B Tower (5th Street Retail Infill Building)

[Guest]

Just now, j-man said:

You’re reaching at this point. When I say do well I do mean that in a PHENOMENAL way. The Apple store in Northlake is subpar and isn’t that visited. That one should just move to uptown where people can literally catch the light rail to get to it, they, can drive, or they can walk to it. It’s the most walkable part of Charlotte so why wouldn’t it make sense. 

I'm not reaching, I know what I'm talking about. I talk to brokers, difference makers, and the exact folks that lease out all the retail in center city. Hell I'm going to be on one of their podcasts February 14th.

[jednc]

20 minutes ago, j-man said:

So all the bankers, and other middle and upper class people in Uptown don’t all have and use Apple products.....

No. They do not. 

[jtmonk]

11 minutes ago, j-man said:

Well that’s different that writing these paragraphs going in circles. My point it that in a new retail space of a new building Charlotte could easily support an Uptown Apple store. It’s a no brained. If this city can Build this many grocery stores in and around its urban core, I’m sure ONE Apple store would do beyond well. 

Well you must know something that Apple doesn't know since it's that obvious that they would be supported Uptown.  Listen, Apple has people that do their research and know which locations will give them more bang for their buck.  Uptown might be a good location for Apple in Charlotte but it's not the BEST location.  @ricky_davis_fan_21 has done a good just and explaining why this isn't going to happen anytime soon. 

Back to topic, any recent pictures of B Tower?

[j-man]

3 minutes ago, ricky_davis_fan_21 said:

The real probably is there is no easy way to create the kind of critical mass of retailers that would be needed to make any retail spot successful uptown. You aren't going to survive on 9-5 workers, and uptown is still only like 7-8000 people per sq mile. You have to make a destination where everyone within a 50 mile radius will want to go there. Once you establish that,  you have to renegotiate all the leases at Southpark that have proximity based lease agreements with Simon that don't allow you to open a store within a 10 mile radius.

That mentality is why things take forever to come. You have to put things there that will attract people. I’m sure if an Apple store was to be announced Uptown that that would spark interest for people to live nearby like how grocery stores, restaurants, and parks have done so in over the years in uptown. I think it would be another step forward to making Charlotte more of an 18 hour city. 

[Guest]

There might be a slight, ever so slight chance Apple Store opens at Ally Center, but the 4000 sq foot space for "Premier Retail" just doesn't seem large enough to me. 

[Cadi40]

Wasn’t there plans for a Westfield somewhere in Uptown? I’m guessing it’s on life support due to the abomination known as Lincoln Harris..

[j-man]

3 minutes ago, ricky_davis_fan_21 said:

I'm not reaching, I know what I'm talking about. I talk to brokers, difference makers, and the exact folks that lease out all the retail in center city. Hell I'm going to be on one of their podcasts February 14th.

Well give me a shoutout lmao

[CharlotteWkndBuzz]

3 minutes ago, ricky_davis_fan_21 said:

There might be a slight, ever so slight chance Apple Store opens at Ally Center, but the 4000 sq foot space for "Premier Retail" just doesn't seem large enough to me. 

What's the bottom-ish levels of JW look like sqft wise?  Appears to be pretty sizable for retail - not sure though.

*facing the plaza

Edited January 23, 2020 by CharlotteWkndBuzz

[Guest]

1 minute ago, Cadi40 said:

Wasn’t there plans for a Westfield somewhere in Uptown? I’m guessing it’s on life support due to the abomination known as Lincoln Harris..

One of the people who bid (and lost) on CTC had "someone like Westfield" as part of their presentation. They didn't have a commitment, probably no conversations with Westfield either. 

[j-man]

If Uptown gets an Apple Store just think of everyone who uses the light rail that could easily access it without driving. Just look at how much more crowded uptown is once they started bringing in more retail and restaurants and parks. I don’t think Uptown is ready for clothing stores but an Apple store yes. 

