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NoDa (N Davidson St Arts District) Projects


uptownliving

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Until all of those places you mentioned are easily accessibly by walking, I'd argue there are still are needs, or at least wants. Of course, until more residenital comes, there won't be the demand. Where I lived in Boston, I didn't have to walk more than 3 blocks for EVERYTHING except my job and a "night out on the town". There was multiple convenience stores, clothing store, a groceries store, pharmacies, vetinary clinic, transit station, dozens of restaurants/bars, coffee shops, ice cream shop, video store, electronics store, etc, etc, etc. I think this should be goal of every urban neighborhood in Charlotte, mean those neighborhoods that are already centralized or adjacent to an established commercial strip. (NoDa, Elizabeth, Wilmore, Wesley Heights, Dilworth, Myers Park, Eastover, and Cherry).

When I was on DCDA, this was a big debate that made my opinion unpopular. I suggest that until density increases to a point where shops can be sustained on neighborhood and foot traffic alone, then we will never reachieve the neighborhood feel before. Too large a percent of the population is content to drive to outside the neighbrhood to either get better prices, selection, or convenience. Population thresholds to support true neighborhood retail are now much higher than the were 50 years ago because of this.

In order for this to happen (which I'm all for) we have to increase our density several times over, and it has to be done in a way that puts pedestrians first, so that walking is an enjoyable option. NoDa has a few good examples going on, and a few bad ones too. I think its a great goal to strive for though.

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If I lived close to Amelie's I would be there all day long :P Went by yesterday AM, and had not gone for awhile. The pastries and desserts are ridiculously good. And the salon style is very inviting in a Paris cafe society vibe. It was buzzing with people hanging out and groups at tables early in the morning. I picked up a wide variety of goodies to go. The chocolate croissant I ate on the way home and the other items were just as good as what I had in France. A nice change from the bagel rut I often get into in the mornings.

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I agree, Amelie's is great. Being open 24 hours seems to have drummed up more business for them. If they would get an espresso machine then I would be really happy.

On another note, I didn't see this mentioned anywhere, but The Coffee Cup is now open in NoDa.

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I agree, Amelie's is great. Being open 24 hours seems to have drummed up more business for them. If they would get an espresso machine then I would be really happy.

On another note, I didn't see this mentioned anywhere, but The Coffee Cup is now open in NoDa.

Is this the same Coffee Cup as what was on Morehead and later moved to University?

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Is this the same Coffee Cup as what was on Morehead and later moved to University?

Is it, although I am unclear if it is just the name, or the actual operation.

Also, Crepe Cellar is hard at work in retrofitting the front of thier building to match their business model. I love it. Looks like an European pub.

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I would love to see NoDa expand the urban fabric so it eventually connects to Uptown.

It is, in some ways. Area 15 is a wonderful place, and there's the new residential building on N. Davidson & 27th, around 16th and 15, including Bloc 90. If the NE Blue line extension gets built, will have see a corridor of growth & development along N. Davidson from uptown to Sugar Creek. One pet peeve, though - if the name "NoDa" wasn't gimmicky enough, lately I've heard Area 15 and other places in Optimist Park referred to as NoDa, or worse - "SoDa" (south of NoDa). <_<

Edited by InitialD
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It is, in some ways. Area 15 is a wonderful place, and there's the new residential building on N. Davidson & 27th, around 16th and 15, including Bloc 90. If the NE Blue line extension gets built, will have see a corridor of growth & development along N. Davidson from uptown to Sugar Creek. One pet peeve, though - if the name "NoDa" wasn't gimmicky enough, lately I've heard Area 15 and other places in Optimist Park referred to as NoDa, or worse - "SoDa" (south of NoDa). <_<

Good stuff that is also strengthing the fabric of the area....

The bike recyclery located at Area 51 is doubling their space and will soon have signed frontage on North Davidson. A large bicycling mural for the N. Davidson facing is also under consideration...

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One pet peeve, though - if the name "NoDa" wasn't gimmicky enough, lately I've heard Area 15 and other places in Optimist Park referred to as NoDa, or worse - "SoDa" (south of NoDa). <_<

"SoDa" is something that Tuscan Development was trying to spread when they were building Opt12. Just don't ever use it and hopefully it won't become popular. It makes no sense anyway.

Unfortunately I think "NoDa" will be used by a lot of people for the entire area around N Davidson St. from downtown to past NoDa proper. People just aren't as familiar with neighborhood names like Villa Heights and Optimist Park as they are with NoDa. It doesn't help that businesses and condo developments in Villa Heights (28th Ro, Amelie's, etc) and Optimist Park (e.g. Area 15) often market themselves as NoDa. I'm all for continuous development all along N. Davidson but I'd hate for that whole block of the city to be known as NoDa.

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I wish "North End" weren't being used for the area around Double Oaks, as it would be convenient to have both South and North Ends on the Blue Line, but then again, North End sounds fake.

