RugbyPike#11

I like the residential portion of the plan. I think they did a remarkable job of planning to keep their tree canopy and the open space will maintain those very mature trees for shade. They didn't talk about this in the meeting, although it's in the site plan, but the plan has Marion Pl extending to Elmhurst Rd. There is also a cut through planned behind the future phase retail providing additional connectivity between Marsh and Elmhurst. Nice little win for connectivity, although I imagine the property owners losing chunks of their yards are not entirely thrilled. The developers said that they have turned away inquiries from large chain retailers in favor of localretail, so it was exciting to hear that we might get something unique in those spaces. That said, I remain very disappointed with the lack of retail in the project and if you were at the meeting, you may remember me as the guy in the maroon Winthrop polo complaining about the lack of retail haha. In the original phase, there will only be 14,000 square feet of retail. To access that retail, Marsh apartment residents are going to have to walk across a large surface lot. When asked about the utilization of surface parking rather than rooftop (like Lowes), underground (like Publix), or parking deck (like Target), we were told it wasn't possible in such a small block. The second phase that rjp212 mentioned, where the Bank of America branch currently sits, looks appropriately dense for TOD-Mixed Used URBAN Development and utlizes ground level retail with a parking deck, so it was a bit insulting to be told that a parking deck wasn't physically possible on the larger block. We were also told that no retail was feasible a block off South Blvd, so apparently we have all imagined Camden Ave and it doesn't actually exist in reality. It should be noted that Marsh outsourced the retail planning. I guess I should also acknowledge that Sedgefield residents expressed concerns about too much density. I wish I could have been at those neighborhood association meetings, but I was out of town and it sounds like the SNA didn't pass along my concerns about the LACK of density. I think it was rickydavisfan who originally described the Marsh retail as Town Center style, so my imagination went wild and I pictured something with a much more significant retail component, possibly even creating something like Main Street style on Haverford. I tried to capture what was in my head below, I apologize in advance for my goofy paint shop skills. The blue lines are roughly where Marsh is planning to build multi-level residential. The rest is what I would have LIKED to have seen. The red lines I added are ground level retail. the green lines are the parking deck to eliminate the surface parking lot and support the added retail, and the black arrow indicates my desire for a one-way street to make pedestrian crossings easier to the east side of Haverford:

I'm going to try to catch that meeting too. Based on the plans, it looks like dense apartments closer to South Blvd (60 ft max) with garden apartments and town homes (30-40 ft max) further east and backing up to houses along Ideal Way and Marsh. It looks like it will be an improvement either way, but I'd definitely like to see more of a town center feel rather than just a couple retail strips along South Blvd.

More detail on the Sedgefield Shopping Center redevelopment: http://charmeck.org/city/charlotte/planning/Rezoning/RezoningPetitions/2014Petitions/Pages/2014-064.aspx Overall, I would have liked to have seen more retail and less surface parking. I felt like there was an opportunity to build a stroll street with main street style store fronts along Haverford Place. Instead, there's surface parking for Harris Teeter et al on the west-side of Haverford and more apartments on the east-side. After construction has finished, how hard would it be to retrofit a parking garage with ground-level storefronts where the surface lot sits on the "Harris Teeter" block between South and Haverford? It looks like they're really only planning to have retail on the South Blvd stretch.

Have you guys heard anything about a townhouse development on Youngblood? There was something posted about it in the Sedgefield Facebook group. My first impression is that it's another wasted opportunity, but I would be curious to hear if y'all have any differing opinions.

We should build an underground mine shaft aquarium.... maybe there can be a Nascar hall of fame annex worked in somehow.

It would probably take a lot more than the #24 pick to move into the top 3-4 from #9. To get Parker or Wiggins, assuming the Cavs go Embiid, is probably going to require giving up a player with similar upside. I could see the Magic giving up Afflalo for the #9, but I doubt they would consider the #24 pick.

They're not necessarily clueless, perhaps they are just contrarians.

Ouch, well, that's what the Pistons owner gets for being cheap. They could have amnestied Ben Gordon's contract if they wanted the cap space, but instead they gave away that pick in exchange for the Hornets eating the contract. I like a lot of the new Hornets players, I just don't care for the owner. What's the deal with that mustache he was rocking? Who do y'all like at #9? I'm partial to Stauskas but that might be the homer in me.

