Bearden Park in Third Ward, Uptown Charlotte

[Miesian Corners]

9 hours ago, CLT704 said:

^ It's a shame that the setbacks aren't lit anymore and that the lights go off at midnight. Anyone know if they're ever going to light the setbacks again?

Setbacks (terraces) will be back on late spring. Roofing work is being done on all of them and code dictated the electricity be deactivated until the work is complete.

Edited February 17, 2019 by Miesian Corners
grammar

[kermit]

Dang, dog pee really is hammering the grass at Bearden. 

Despite that it’s very busy on a nice Tuesday evening (pregame) 

[navigator319]

12 hours ago, kermit said:

Dang, dog pee really is hammering the grass at Bearden. 

Despite that it’s very busy on a nice Tuesday evening (pregame) 

Outside the 15x15 spot directly in front of Element the grass was going great until SHOUT last week.  It really destroyed the small oval and did a number on the big grass.

[go_vertical]

[QCxpat]

The waterfall in Romare Bearden Park at dusk - today

[QCxpat]

Today in Charlotte  -  19th Anniversary of 09/11  -  1:00 p.m.

Edited September 11, 2020 by QCxpat

[QCxpat]

Today 9/11/2022 -  8:45 a.m.  -  Romare Bearden Park

Edited September 11, 2022 by QCxpat

[SydneyCarton]

 

 

Edited November 10, 2022 by SydneyCarton

[kermit]

The Knights are opening a year-round Pub on Mint Street (I assume its the old yogurt place). They also promise a "permanent food truck" This is a much needed addition to the stretch of Mint.

If its going where I think it is in the ballpark I doubt it will allow for views of the field, bummer.

https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2023/01/18/charlotte-knights-pub-planned.html

Edited January 21, 2023 by kermit

[RANYC]

17 hours ago, kermit said:

The Knights are opening a year-round Pub on Mint Street (I assume its the old yogurt place). They also promise a "permanent food truck" This is a much needed addition to the stretch of Mint.

If its going where I think it is in the ballpark I doubt it will allow for views of the field.

https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2023/01/18/charlotte-knights-pub-planned.html

Can you help to place this for me a bit as I wasn't here when the yogurt place was open?  Will this project at all improve the chain-link fenced stretch of grass fronting West 4th Street, or this is strictly a Mint street impact?

[kermit]

2 hours ago, RANYC said:

Can you help to place this for me a bit as I wasn't here when the yogurt place was open?  Will this project at all improve the chain-link fenced stretch of grass fronting West 4th Street, or this is strictly a Mint street impact?

If it is the slot I assume it is, it’s adjacent to the main ballpark entry at Mint and MLK (about 100 ft from MLK). If it is there (and that is the only available existing space for it) then it will have no impact on 4th.

On the plus side, it should be a nice edge for Bearden park.

Edited January 19, 2023 by kermit

[SpiritOf76]

Haven’t been to the park or Belfast mill in a few months but definitely noticed an increase of vagrants and people asking for money.  I stand my own, but can see how the current situation can be very unsafe and unsettling to visitors or citizens wanting to enjoy the public park. 

[Temeteron]

3 hours ago, SpiritOf76 said:

Haven’t been to the park or Belfast mill in a few months but definitely noticed an increase of vagrants and people asking for money.  I stand my own, but can see how the current situation can be very unsafe and unsettling to visitors or citizens wanting to enjoy the public park. 

The 7-11 is the worst. There is always pandhandlers and smelly people around that side of the park. So annoying

[DonkeyKong]

9 hours ago, Temeteron said:

The 7-11 is the worst. There is always pandhandlers and smelly people around that side of the park. So annoying

I walked through the park Saturday evening and there was trash all over and its smelled like urine.  Uptown used to be clean.  The county and the city need to do better. 

[704Dimitri]

[SydneyCarton]

I recall when this park was made by replacing a sea of parking lots.  What was once Charlotte’s “Central Park” has become infested by homeless people and crime.  I really hope that the city deploys a lot more police to patrol the park and Uptown generally.  The rise in crime and homelessness that I observe every time in come to Charlotte is disturbing.  The same is true in Chapel Hill and Durham.  In Chapel Hill, people want to believe that it’s a paradise like the Garden of Eden, and they refuse to acknowledge the problem.  Also, it’s so left-wing that people don’t trust the police.  I hope that  Charlotte addresses this problem because the QoL in Uptown is decreasing rapidly.

 

https://amp.charlotteobserver.com/news/business/article283783338.html

 

 

After Malik Lloyd’s shift ended on New Year’s Eve at Mellow Mushroom, across from Romare Bearden Park in uptown Charlotte, he headed to his car in a nearby garage when he heard a commotion from the park.