[Guest]

1 minute ago, CharlotteWkndBuzz said:

What's the bottom-ish levels of JW look like sqft wise?  Appears to be pretty sizable for retail - not sure though.

*facing the plaza

Oy vey, it doesn't even look like that retail space will have a door facing the plaza.

[j-man]

What about Latta Arcade? Lol wouldn’t that be a perfect spot? 

[Synopsis101]

South End is nice and all but tons of people who visit Charlotte don’t know South End exists (this will change when the transition from Uptown to South End becomes seamless and we build more hotels in South End). Right now a great number of visitors stay in uptown only. They think Charlotte is devoid of shopping options. We have tons of millennials living Uptown... I’m certain uptown can coexist with South End. All the “real” retail doesn’t have to go in one area.

[TheOneRJ]

Uptown has more activity after 5pm than SouthPark does. 

[Madison Parkitect]

Are some of you really out here saying that we can just throw an Apple store in uptown, with no other large retail concentration around it, and it'll do well? Come on. Apple stores in malls/retail centers get a lot of traffic from people walking by on their larger trip, and the ones in cities like New York get massive tourist traffic. Charlotte just doesn't have enough people or enough visitors to support a stand-alone Apple store where there is no other retail around it. How many people do you think are going to say "hey, I'm not doing anything today, why don't I go into uptown just to go to the Apple store?" Maybe a couple months after it opens, sure, but after that it becomes a store where you only go if you specifically need to buy something.

[Hushpuppy321]

48 minutes ago, CharlotteWkndBuzz said:

I'm sorry thread police.  But would like it here still as many have mentioned before a long time ago.  LU doesnt seem to be the retail i was hoping for either (yet), so Ally/JW  has a ton of potentiall.  I can't find the layout for the ground floor retail for either spot, but this could be a fantastic little shopping plaza.  Ally if i recall, has many retail spots at the bottom. 5 star JW will provide year-round money spenders too.

I agree with the points you’ve made but I think JW Marriot is going to be a 4-Star Hotel, not 5-Star.

[TheOneRJ]

1 minute ago, Madison Parkitect said:

Are some of you really out here saying that we can just throw an Apple store in uptown, with no other large retail concentration around it, and it'll do well? Come on. Apple stores in malls/retail centers get a lot of traffic from people walking by on their larger trip, and the ones in cities like New York get massive tourist traffic. Charlotte just doesn't have enough people or enough visitors to support a stand-alone Apple store where there is no other retail around it. How many people do you think are going to say "hey, I'm not doing anything today, why don't I go into uptown just to go to the Apple store?" Maybe a couple months after it opens, sure, but after that it becomes a store where you only go if you specifically need to buy something.

This has already been debunked once. 

[j-man]

2 minutes ago, TheOneRJ said:

Uptown has more activity after 5pm than SouthPark does. 

FACTS! Southpark is honestly a tiny mall that is usually dead the majority of the time outside of the weekends 

[Madison Parkitect]

Just now, TheOneRJ said:

This has already been debunked once. 

It has?

[TheOneRJ]

Just now, j-man said:

FACTS! Southpark is honestly a tiny mall that is usually dead the majority of the time outside of the weekends 

SouthPark is far from tiny or dead, but saying that Uptown doesn’t have enough after 5 activity is definitely wrong in comparison to a mall where Apple currently operates. 

Just now, Madison Parkitect said:

It has?

Yes, in the other thread where you said the exact same thing. There are multiple smaller markets than Charlotte with non-mall Apple stores. 

[j-man]

I made the comparison to Charleston which I stand by. Charleston Metro is nearly 4 times smaller than Charlotte and people visit Charleston for TOURISM not for an Apple store. Nobody on vacation is racing to the Apple store. That is for the residence of the area so like I said I am standing by my initial point. And yes Uptown gets more foot traffic through the day than all the malls do put together and center city has more residents than the areas that occupy Apple Stores now. 

