New real estate opportunity: Charlotte's churches (free version)
New real estate opportunity: Charlotte's churches (free version)
Plus: Higher parking rates at the airport; What's up by the Cross Charlotte Trail?; Speaker earns $25,000 for CMS talk; Luxury apartment tower in uptown has massage room and top-floor wine vault
Good morning! Today is Friday, June 25, 2021. You’re reading The Charlotte Ledger, an e-newsletter with local business-y news and insights for Charlotte, N.C.
Editor’s note: This is a shorter, free version of The Charlotte Ledger sent to people on our free sign-up list. The complete version for paying subscribers went out an hour ago. It included:
The complete article examining the trend of redeveloping churches in Charlotte, with examples from Myers Park, NoDa, SouthPark and the Plaza-Midwood area — and why local real estate experts say it looks likely to continue in certain parts of town.
Details on new and sharply higher parking rates at Charlotte Douglas International Airport — and why airport officials say they are needed.
The latest in our occasional series in which we answer readers’ development questions. This week’s is about a series of concrete towers near the Cross Charlotte Trail. What are those things?
An answer from Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools to our question about why the school district spent $25,000 on a speaker for a leadership conference last week. The speaker was scheduled to talk for 45 minutes at the event, which was held virtually.
A response from the owner of Zack’s Hamburgers, which has been the subject of increased chatter this week over whether it will be the next longstanding Charlotte restaurant to call it quits.
The Ledger provides original, reported news and information about things that matter in Charlotte — produced by professionals who have been reporting and writing about our city for more than 20 years. Experience makes a difference.
We don’t clog up our articles with pop-up ads, autoplay videos or relentless marketing messages. Instead, we ask readers to support us if they find our information valuable and relevant and want the complete versions of our Wednesday and Friday newsletters. There is plenty of free news available on the internet. If you’re dissatisfied with your other options, try us out. We believe that we deliver newsletters that are good enough to pay for — and thousands of Charlotteans agree.
Memberships are $9/month or $99/year, and the yearly plan comes with a second email address (collected by email after sign-up). You’re always free to cancel. Details here.
As religious attendance falls, longtime Charlotte houses of worship are being replaced by apartments and townhomes; ‘they have the best land’
Pulte Homes is planning 63 townhomes on the former site of Commonwealth Baptist Church on Briar Creek Road in east Charlotte. It’s one of several redevelopment projects in the works locally that involve longtime churches.
by Tony Mecia
As developers scout sites around Charlotte in the hunt for land, some are increasingly turning to churches as an attractive target.
In recent months, a handful of old churches in different areas of Charlotte have cut deals with developers, who typically want to build apartments or townhouses as the city continues to grow. And that trend is expected to accelerate in the coming years, as church attendance continues to wane, religious leaders find other ways to reach the masses and land prices keep soaring.
“We are unfortunately going to continue to see it,” says Collin Brown, a real estate lawyer with Alexander Ricks who is handling several church-related rezonings. “One of the things about churches is that they have the best land. They are prime locations.”
For Charlotte, once known as a city of churches in the middle of the Bible Belt, the transformation of houses of worship into actual houses shows how the city is changing.
Related Ledger article:
“A new steeple for SouthPark” (Feb. 19)
Related Ledger/5 and 2 Project cool drone video:
“Flyover Friday: Changes in the heart of SouthPark” (Sept. 11, 2020)
Charlotte’s airport is jacking up parking rates — will be $10 a day for cheapest lots
Get ready to pay more to park at the airport: Charlotte-Douglas says it’s hiking rates for everything except curbside valet effective July 6.
But the good news is that the increased money the airport is raking in is going to “help pay for recent enhancements to the parking experience.”
You Ask, We Answer: What’s springing up near the Cross Charlotte Trail?
Today we bring you the latest installment of “You Ask, We Answer,” The Ledger’s effort to help satisfy your burning🔥 development questions.
As we always say, there’s no rezoning request we can’t track down; no land sale we can’t sniff out. Have a question? Ask us here.
Here’s today’s question:
They started excavation on this site between Matheson Bridge and Norfolk Southern Spur last January, but now there’s a lot going on and 5 “towers” have appeared. I thought it was something to do with the train but now I think it might be something to do with Cross Charlotte Trail (since I heard it will be going over Matheson Bridge). They also just tore down 2 warehouses at the end of Cullen Avenue, which seems related. Would love to know what is going on here … and wondering how the trail will “jump” the train tracks.
We took the question to Scott Curry, with the Charlotte Department of Transportation. He responded:
➡️ Nobody covers growth, development and commercial real estate in Charlotte like The Charlotte Ledger. Got a question? Have a tip? Drop us a line.