He assumed the pops he heard were fireworks, he said, until he saw crowds of people running down Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. “I was nervous because of how many people were on the streets,” he said.

Five people were shot just before midnight Sunday in Romare Bearden Park, and police said Daevion Crawford, 19, is facing charges in the New Year’s Eve shooting.

 

It’s the latest high-profile incident at the park during a holiday gathering. Some business people said they are getting fed up with the violence and are closing their restaurants early or not opening at all during those times.

All the violence also could taint people’s perception of uptown, said Angelo Tsepelis, general manager of The French Quarter restaurant across from the park.

“It’s gonna hurt business if you’re having these kinds of problems,” Tsepelis said. “People are not going to come into the city. It’s not good for downtown Charlotte.”

 

In fact, The French Quarter is no longer open during big holiday events because of what happened on July 4th, Tsepelis said. Police arrested 17 juveniles and cited 15 parents or guardians after a brawl broke out across the street at the park, as tens of thousands gathered for the Charlotte Knights’ holiday fireworks show at Truist Field. 

“We don’t open anymore. It’s just trouble,” Tsepelis said. We don’t want to deal with issues.”

Regarding Sunday’s shooting, he said, “It literally happened right in front of the restaurant. We have windows. What if a customer is sitting in the window and gets hit by crossfire?”

But criminal behavior at the park isn’t isolated to holiday events. 

There have been fights between youths in the park during summer, Tsepelis said, and other incidents, including the November shooting of two teen girls near the park. Three teens were charged in that case.

 

UNRULY TEENS A GROWING PROBLEM FOR SOME

Chex Grill & Wings opened three years ago on South Tryon Street, kitty-corner from the park. The late-night restaurant closed early on New Year’s Eve because of what is becoming an increasingly stressful problem — unruly teens, according to general manager Saad Alkahlout.

On Sunday, Alkahlout was handling security for seven hours, locking the door as customers came in and out. Then, some teens unlocked a door and let others in. They were dancing in the dining room and smoking and vaping in the bathroom.

“They ignore my requests to leave,” he said. “It drives customers away.”

It’s becoming an increasing problem, Alkahlout said, especially on weekends when he has to call police for help. Along with business, it’s affecting employment. Three employees recently quit, including one who had a drink thrown at him, Alkahlout said. 

Even a security guard quit.

“Every year it’s worse and worse,” he said. “You don’t want to die because of kids.”

Alkahlout would like to see increased police presence, maybe a patrol car parked out front and another near the park. 

“I hope something is going to change,” Alkahlout said. “It’s too much.”

MORE SAFETY AWARE 
 

Next door to Chex Grill, Rhino Market & Deli managers said they haven’t experienced the same problems as their neighbor. Since the pandemic, the market closes two hours earlier at 9 p.m.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 5 by SydneyCarton

[CLT2014]

Honestly perception becomes reality and I fear Bearden Park is going to get a reputation like the Epicentre did where people start to shy away from going to the park during events in fear of violence. All of it degrades quality of life, civic pride, and gathering Uptown as the heart of the city.

April 16th shootings at the park, man killed and then shootout with CMPD in May, brawl on July 4th, two girls shot under the gazebo in November, mass shooting on New Years Eve, et... we can't have a situation where every quarter people are getting shot or fights happen at the park. People will start staying away. 

Edited January 5 by CLT2014

[RANYC]

3 hours ago, CLT2014 said:

Honestly perception becomes reality and I fear Bearden Park is going to get a reputation like the Epicentre did where people start to shy away from going to the park during events in fear of violence. All of it degrades quality of life, civic pride, and gathering Uptown as the heart of the city.

April 16th shootings at the park, man killed and then shootout with CMPD in May, brawl on July 4th, two girls shot under the gazebo in November, mass shooting on New Years Eve, et... we can't have a situation where every quarter people are getting shot or fights happen at the park. People will start staying away. 

Totally agree.  It's not the aggregated statistics.  This is a very high-profile location in the heartbeat of the region and during a high-profile occasion for gathering.  This is not just another shooting.  I'm appalled at City Leadership's reaction to this mass shooting.  Barely a murmur until Tariq proposed a task force to conduct some data-driven crime analysis to understand why this is becoming a large-event pattern.  I personally could care less about another construction project in Uptown until the hooliganism in Uptown gets fixed.

Tariq a mere single district council person.  This task force is long overdue and should have been proposed when that pharma CEO was hit in the head by a stray bullet out of the epicentre as he walked out of a business lunch, and the proposals should have come from at least the mayor or city manager or perhaps even an at-large rep.  Apparently, Tariq is the only one who’d rather activate a multi-party response to treat this as a big deal and not just another incident.  I have my issues with Tariq’s style and approach, but by God he appears to be the only one in leadership trying to govern with a pulse and a clock.

