Charlotte Off Topic

[monsoon]

[Southend]

Has anyone changed their plans due to the wonderfully warm weather we are having this week?  Unfortunately this pretty much means that most of the ski resorts here are getting ready to close down.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

i've decided to drive with the windows open.

[utcltjay]

not going skiing this thursday as I had originally planned ;(

[appatone]

This may not be that interesting to you guys and you may already know this but I'll post it anyway. McCormick & Schmick's lease Uptown is official.

McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants plans to open on the ground level by late spring in the 200 South Tryon Building at Tryon and Fourth streets, across Tryon from Dean & Deluca Market Cafe.

Doug Smith's article

[49er]

thats good news. that space has been available for over 2 years. i always wondered why it hadnt attracted a tenant. Too bad M&S and Mortons are doing Southpark locations too. They're kinda close together in my opinion

[DigitalSky]

Honestly, places like M&S and M need to deviate from SouthPark and Uptown...

[monsoon]

Though it is supposed to get cold this weekend, I heard a statistic that in the last 24 winters, 14 of them were snowless in Charlotte. Seems to me that I remember a period in the 90s where we went 4-5 years without snow, and one winter when it really didn't get cold at all.

[Southend]

this weather blows. i have no excuse for gaining weight.

[Spartan]

I am wondering where college street gets its name from. I realize that might be a stupid question, but as far as I can tell, there is not college on or near it.

[appatone]

ha ha... Good question spartan. I'm not sure if there was ever a college there either but I have two possible explanations. I have heard that at one time a college sat where founders hall (the college st. side of BofA corporate) sits today. I'm not sure if that's true though. Second, maybe college went from uptown to a college, say Queens maybe?

[SmellyCat]

I am wondering where college street gets its name from. I realize that might be a stupid question, but as far as I can tell, there is not college on or near it.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It sometimes seems appropriate when you walk past many of the "college-like" bars on N. College.

[UptownGrrl]

I am wondering where college street gets its name from. I realize that might be a stupid question, but as far as I can tell, there is not college on or near it.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

"Queens University of Charlotte was founded in 1857 as the Charlotte Female Institute, located at College and 9th Streets near the center of the city. From 1891

[appatone]

This is odd but after all isn't that what this thread is for? I have a book that lists Charlotte's MLK statue as the "ugliest MLK statue" in the country. Someone even questioned whether or not the artst had even seen MLK's picture before creating the statue. I just thought it was a fitting thought for MLK day tomorrow.

[norm21499]

Why exactly was the John Belk Freeway built when there was already the Brookshire Freeway? I know that part of what is now John Belk used to be the old Independence Blvd. So why exactly did the city/state tear up a whole bunch of stuff to build that freeway, and why was it built?

[monsoon]

At the time it was approved I-277 was known simply as the "inner loop" as a\opposed to the "outer loop" which became the I-485 project. At the time in the late 1970s, Charlotte like most cities did not see the importance of developing the core of the city and instead was more interested in building highways to make it easy to get through the city. (Good transportation = good commerce).

As you also mentioned, the then Independance Blvd, snaked through the city down what is now Carson Blvd, then became Wilkenson Blvd. There was also a rather scary bridge over South Blvd that had almost a 90 degree turn about 25 feet in the air. A number of drivers fell to their deaths off that bridge. None of Independance was limited access as it is now but instead was narrow 9ft wide lanes with stoplights and stop & go traffic. All of this made the trip from East Charlotte to West Charlotte a long and tedious drive throughout most of the day. The Inner loop was supposed to fix these problems by providing a freeway around downtown. I am not sure why they didn't think the Brookshire was up to the task.

The NCDOT was of course involved in this as well and with the ensuing politics that always comes with building roads in Charlotte, both the inner loop and outer loops were approved and the rest is history. It did solve the problem of Independance Blvd, but the resulting cost was the wholesale destruction of square miles of homes and businesses all around the downtown area, and a complete separation of the CBD from the rest of Charlotte. It is a big problem that still exists today.

[norm21499]

thanks for the info man, it was really interesting. I do think it is interesting that they decided to finish tearing up second ward to help the freeway intstead of diverting the traffic onto brookshire. Racism at its best.....I do wish that a good portion of the john belk could b capped off and development allowed on it to help uptown rejoin the rest of the city.

[monsoon]

I don't think you could blame any of this on racism. Brooklyn had been removed decades earlier and the creation of the people unfriendly Marshal Park leveled even more houses. The destruction caused by I-277 was an equal opportunity destroyer. Knocking off such stuff as Arnold Palmer Cadillac (which used to be downtown), a number of hotels & restaurants, and so forth. By the time it was started in 1980, there was very little housing left there.

[SmellyCat]

Timely discussion for MLK day!

Anyway, I've only been on this board for about 3 months and have learned a lot of new things about Charlotte in that short time thanks to all of you. I thought it might be a good idea to see where you all are from and what part of the area you currently live in.

Im originally from NYC, now live uptown (Fourth Ward).

[monsoon]

I was born in Myrtle Beach, lived in Charlotte from 2-5 (don't remember too much about that). Went to public school in Myrtle Beach and moved back here when I graduated from highschool.

[norm21499]

I was born in Chicago, lived here in Charlotte since 1997 or 1998, and I currently live in Noda.

[norm21499]

We all should maybe meet up sometime or something. My contact info is norm01485 on both aim and yahoo messengers. Feel free to talk to me! Or you can e-mail me at [email protected]

[Neo]

I'm from Charlotte originally but moved to Chicago for a job and have since moved back.

[ezcheese]

I grew up in Burlington, moved to Greensboro, moved to Charlotte (Cotswold) and now I'm back in Greensboro.

[uptownliving]

I was born in Charlotte and still live here.

[UptownGrrl]

Been in North Carolina since 1992, and in Charlotte since 1997. Originally from the sprawling suburbs of D.C.