I've often seen Villa Heights using "The Arts District," as well as "NoDa." Plaza Hills often markets itself as Plaza-Midwood, and I think they may even be part of our neighborhood association. As Central Avenue rejuvenates, especially west of The Plaza heading into Uptown, I can see Sunnyside (which is technically part of Elizabeth) and the abutting edge of Belmont stretching the "Plaza-Central" name.

My section of Plaza-Midwood was once the older Oakhurst of Charlotte. NoDa was once just North Charlotte. As fluid as their history, area names change.

Edited by southslider
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^ I think a lot of the adoption of successful brand names has to do with real estate. The neighborhood called "Plaza Shamrock" by the City was called "The Arts District" by real estate agents. Who has ever heard of Plaza Shamrock? But call it "The Arts District" and it makes you feel like they mean "NoDa" - which is nothing more than a successful brand.

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This isn't anything new. What we are referring to as Plaza-Midwood (and I'm NOT counting the new additions like Shamrock and Plaza Acres) decades ago during their development was actually over a dozen different neighborhoods. Only a small part was Midwood and I'm not even sure if any were just Plaza. At some point people begin to naturally refer to areas as names that become more used or easier to identify. This isn't new though I think the renaming by Real Estate agents for new names to be immediately used is (see NoDa).

NoDa actually wasn't the first moniker pasted to the area -- The Arts District was coined by Paul McBroom, one of the first pioneers or gentrifyers in the area and the original owner of The Neighborhood Theatre.

More recently, and IMO more stupidly, than NoDa and the failed SoDa was PlaCe -- a lame attempt to rename the Plaza-Central Ave area. I live in Place. Just can't believe that didn't catch on, eh?

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Per the O, Mercury is scaling back and will be focusing on the smaller condo building first. I thought it was completely dead so this is good news. Especially since the developers are in talks with a supermarket to occupy the ground floor. I imagine a good centrally located market in NoDa would be great news for neighborhood residents :) I wonder who it could be. A Fresh Market perhaps? The space is too small for an HT or similar scale store.

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Per the O, Mercury is scaling back and will be focusing on the smaller condo building first. I thought it was completely dead so this is good news. Especially since the developers are in talks with a supermarket to occupy the ground floor. I imagine a good centrally located market in NoDa would be great news for neighborhood residents :) I wonder who it could be. A Fresh Market perhaps? The space is too small for an HT or similar scale store.

I actually like the 3 floor design, I think the scale of the project will fit better with the neighborhood. Something like Reid's would be a good fit for the grocery store. I was just thinking of how tenants will have a good view of the neon church sign.

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Speaking of grocery, the Brown Bag store that took over the Canvas Monkey space is now open. They have a good selection of beer and wine and the prices are similar to those you'll find at HT. They also have a small selection of grocery items like pantry food items and cleaning products. You can order food from the Boudreaux's take out menu.

It's a good addition to the neighborhood and I hope people will support it.

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Good stuff that is also strengthing the fabric of the area....

The bike recyclery located at Area 51 is doubling their space and will soon have signed frontage on North Davidson. A large bicycling mural for the N. Davidson facing is also under consideration...

Recently got a tour of the new 1,500 foot retail space at the Re-cyclery. I hope they are going to be able to use the N. Davidson entrance into the facility, because as of right now you have to find a little gravel driveway on N. Caldwell and walk through the shop to get to where the bicycles are located.

They have an impressive collection of bicycles. If you are a fan of classic bikes, they have Raleigh, Bianchi, Peugeot and the "Universal Japanese Bicycles" of the 80's including Nishiki and Panasonic. Some bikes are practically brand new, some have been converted to fixed gear, others have been restored to as close to original as possible. Here are a couple photos:

3384457918_6073dd1e66.jpg

3383645915_82d8282948.jpg

3383645595_6cb67858de.jpg

More photos and video tour here.

Edited by InitialD
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d.

They have an impressive collection of bicycles. If you are a fan of classic bikes, they have Raleigh, Bianchi, Peugeot and the "Universal Japanese Bicycles" of the 80's including Nishiki and Panasonic. Some bikes are practically brand new, some have been converted to fixed gear, others have been restored to as close to original as possible.

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Nice photos InitialD ... & thanks for the thumbs up, but more so, the effort to find it. New directional signage is on the way.

There are good deals to be had, but not steals. The proceeds go to Trips for Kids and underwrite this non profit's community efforts. For example, the kids who go through their Earn a Bike Program and successfully complete the bike safety lessons, walk away with a new bike, a fitted helmet, front & rear lights, and a lock. All free. So while the used bikes they sell to the general public may not be steals, the money spent is passed forward to better the larger community.

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That's good news about the signage, if you don't know the area it can be hard to find. I plan on getting a bike from there sometime this spring. I have a Nishiki Olympic 12 with 29" wheels that is way to big for my 5'7" self. I'd rather get a bike from here than Craigslist because I'll know the bike is in good working condition.

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