherry motif on streetlights, etc.)

I know this off topic from Legacy Union, but taking off the last few posts about Charlotte's appeal, I think Charlotte's best strategy is never to fool itself into thinking it's ever going to be a destination for anyone, but instead endeavoring to be a place that people are surprised, even shocked, at how good it is when they happen to be there (for a convention, visiting friends, etc.) I've long thought that the museums and cultural facilities of the surrounding counties should form a strategic group and develop their missions and plans in concert. Just some thoughts: I think it's extraordinarily unique to have a living Native American population on their continuously inhabited Reservation (for 200+ years) within 20 miles of the city limits: The city and the region should work with the Catawba to create an experience in and/or around their Reservation that provides the perspective of the pre-Colonial past--with their perspective of the post-Colonial past. All of that should be enveloped into a greater natural area along the Catawba River, that connects to the Thread Trail... With a truly significant turning point of the Revolution, Kings Mountain, just 25 miles west of the city, and other historic Revolutionary battle sites, each should emphasize its specific timeframes and impacts of and on the war... The historic houses and plantations should focus on a specific theme (that's germaine to them)--since Brattonsville in York Co. actually had a revolutionary war skirmish there, that's its focus, and certainly the horrific nature of slavery should be addressed--I propose Rosedale, since it's in the city, with greatest mass accessibility, and could be most effective there, as the locus for that--with maybe Latta Place focusing more about the natural environment and cultivation since it's got a fair amount of land and Lake Norman access too... Then, my God, the area was the center of gold production in the entire U.S. before the California Gold Rush. The city and county should not simply try to brand the area west of South End the Gold District, they should make real efforts to develop a world class facility that could even incorporate some of the mine shafts. (I even think the old Mint Museum building should be re-purposed to a museum in conjunction with the Gold District exhibit, since there's now a main facility downtown; even move the building (again), at least closer to where it originally was, to the Gold District)... Speaking of Nashville, Charlotte was the original home of country music, during the Depression--so develop a museum with performance space devoted to early regional country music, focusing on Charlotte (of course)--I've always thought Spirit Square (the old First Baptist) should have a specific function, connected to the new Library, and making it our (not explicitly stated) version of the Old Grand Ole Opry, with an adjacent museum about early country music, would be amazing, and you could fill it with performances almost every night of the week... Each county museum obviously needs to provide fundamental collections and resources for its own population, but each should develop an added thematic focus that makes it draw from the other counties... Move the NASCAR Hall of Fame to the actual racetrack, and a car museum adjacent to boot... Just some thoughts, but I think the city has done the requisite things--with the Mint and other museums downtown--that mid- and larger cities do. What Charlotte needs to do to distinguish itself, and make itself a unique experience, is draw from its own past and personality--that's how you get people who come to the city to experience things they haven't and won't in other places. What's so special about Nashville other than the music scene? Nothing. But Nashville has that, and leverages it. Charlotte needs to learn to to that.

I actually like the North End Connection route, and especially its routing between 11th and Brookshire, but I *HOPE* rather than taking the line down Graham (since there's no money for a tunnel beneath it) they'll instead take it one block farther north/west, and route it along Smith Street. All of the land on the far side of the street is owned by the Gateway Station project anyway, so I would think it would be a no-brainer to coordinate those lots' development with light rail running along/through it, and wouldn't ruin Graham Street. My two cents...