I'm a lifelong Pistons fan, however, if Jordan ever sells the Hornets, I will be adopting them as my local team. So anyway, when you're watching the draft lottery tonight, keep in mind that if a 9-14 lottery team jumps into the top 3 AND the Pistons don't win a top 3 selection, then the Hornets get the Pistons first round pick. Next year, the Pistons pick is only top 1 protected.

I second this. They hooked me up with a solid commuting bike a couple years ago and they also do repairs!

Maybe they would anchor the new retail at Sedgefield Shopping/Town Center? South Blvd is specifically mentioned in the article, so that could make sense.

The rail trail is great for bike commutes to uptown, although it's been pretty crowded with everybody getting out to enjoy this weather.

Don't know if this has already been mentioned, but I saw this week that lumber is going up at Camden Southline.

It looks like the expansion will be at 485 and Stonewall. Maybe the lead car at 485 could detach and provide express service to uptown. Then the express train could catch up to the previous north bound train and provide three car service on the BLE? Would that make sense? It's early.

I would be curious to hear why you guys get this feeling. There's a lot of development popping up around New Bern Station, which is less than a mile north of Scaleybark. This is happening at the same time we're getting infill projects further north on the Blue Line. You don't think it's possible that an apartment developer will have the audacity to slap "South End" on a Scaleybark project and initiate some development further down the line? Or do you see any new residential being exclusively infill within the limits of South End? I just assumed that some developer looking for a quick buck would become interested in the cheaper land around Scaleybark and build something there.

Here's my early nominee for a potential late round gem: Jeremy Gallon, WR, 5-8, 185, Michigan http://www.nfldraftscout.com/ratings/dsprofile.php?pyid=89576&draftyear=2014&genpos=WR At the beginning of the Michigan/Notre Dame game, I told my Brother-in-Law to watch out for mini-Steve-Smith aka Jeremy Gallon, then Gallon had 8 catches for 184 yards and 3 touchdowns. He's not as good as Smitty, but like Smitty, he plays much bigger than his size and he's tough as nails.

The Pistons pick from the Ben Gordon trade is Top 8 protected, and right now the Pistons are tied for the tenth worst record in the league. The Eastern Conference is so bad, however, that makes the Pistons the 8 seed in the playoffs. The Trailblazers pick is Top 12 protected. I don't think that the Hornets will be able to get into the top 5. The top 4-6 prospects this year are considered to be guys with franchise star potential. It's very unlikely that a team can package picks to move up for one of those top guys.

There are some affordable single family homes around New Bern Station, although that doesn't exactly keep you in the heart of South End. If you're a little more adventurous and willing to wait a little bit longer for the extreme renovations/teardown/new constructions to start happening, homes around Scaleybark are even cheaper. Of course that puts you even further away from the heart of South End.

I was on the same train, but I didn't get on until New Bern Station, so I only made it one stop before we had to switch over to the next north bound train. I had another delay at about the same time last Thursday (I was originally thinking last Friday), I must have just missed the 7:14 departure from New Bern, and the next train didn't come until about 7:32, which I guess is only an 8 minute delay. It WAS really cold last week, so it felt a lot longer than that. Whatever it is, I hope they work it out. The light rail schedules have generally been VERY reliable, much less stressful commute than driving.

Are the trains struggling to operate in the cold? I have experienced delays both this morning and last Friday. Is this normal when the temperature drops or do I just have bad luck?

I'm pretty sure that their location so close to New Bern Station keeps them in the TOD zoning. I think these plans are still valid? http://charmeck.org/city/charlotte/planning/areaplanning/transitstationareaplans/southcorridor/pages/new%20bern.aspx

Detroit should also have cooler summer weather than either Charlotte or Austin. Good for them.

That would be fine, too. Cho had a good track record as an Assistant GM. We'll have to wait to see how he works as a lead guy and whether Jordan lets him do his job.

Hopefully he'll also announce that he's selling the team and the new owners are bringing in competent management.

A couple weeks ago, I bought a house in Sedgefield that is about a quarter mile to the New Bern Station. I'm not quite ready to go completely carless, but I haven't driven to work since I moved. I'm really excited for all the development that should happen around the station, but also think it's great that can access South End, Uptown, and NoDa restaurants and bars without needing to get into my car. The properties closer to South Blvd and the light rail seem to be relatively cheap, but I wonder how long they'll stay like that as the millenials start making more money.