RugbyPike#11

People on the Sedgefield Neighborhood facebook group are also displeased. Maybe the neighborhood associations can coordinate a response to try to get the developer to build around the existing buildings. Would CM jump ship even if activists saved the space?

With Parkwood as a major thoroughfare in this area, and being just south of NoDa, I was thinking that SoDaSoPa would be an appropriate name.

My most frustrating intersection in uptown is on Caldwell/South Blvd at the I-277 interchange. Heading South from uptown, the bicycle/pedestrian lane will have the walk signal, but the southbound drivers either can't see that signal, or they ignore it, so they fly right into acceleration mode to get on 277. Sometimes a kind soul will pause and wave me across, but if a cyclist or pedestrian followed the pedestrian light and ignored the traffic rushing onto 277, that person wouldn't make it out of uptown. I suppose it doesn't make the list because most people are smart enough to wait for the traffic to clear out before attempting to cross.

I thought a mini-Birkdale would have made sense there or at the 77 Corporate Park off Clanton. I wonder if South End is just too close to SouthPark to ever develop its own major retail center. I'd hope for more organic local retail growth, but these developments just aren't building the space.

Depending on the firm's exit strategy, I agree that it's better for a Private Equity firm to purchase Belk than to be purchased by a competitor. If they go with an IPO, we'll still have Belk HQ'd in Charlotte, just as a publicly held company instead of family owned.

A recruiter told me that Citizens is looking to lease office space in the Charlotte area after their spinoff from Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS). It doesn't sound like a headquarters relocation, but they're expanding their presence here to poach talent from BoA and WellsFargovia.

Some nice pictures of the Riverwalk mixed-use development down in Rock Hill: http://www.charlotteagenda.com/11429/heres-whats-happening-at-riverwalk-rock-hills-1000-acre-master-planned-community-on-the-banks-of-the-catawba/

That makes more sense. Oh well, was hoping that I could sell out for an early retirement.

I keep getting unsolicited letters expressing interest in purchasing my property. Is this normal in Charlotte, or am I just getting these letters because I'm adjacent to commercial property and within a quarter mile of a light rail station? If somebody consolidated the properties on 1) South Blvd: Chick-Fil-A, Burger King, Bell Acres "Country Club," and 2) the single family homes in Sedgefield adjacent to those properties, they would put together almost five acres of property within the TOD zone of New Bern Station. I wonder if that's what somebody is trying to do, or if it's a few two-bits trying to collect these properties in anticipation of a big commercial buyer coming up later. It seems like it would be easier to buy the Pepsi warehouse or some of the light industrial property west of New Bern Station.

I don't mind townhomes as a transition to the single family homes east of South Blvd, but I wish they would incorporate some quiet ground level retail on South Blvd. As artists get priced out of gallery space, even some live-work treatment could be interesting in those locations.

I agree with this. The morning commute is fine, but it's pretty slow to navigate through, pedestrians, dogs, and joggers around 5:30 to 6:00 in the evening. It might ease up a little bit in the evenings when the summer heat sets in. So that being said, it's great to see so much activitiy on the rail trail! I hope it encourages the city to improve pedestrian access in other areas of South End. I certainly don't blame pedestrians for not wanting to walk their dogs along South Boulevard.

You just don't want a Kenny Rogers Roasters flooding neon light into your apartment:

Inflation man, inflation.

Would it be really difficult to funnel traffic off the problem sections of Elizabeth and make the problem parking areas a street-car dedicated Right-of-Way?

Sedgefield has a neighborhood association, but a lot of the residents seem to oppose the density and potential traffic(!!!) increases. The neighborhood association seems more concerned about finding ways to discourage people from cutting from South Blvd to Park via Marsh than encouraging urban development along the light rail.

My understanding is that the big banks don't tend to own much real estate anymore. Illiquid assets like uptown real estate aren't good for the ol' Basel capital ratios. They might finance and anchor a new office tower, but they would probably sell the property and sign a long-term lease.

The original station plan for New Bern Station called for Main Street style development on that portion of New Bern Street. I wonder if the buyer will reference that plan or if the market has changed too much for those plans to have much value. If I remember correctly, the New Bern Station plan also called for a mini-park where that Wells Fargo currently sits. Would that branch would move across the street into the Pepsi development so that park could be developed?

I think the higher parking costs will help alleviate the high low gas prices. I take the light rail or my bike to uptown everyday, but my sister tells me that you can't find daily parking anymore for less than $7. $4.40 for a round trip ride looks pretty good, especially when you factor in that you're not burning gas or putting wear and tear on your car.

Liiiike the revamped Sedgefield Shopping Center?!?!

Couldn't we make an argument that Southpark is a CBD? So that a line connecting in or through Southpark is likely to be successful, even if Southpark is not THE CBD?

What do you all think ridership numbers would look for a DMU route from the airport to the the magic hypothetical N Tryon station with a stop in Gateway? High enough to get funding and get a much shorter version of the red line started?

Having a stop at the North Charlotte station wouldn't preclude the red line from continuing on to a smaller station in Gateway.

I agree that a York Co line shouldn't be a priority, especially with Nikki Haley offering incentives to Charlotte companies to "create jobs" in Fort Mill.

It's at the bottom of the list, but I would add a York County line to the list of future rapid transit. This study is aging, but was a pretty interesting read. If he red line ever gets built, I'd like to see an extension to the airport and ultimately down to Rock Hill. It sounds like the most likely project for Rock Hill/York County is a dedicated bus lane on 21. http://www.cityofrockhill.com/Home/ShowDocument?id=1449

If Grand Rapids can do it, NoDa/Charlotte should be able to do it! http://stellasgr.com/ Although Stella's could stand alone as a bar without the video games.