Community members gathered in the West End Tuesday night to study ways to reconnect a string of predominantly low-income neighbourhoods to uptown after they were severed when the highway was built decades ago.
Residents viewed maps with concepts on how to reshape Interstate 77 and the surrounding areas. Julian Burton with the Charlotte Department of Transportation says the concepts focus on removing two ramps near Fifth Street and Trade Street.
“They're basically not needed, and we figured out that those actually had the least amount of traffic. So we're taking those out, we're shifting to other off-ramps," Burton said. "We're proposing to shift to other off-ramps and basically creating over 8 acres of space that can now be redeveloped.”
A separate plan to build new, elevated toll lanes on I-77 has raised concerns of displacement. Some residents protested at City Council Member Malcolm Graham’s town hall two weeks ago. Graham attended last night’s meeting.
“I have the same type of perspective and so it's not what they said, it's how they said it,” Graham said. "Some of those who were there protesting were not neighborhood leaders, right? They were concerned citizens.”
Over two dozen people attended Tuesday night's event. Paola Bola was one of them.
“I’m a bike commuter. I also occasionally take transit, so I really care a lot about how the West End connects into Uptown because I work in Uptown and I live on the west side, ” Bola said. "And so I just wanna know like what the plans are, how it can better help me, my commute, and maybe I can get connected to other areas of the city as well.”
Part of the project's goal is to make the areas more walkable and bike-friendly for pedestrians. The study is funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Reconnecting Communities Pilot, which awarded the city a $1 million federal grant. Charles Thomas is with the Knight Foundation, which also contributed towards the study.
“So our dollars were to help support the planning and engagement process,” Thomas said. "So we're thrilled by the process that both the city and their consultants, Neighbouring Concepts, have taken to make sure residents are participating in thinking about how to reconnect the West End to Uptown.”
Those behind the study aim to share a finalised plan in June, which includes the costs of what a redeveloped I-77 could entail.