[Guest]

5 minutes ago, j-man said:

I made the comparison to Charleston which I stand by. Charleston Metro is nearly 4 times smaller than Charlotte and people visit Charleston for TOURISM not for an Apple store. Nobody on vacation is racing to the Apple store. That is for the residence of the area so like I said I am standing by my initial point. And yes Uptown gets more foot traffic through the day than all the malls do put together and center city has more residents than the areas that occupy Apple Stores now. 

Its the only Apple Store within 120 miles. A region that includes Savannah, Hilton Head, Myrtle Beach, Beaufort, Georgetown, Florence. And the main shopping area of Charleston is downtown.

Edited January 23, 2020 by Guest

[j-man]

3 minutes ago, TheOneRJ said:

SouthPark is far from tiny or dead, but saying that Uptown doesn’t have enough after 5 activity is definitely wrong in comparison to a mall where Apple currently operates. 

Yes, in the other thread where you said the exact same thing. There are multiple smaller markets than Charlotte with non-mall Apple stores. 

Southpark is very tiny compared to all major city’s “Luxury Malls” look it up. And you may not know but stores surrounding the mall not attached are included in the square footage. So for the mall itself it is not big at all.  But Northlake is where the Apple store shouldn’t be. 

4 minutes ago, ricky_davis_fan_21 said:

Its the only Apple Store within 120 miles. A region that includes Savannah, Hilton Head, Myrtle Beach, Beaufort, Georgetown, Florence. And the main shopping area of Charleston is downtown.

I still stand by my point. I don’t think y’all understand that stores that have left uptow n do not cater to people there, and I am simply saying an Apple Store would and people wouldn’t have to go to the mall just to go to the store just like any urban city like NY, Chicago, and other cities though I know CLT isn’t that big but you have to start somewhere and I’m sure the other developments will follow. 

[Eightane]

6 minutes ago, j-man said:

Southpark is very tiny compared to all major city’s “Luxury Malls” look it up. And you may not know but stores surrounding the mall not attached are included in the square footage. So for the mall itself it is not big at all.  But Northlake is where the Apple store shouldn’t be. 

I still stand by my point. I don’t think y’all understand that stores that have left uptow n do not cater to people there, and I am simply saying an Apple Store would and people wouldn’t have to go to the mall just to go to the store just like any urban city like NY, Chicago, and other cities though I know CLT isn’t that big but you have to start somewhere and I’m sure the other developments will follow. 

It sounds to me like you're comparing SP to absolute mega-draw malls like Houston's Galleria, Atlanta's Lenox/Phipps etc. when those cities have easily twice as many people in their metro areas (and usually more than twice as many tourist-type activities or reasons for a mall to get even more traffic from vacationers and not *just* the local shoppers. Huge luxury meccas are something Charlotte has not yet reached the tier to support or possess so I don't see why that should be a mark against SP or even necessary to mention.

I do agree an Apple store would do relatively well in uptown, but as someone said before (and I'm currently too lazy to scroll up and check, hah) what Apple THEMSELVES would care about is whether a new Apple store in Uptown would do as well as a suburban location, and given the nature of our city's activity, when it happens and what kind, they could not right now assert that it would. Business is inherently sociopathic, which in this case means they have no higher duty towards placemaking in Charlotte if it conflicts with their profit margins.

TL;DR I also want an Apple in Uptown but I don't wonder why we don't have one yet, since corporations have their own priorities.

[CLT2014]

Chances that the team at Apple that picks which locations their stores go is reading Urban Planet... a site where the largest sub-forum is none other than Charlotte... a metro area that doesn't even crack the top 100 in the world.... Maybe 0.001%? 

The only people that know where Apple decides to make an investment to open a store is Apple. Even if we found the ideal 8,000 square foot retail location.... none of us work at Apple likely. 

Edited January 23, 2020 by CLT2014