The plan to build denser housing in single-family neighborhoods as part of Charlotte’s new Unified Development Ordinance may be getting walked back. At least a little bit. City staff this week recommended only allowing new triplexes on corner lots rather than anywhere in those neighborhoods.
For more, we turn now to Tony Mecia of the Charlotte Ledger Business Newsletter for our segment BizWorthy.
Marshall Terry: Tony, we talked a few weeks ago about the first triplexes going up in some of these single-family neighborhoods, especially in the SouthPark area. Some neighbors weren't happy. Why this possible change in course now?
Tony Mecia: Marshall, this week, Alyson Craig, the city's planning director, told the City Council that she would like to revisit the issue of where the triplexes can be built. She said it has to do with the driveways and driveway cuts, cars and parking, said that the way that the code reads right now, it makes it kind of difficult for the parking and the walkability, and so it's better to have those triplexes just on the corner lots where you could have multiple driveways, multiple entrances. So that's kind of the thinking behind that.
Terry: So what happens now? This is just a suggestion by planning staff, right?
Mecia: It is just a suggestion. It's going to play out over the next few months. The City Council will look at it a little more intensively. And Alyson Craig, the planning director, said that there could be a vote as soon as July. So, what this means is that even though there are triplexes currently under construction right now, they would probably be allowed to go ahead and continue because you can't just keep changing the rules, you know, as things are half-built and half-approved. There was some concern from City Council members about that on Monday night. Are we constantly changing the rules so much that there's no certainty and how to develop some of these parcels?
Terry: And looking at a development dispute now, developer Daniel Levine just reached a settlement in an ongoing legal case. What can you tell us about that?
Mecia: Yes, there’s a legal case that has been going on for about five years between developer Daniel Levine of Levine Properties and David Miller of Raley Miller Properties. They had gone in together to develop an 11-acre site at the corner of Providence and Fairview Road in south Charlotte. The development got stalled. They had a disagreement over how to proceed with the financing. They wound up suing each other. It was in court this week. They did two days of jury selection Monday and Tuesday, but on Wednesday they reached a settlement. We don't have the terms. I talked to Daniel Levine. He said that he will now take title to the land. He's not sure what he's going to do with it.
Terry: Let’s move over to the development of parks and greenways now. Mecklenburg County this fiscal year has purchased more acres than it did in 2021 and 2022 for that purpose and is on pace to surpass the acres it purchased last year as well. Why all the focus on parks?
Mecia: This is one of those things residents seem to like a lot. Surveys show parks and outdoor activities are some of the amenities that residents of Mecklenburg County enjoy. A narrow majority of county commissioners for the last few years have been putting more money into county purchases of land for parks and nature preserves and greenways, and so now that's starting to bear some fruit. So far this year, county parks officials said they have acquired 452 acres of land for parks. They also said that greenway construction is at an all-time high. They've recently completed projects really all over the county, up toward Mountain Island Lake, down toward Ballantyne and there's a lot more on the way.
Terry: Finally, move over, bridge. You report another game is taking Charlotte by storm. What is mahjong, and why has it become so popular?
Mecia: Marshall, I don't play mahjong personally, but I happen to know it's a Chinese tile strategy game. It's apparently a very captivating game. There are some similarities to card games. There are now businesses that have started to coach people and consult and hold seminars and trainings for how to play mahjong. It's a little bit like pickleball, in the sense that we don't necessarily know why it's becoming more popular, but people are playing it and seem to like it.
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