Northlake Mall opened just 21 years ago. But after years of rising vacancies, the city of Charlotte is proposing to designate the mall and surrounding area as a federally approved Opportunity Zone. The zones are meant to encourage development in economically distressed areas.
The mall sold for nearly $250 million in 2014.
But high-profile crimes and the departure of prominent stores, including Apple, have weighed on Northlake. The mall sold for just $39 million last year.
Now the city is proposing Northlake as one of 13 new Census tracts to become Opportunity Zones. The program was created in 2017 to offer tax breaks to developers who invest in those areas.
Other proposed zones include areas along Nations Ford Road and Interstate 77; along West Boulevard and Wilkinson Boulevard; the city’s North End along Graham Street; and parts of east Charlotte.
The city plans to send its recommendations to the state next week. North Carolina’s Commerce Department would then ask the U.S. Treasury Department to approve them in July.
