5 uptown parking decks, ranked by creepiness
Living in uptown Charlotte isn’t like living in a hotbed of criminal activity.
According to Center City data and statistics: “The Central Division of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, which includes uptown and South End, consistently boasts one of the lowest crime rates of any division in Charlotte.”
Great. Good. Nonetheless, violent crime in Charlotte has increased overall by 20.9 percent during the first quarter of 2015.
And my anxiety about parking decks uptown has increased by about 40.2 percent since I moved back to the area in 2013.
I don’t blame anyone, but these parking decks creep me out sometimes. Here are five. I’ve conveniently ranked them in reverse order of creepiness:
(5) The Westin
You drag your feet down into the abyss and you wonder why this dude with the messenger bag is also walking down the slanted concrete so he MUST be following you. No one else is around to hear you breathe.
But you find the elevator fast and climb aboard and the walls are luxurious and plush so it’s fine.
(4) The Green Garage
Beyond the bursting green foliage outside the garage entrance, the stained stairwell opens to another underground space with a dark-blue cast like the ocean floor.
The AC unit buzzes louder than you could scream and you turn around to escape to the earth above.
That’s when you realize: The trees on the glass surrounding the level two elevator are a scene from “The Ring.”
(Image from Matte World Digital.)
Seven days.
(3) The Catalyst
This parking lot ascends toward the sun and has open-air spaces and is rather beautiful by day. But darkness falls and you get confused by the way the deck seems divided into corridors and the way every level is assigned an animal.
You start to jog in a panic looking for your car and suddenly nothing makes sense because you’re searching for an octopus or a swan or a turtle. Deep breaths won’t save you now.
(2) Levine Center for the Arts Parking Garage
The elevator under the Mint is all cheerful and aglow. Then you step inside and press P8 and sink into the earth and the doors open and you’re standing in what feels like a cage. First thought: “Get. Out.”
You’re surrounded by closed-in waste-colored walls.
And the last thing you will do is recycle something and read a blurb about aquifers next to the elevator.
(1) The Sheraton
You park at the top and it’s all fun and games and air and light.
Then you step into the elevator and the doors close and …
… You’re totally stuck in a 1970s assault scene. And the elevator is slow and shudders at the top so you have plenty of time to decide you’re about to plunge five levels below to your death.
You instantly realize Cherie Berry‘s face next to her signature on the wall is the last sight you will ever see.
Your best option is to avoid the eery, milky pink of the exterior elevator doors and sprint directly down the mysteriously spotted stairwell.
Godspeed.
Tell us everything about your creepy parking deck experiences. We’re listening. Tweet @Charlotte_Five.
Katie Toussaint edits for CharlotteFive and community news at the Charlotte Observer. She cherishes her open-air parking spot uptown. Follow her on Twitter @katietoussaint.
This story was originally published June 15, 2015 at 1:52 AM.