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IKEA's Charlotte Store


monsoon

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So that would mean that once City (or IKEA) Blvd is built to University City Blvd, would the street have three separate names within a mile stretch? I could have sworn I read somebody on here saying that the "plan" was to name the entire road University City Blvd once the roads were connected. I really hope this idea stays in check as UCity needs some kind of recognition along the highway. Sure we have the University Research Park sign and UNC Charlotte sign, but otherwise people are left clueless as to what they are driving through.

I personally don't think a single billboard is such a crime against the "natural interstate wall" when the company is going to bring in a sick amount of sales tax revenue that can be turned into better things. However, if we can avoid that altogether by changing the name of a little road, then why not? Naming the road IKEA Blvd isn't so bad when one considers exit 49: Speedway Blvd/Concord Mills Blvd. If the business is going to change the face of that particular road, why not name the road after it? I just don't think Charlotte needs to keep having roads change names every other block. That irritates me.

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^Indeed. When they renamed all of the roads that comprise today's Harris Blvd this the city said they were doing so to reduce the confusion of roads by eliminating name changes. This was the reason given by people and businesses who complained about the costs of having to make an address change.

So now that the city has neglected the University area for so long they are going to add insult to injury by letting corporations name roads after themselves. We already have IBM Dr. and now Ikea Blvd. As I have said many times on this forum the city really has no interest in what happens to most of the neighborhoods in this city beyond downtown and a few signature neighborhoods preferring instead to let corporate interests dictate what happens. This is a prime example of that.

I simply don't understand why so many people put Ikea up on a pedestal when this is some of the worst self promotion and in your face development that I have ever seen.

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On the other hand, this will make the 'Former Charlotte Stores' thread much easier - just think 50 years from now:

- remember when Charlotte had an Ikea?

- Oh I remember that store - interesting turn of the century furniture - where was that?

- Well, on Ikea Blvd, it's just an exit off of 85N now.

Judging by every other Ikea I've seen, they don't really need to advertise that much with signs or street names - just look for the huge blue and yellow building on the side of the highway.

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So that would mean that once City (or IKEA) Blvd is built to University City Blvd, would the street have three separate names within a mile stretch? I could have sworn I read somebody on here saying that the "plan" was to name the entire road University City Blvd once the roads were connected.
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In the base analysis we(the citizens of Charlotte) really only have ourselves to blame for this. We continue to vote in the same people over and over again and then turn around and complain about what the people we continue to vote for are doing. If we truly want change from the status quo then we have to vote in people that will effect those changes.

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^You usually state something like this when threads go this way and I assume that most people posting in this thread are aware they have the right to vote and what it means to use it. I don't think you need to remind people again to go and vote. Blaming IKEA's bad and unsustainable design, tearing up the environment, and attempts to subvert public infrastructure to promote its business, on the voters is barking up the wrong tree in my book. We bring up these issues here at UrbanPlanet so people can hold their elected politicians accountable for the things they vote for. There are very few other mechanisms in this city that will allow this kind of discussion on the real issues that seem to always be missing in our very boosterish and lame media.

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It is a lot more than just voting. There is a lot of great discussion and ideas that come from this forum...but those ideas and opinions usually don't show up at the public meetings where the decision makers in this city reside. For example this IKEA rezoning only had 2 people that showed up to speak in opposition. Neither of those people talked about the siting of the store or any kind of urban design elements. All they talked about was the surrounding road network. Personally it is disappointing for me to not see the great ideas from this forum to get the light of day in City Council and Mecklenburg County Commision meetings.

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The city and the county have big money to make from this project. If lacking a freeway-visible sign reduces sales by, let's say, 10%, then sales tax revenues to the city and county go down 10%. Given that the city and county have a vested interest in getting the freeway visibility, then the question is which is tackier a street named after them, or a massive 50s-style I'm-taller sign. I don't know, really, as they both seem pretty lame, but I'm probably going to side with the street name, because it is fairly common practice these days.

However, I wish they'd accept just having the side street off of City Blvd be IKEA Blvd and simply have DOT add a that to the big sign on 85, so it is the City Blvd and Ikea Blvd exit or something.

Really, at this point, street names don't have much value anymore. They have already been given away easily, especially in the suburbs. It is part of the reason it seemed to so trite to pursue a street name for MLK, as it just seems to devalue his legacy. So, given that street names are already devalued, then why not just put IKEA on one.

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You know, come to think of it, why should we have to name the street IKEA Blvd when we could put up directional signs like we have for many other destinations? Lowes Motor Speedway, UNC Charlotte, Bank of America Stadium, University Research Park, Paramounts Carowinds, and I think even Ray's Splash Planet may have an interstate destination/directional sign.

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^^My guess is Cabarrus Co. would have let IKEA put up a massive separate sign had they chosen to locate there. I'll take the street name over the sign any day.

Cabarrus County would have renamed that stretch of I-85 to something with Ikea in it and painted the road blue and yellow if they were given the chance. :whistling:

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I can bear the thought of renaming streets for major business sites (Concord Mills Blvd.), but this is not a shopping complex or business park. It's a single, Wal-Mart sized store on the side of the highway. IMO, naming a road after IKEA is like naming one after a Target; it just isn't a deserving namesake.

I'm siding with Metro on this one; enforce the damn laws on the books and end the conversation. Charlotte is getting Lando'ed :)

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  • 2 weeks later...

City Council is scheduled to vote on Monday to change the name of City Blvd to Ikea Blvd. This would only affect the section from I-85 to N Tryon St. If the City Council approves it, then it head to the NCDOT for approval. The city will have to pay for the costs of changing any highways signs with the new name. It is estimated that cost will be somewhere between $60K-$90K. Will be interesting to see if there is some deal worked out where IKEA will reimburse the city for that cost.

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City Council is scheduled to vote on Monday to change the name of City Blvd to Ikea Blvd. This would only affect the section from I-85 to N Tryon St. If the City Council approves it, then it head to the NCDOT for approval. The city will have to pay for the costs of changing any highways signs with the new name. It is estimated that cost will be somewhere between $60K-$90K. Will be interesting to see if there is some deal worked out where IKEA will reimburse the city for that cost.
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