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Independence Blvd


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I think areas east of Independence are more or less screwed, areas west still have a chance if they redevelop, especially in towards town.

I definitely agree, that area by Cricket Arena with all those vacant buildings needs to be bulldozed and redeveloped into high density multi-income housing, it would be a great transit corridor with out-of-uptown prices.

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It was this kind of thinking that led to the leveling of many great downtown neighborhoods, and almost was Dilworth's fate in the 1970s. I think the city should be very careful at making more attempts at 1960s style urban renewal since the results have always been pretty bad. If it were up to me, I would instead send the bulldozers into the wasteland called Southeast Charlotte and take out some cul-de-sac neighborhoods. (especially if there is a gate on them)

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Independence Blvd is a big problem but it's problems are mostly due to local politics and not the responsibility of the Federal government. In 1975, Independence was a jammed up mess as it wound through downtown Charlotte and the traffic jams extended out to Sharon Amity (then the defacto city limits) They knew then that it needed to be fixed. So the money being spent and changes you see now are being made to address the problems from that time.

Independence as a highway through downtown was eliminated and replaced by the John Belk Freeway and it was converted to freeway to Albemaro. The cost of doing this was the wholesale destruction of many downtown neighborhoods, the ruination of what is now called Midtown Square and many other businesses, and a decades of unpleasant construction. This work also hopelessly isolated downtown from the rest of the city.

Independence should have been fixed by now. However as we all know, it isn't.

That is because the problems we have today, are due to the fact that Mecklenburg and Union counties continued to allowed unrestricted growth on Independence despite knowing the consequences of that growth. So now, while the traffic jams and congestion have disappeared for the most part within Charlotte, they allowed the problem to be re-created further out until you see the mess we have today. The Feds and the State are loathe to spend money fixing roads where the local governments don't attempt to do something to keep the problems from getting worse and reoccuring.

This BTW is exactly the same problem we see on the original section of 485.

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According to the public meetings on the SE transit line - redevelopment will be encouraged around Cricket arena and Merchandise Mart, particularly for the acres of parking lot on either side of Briar Creek. The plans that I saw for the Briar Creek transit stop would redevelop in the area of the IHOP and that ghetto motel.

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If it were up to me, I would instead send the bulldozers into the wasteland called Southeast Charlotte and take out some cul-de-sac neighborhoods.  (especially if there is a gate on them)

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:lol:

You should run for office. The utter annihilation of SE Charlotte could be your platform.

I'd hate to see Cricket Arena get torn down. For a time, it was the largest arena in the country. Somebody should convert it to condos or something. I can't imagine that working out at all, but it would be fun. Build parking in the center, and somehow convert the stands into luxury units at a very affordable price. OH, and leave the beer stands intact! They would fall under the "Amenities" category.

Seriously, somebody needs to get started on this post-haste.

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Traveling down Independance, I don't see hood - though I do see problems. I certainly don't feel unsafe but my idea of "high crime" isshaped by having lived in ENY, Brownsville, Bedsty, SE DC, etc.

What I do see btwn Independance and Monroe are black faces, low income rentals, townhomes, single family homes and a great mixed race neighborhood. Having learned more about the history of Independance, I think what is needed to revitalize business in that area are incentives. The truth of the matter is that the lowerclass and working class consumer is America's biggest spender. And they often will pay more more (in perspective) for lesser quality goods. I say this to emphasize that there is tremendous profit to be made by serving a lowerincome community. The idea that nobody wants to run a business in the ghetto is ludicrous (not that I consider the area ghetto but even if it were) - people have become rich pimping the ghetto demographic.

This work also hopelessly isolated downtown from the rest of the city.
I was wondering about that. Uptown Charlotte has the vibe of being so distinct from the rest of the city. I do agree that the way the highway was built seems to contribute to this problem.
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I was wondering about that.  Uptown Charlotte has the vibe of being so distinct from the rest of the city.  I do agree that the way the highway was built seems to contribute to this problem.

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Yes, the 277 loop has been a major contributor to that, creating a man-made island of sorts called uptown. You can see dramatic changes in the neighborhoods as soon as you go under the overpass on N. Church or leave Gateway along Trade or 5th St and cross over I-77. I call it the Robert Moses effect. It's also put a premium on real estate values within the loop.

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Okay, let me re-word it. It has a high crime rate. Is that better? But you have to admit, East Charlotte isn't pretty... and as for Matthews/Mint Hill? I was talking long term (if this pattern continues). Matthews is probably not going to change though, I do take back that statement. Mint Hill is part of Independence HS area/Garringer.

Anyways, being the typically stereotyped "black male" who dresses like a thug and listens to rap music, I know all about my hoods (haha). The few parts of LA that are ghetto and compton are a different type of ghetto. It's not necessarily more dangerous, just different... (you know what I mean). The house-styles, gossip about the west, and how movies/songs have built it up, all add to the hood effect. That's why people think it's so much worse. Pretty much there are the CA, "Dirty South", and NYC ghettos. They all have their distinct features that make them unique. Like I said in my last post people will disagree, but I have firsthand experience and most others don't. Charlotte has a higher crime rate than NYC and LA. I know NYC and LA have a ton of more people but still out of 100,000 residents, Charlotte's was more than double both.

Large urban areas generally have a higher crime rate than rural cities. Out of the 70 largest cities, Charlotte had the 18th highest crime rate. My whole point is that I think eventually Charlotte will become a lot worse if something isn't done to improve/stop it. The ghetto spreads. Also, the southeast's (especially Charlotte's) black/hispanic populatin is increasing. I know everyone says that it's not about race, but there is a connection with african-american/hispanic males and crime. I think the vaccination for East Charlotte is just to clean it up and add some fun shops and attractions and get rid of the abandoned stores/houses. If only a company would have the courage to do so.

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  • 3 months later...

Thanks for all the comments about Independence Blvd.

Does anyone possibly have any pics of current day Independence? The last few times I was in Charlotte it had narrow lanes, everyone was driving very very fast(especially considering how narrow the lanes were!) Most of the front lawns of residential homes on Independence were taken for widenings. Lots of backups (at that time) from the Old Coliseum all the way past the gold building~~

Just curious what it is like today. It would be fun to see pics:)

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You must be referring to the once thrilling section between the Brookshire freeway and the old Charlotte Coliseum. That is all gone now including all of the buildings that were on either side of the highway, and it is a typical NCDOT freeway from downtown all the way to Sharon Amity now.

The section from the Brookshire to The Plaza is surrounded by brick walls and some new construction looms over it. The Plaza dead ends, and there is a new bridge that goes over Hawthorne. (The notorious lingere shop and XXX book store store at hawthorne and Independence are long gone.) From there it is earth berms where those houses used to be until you get to the Coliseum. Then the remaining part to Sharon Amity has been freeway'd off with a new bridge that takes care of the Albemaro Rd. problem. For this section almost every business has closed, so one passes by a bunch of empty big boxes now. There is a BRT bus lane down the middle of all of this.

Once you get onto Independence at I-277 and head East, you can only exit at the interchange at Briarcreek (old coliseum), Eastway drive and then Albemaro Rd, before you hit Sharon Amity and go back to gridlock.

I don't have any photos, but maybe some one else does.

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The part by uptown is a full-fledged freeway.

NCDOT and CDOT sure do dream big, to spend half a billion dollars to convert a highway to an expressway, and leaving the curb cut so that people can get to IHOP and Burger King.

They sure do! An east/west bound expressway w/o lights would be a dream come true. If they could only drill it all the way out to monroe. hah.

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  • 3 weeks later...

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