Edited January 5 by RANYC

[Norm2]

The teens that caused problems in Epicenter didn't disappear. Now that Epicenter is dead they've moved on to Bearden park. You can add additional police at the park, but that only moves the problem somewhere else. We definitely need a larger solution that gets these teens off of the streets.

[CLT2014]

58 minutes ago, norm21499 said:

The teens that caused problems in Epicenter didn't disappear. Now that Epicenter is dead they've moved on to Bearden park. You can add additional police at the park, but that only moves the problem somewhere else. We definitely need a larger solution that gets these teens off of the streets.

There were a multiple police officers already at Bearden Park when the shots rang out. The response to the victims by police was very quick and they caught the suspect in Uptown. Cops can't stop every bullet though and in mere seconds 5 people were bleeding despite officers being less than 100 feet away in a crowd.

I don't know if metal detectors are needed during special events around the park or what... gangs, weapons with youth, et. is such a complex problem and these youth keep coming to the big events Uptown and ruining it for everybody else (especially those that got shot!).  

Edited January 5 by CLT2014

[carolinaboy]

What are the gun laws in Charlotte? Are handguns legal?

[CLT2014]

7 minutes ago, carolinaboy said:

What are the gun laws in Charlotte? Are handguns legal?

They aren't very restrictive, but kids aren't allowed to have guns anywhere in the state. Youth just steal them out of cars, et. The amount of people that leave a handgun in the glove compartment for example is staggering.... CMPD has over 1,000 guns stolen from cars each year.

Edited January 5 by CLT2014

[carolinaboy]

42 minutes ago, CLT2014 said:

They aren't very restrictive, but kids aren't allowed to have guns anywhere in the state. Youth just steal them out of cars, et. The amount of people that leave a handgun in the glove compartment for example is staggering.... CMPD has over 1,000 guns stolen from cars each year.

Gotcha. I guess I was wondering if there were additional prohibitions within the city limits.

[kermit]

8 hours ago, RANYC said:

Barely a murmur until Tariq proposed a task force to conduct some data-driven crime analysis to understand why this is becoming a large-event pattern. 

Not directed at anyone here, but I wonder what exactly Tariq expects to find from this tea-leaf reading exercise. Since he said he wants to analyze central site, public event, crime I can promise that the only measurable significant variables will be number of attendees and amount of active security (e.g. metal detectors or (perhaps) the number of uniformed officers per attendee) at the venue. There is very little useful that can be learned in this context and even less that might lead to workable/legal policy.  As someone who does this sort of analysis regularly I can say, in this particular case, this is a waste of time and taxpayer resources.

To paraphrase (and invert) a classic statement from the highly esteemed NRA: "teens don't shoot people, guns shoot people." {I won't debate this throwaway line, but it does seem pretty clear that fewer guns means fewer of these violent incidents (and fewer people injured at each one). There was no 'good guy with a gun' scenario at work here based on the descriptions given above]

Edited January 6 by kermit

[RANYC]

22 minutes ago, kermit said:

Not directed at anyone here, but I wonder what exactly Tariq expects to find from this tea-leaf reading exercise. Since he said he wants to analyze central site, public event, crime I can promise that the only measurable significant variables will be number of attendees and amount of active security (e.g. metal detectors or (perhaps) the number of uniformed officers per attendee) at the venue. There is very little useful that can be learned in this context and even less that might lead to workable/legal policy.  As someone who does this sort of analysis regularly I can say, in this particular case, this is a waste of time and taxpayer resources.

To paraphrase (and invert) a classic statement from the highly esteemed NRA: "teens don't shoot people, guns shoot people." {I won't debate this throwaway line, but it does seem pretty clear that few guns means fewer of these violent incidents (and fewer people injured at each one). There was no 'good guy with a gun' scenario at work here based on the descriptions given above]

Data-driven crime analysis isn't new and research shows it can be effective in crime reduction if insights from the data inform policy creation and policing strategy fairly quickly after the analysis.  I suspect Tariq would like a cross-section of leadership and stakeholders to all be reading from the same page on who's perpetrating, when they're doing it, what's discovered about motivation beyond when the headlines go away, whether the criminal chain of perpetrators could have been disrupted before an incident occurred, whether we are doing adequate security planning for large-scale community gatherings, whether the policing framework is sufficient for large events, whether we could be helped by weapons detection systems for large events and whether alerts from those systems inform a timely response by police on the ground at or proximal to a large event.  Again, he's doing exactly what he should be doing. Forging ahead with a wide network of stakeholders to try and brainstorm or ideate even when the answers aren't right there in front of you.  What we can't do is just stay silent for days after a mass shooting because we think it's just too hard to answer such complex questions.

Edited January 5 by RANYC