$25,000 from CMS for a 45-minute virtual talk
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools paid a speaker at a leadership conference $25,000 for a 45-minute online presentation last week.
After Price’s closing, what longtime restaurant is next? Zack’s?
We’ve been hearing rumblings this week about a sale of Zack’s Hamburgers
In brief
Unemployment keeps falling: North Carolina’s unemployment rate fell to 4.8% in May, down from 5% in June. The national rate was 5.8%. (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Little ‘bit’ more Seoul Food: The owner of Seoul Food Meat Co. is opening a new concept, Bit by Seoul Food, in SouthPark’s Morrison Place development. It’ll be a fast-casual restaurant featuring bao buns, tacos and wings. It takes the space that previously housed Tandur Indian Kitchen. (Biz Journal)
New Atrium projects planned: Atrium Health has applied for new facilities in southern Mecklenburg County, including a 26-bed hospital in Steele Creek and a standalone emergency department in Ballantyne. The Steele Creek hospital, which would sit on its current Steele Creek campus, would open in spring 2024. The Ballantyne emergency department would open in the summer of 2023 on Ballantyne Lake Road if approved. (Biz Journal)
Ballantyne hotel coming in September: A new AC Hotel, a division of Marriott, is opening in what’s being called the “Panorama Tower” in Ballantyne Village this September. The 186-room hotel will occupy the first seven floors of the building, with office space in the floors above. It will have a ballroom for events and a “high end dining experience” on the 16th floor. (Axios)
Unemployment benefits ending? N.C. Republicans in the state’s General Assembly are looking to end supplemental unemployment benefits from the federal government. But House and Senate Democrats voted almost unanimously against the move, which signals a possible veto by Gov. Roy Cooper. The legislation does away with the Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation benefit, as well as an additional $100-a-week payment for self-employed workers. Both are scheduled to end in September, but Republican lawmakers want to end them sooner. (WFAE)
Jeff Gordon’s new job: Former NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon will leave the Fox Sports broadcasting booth at the end of the year and join Hendrick Motorsports as its No. 2 official under owner Rick Hendrick. (ESPN/AP)
Myers Park reassures parents: The principal of Myers Park High School sent a letter to parents assuring them that the school is safe, as several news reports this month have brought to light claims from two female students who say they were raped in the woods next to the school by other students in 2014 and 2015. The students claim school officials mishandled their accusations. CMS largely denies the allegations and says it can’t provide specifics because of student privacy. It settled one of the cases this spring. (WBTV, Observer)
More fintech success: Charlotte-based Payzer Holdings has raised more than $19.5M, according to securities filings. It provides a management platform for contractors. (WRAL TechWire)
Lufthansa resumes flights:Lufthansa said it will resume nonstop flights between Charlotte and Munich, Germany, beginning July 3. The flights are three days a week. (Observer)
New uptown apartments:Northwood Ravin says its new 354 luxury apartments at 500 West Trade uptown are now open. They’re in a seven-story mid-rise and a 14-story high rise tower with 8,500 s.f. of retail. Amenities include two pools; a private health club with massage room, steam rooms and sauna; an on-site dog spa and a 14th-floor resident lounge with a wine vault. It’s Northwood Ravin’s third uptown residential tower, along with the Vue and 550 Stonewall.
Join us Monday at 11 to talk social media marketing
Our online sessions on marketing in Charlotte continue Monday morning at 11 a.m. with a panel on … social media.
They’ll share some best practices and do’s and don’ts. We are doing the panels in conjunction with our friends at Jumbo, a Charlotte-based builder of live-streaming platforms.
Panelists are Corri Smith of Black Wednesday, Clayton Sealey (better known by social media handle CLT Development) and Evan Kent of Bojangles.
The panels are designed to give local small business owners and marketing professionals ideas they can use to break through the noise to find strategies and tactics that reach potential customers in a time when the industry and consumer habits are shifting.
To watch, or view later online, you’ll need to register here (it’s free):
You can also view our two previous panels online.
Need to sign up for this e-newsletter? We offer a free version, as well as paid memberships for full access to all 3 of our local newsletters:
➡️ Learn more about The Charlotte Ledger
The Charlotte Ledger is a locally owned media company that delivers smart and essential news through e-newsletters and on a website. We strive for fairness and accuracy and will correct all known errors. The content reflects the independent editorial judgment of The Charlotte Ledger. Any advertising, paid marketing, or sponsored content will be clearly labeled.
Like what we are doing? Feel free to forward this along and to tell a friend.
Change newsletter preferences: Go to ‘My Account’ page
Social media: On Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Sponsorship information: email editor@cltledger.com.
Executive editor: Tony Mecia; Managing editor: Cristina Bolling; Contributing editor: Tim Whitmire, CXN Advisory; Reporting intern: Lindsey Banks