A new tower is planned for midtown Charlotte, but there’s pushback from City Council

A proposed tower — featuring apartments, office spaces or possibly a hotel, plus a pedestrian plaza — could be the latest addition to midtown Charlotte, near Central Piedmont Community College and a Little Sugar Creek Greenway connection.

But the roughly 2-acre project proposed along South Kings Drive from developer Tribek Properties prompted some pushback from the Charlotte City Council during a rezoning hearing Monday night.

Some Council members worry it could create more traffic congestion along the Third-Fourth Street connector, leading to I-277, and pose a hazard to pedestrians.

And they agreed with a Cherry neighborhood leader that the proposed project fails to deliver community benefits, including affordable housing, to the rapidly gentrifying area.

Part of the site is currently a SunTrust branch location, about a half-mile from the Metropolitan shopping center. It’s owned by Southstar Holdings-Crown Concord LLC and is appraised at $5.46 million, according to Mecklenburg County property records.

But the rezoning plan calls for a new building that is up to a maximum of 300 feet, or roughly 28 stories, with a “pedestrian amenity zone” along Kings Drive. Another “large open space area” for pedestrians would be situated along East Third Street.

Mayor Pro Tem Julie Eiselt criticized the scarce amount of public space. “I’d like to see something there in the community that compensates to what we know we’re going to have to fix down the road,” Eiselt said.

No decision was made on the redevelopment Monday.

There are several visions for the mixed-use site, according to the rezoning petition, but it may take another six months to a year to settle on the final plan. Under one development option, the building would be up to 340,000 square feet.

In April, the City Council had approved a nearby apartment tower next to Midtown Park, alongside Metropolitan Avenue and South Kings Drive, with up to 330 multifamily units.

Residential, retail mix

This latest tower, if approved by the Council, could include up to 350 housing units, according to another development option. And up to 8,000 square feet could be designated for retail shops, personal service businesses and restaurants.

If the tower is ultimately used for office space, it could end up being just 20 stories, according to minutes from a May community meeting. If it’s constructed as a multifamily building, by contrast, it could be 30 stories.

The parking deck could be three to six levels, according to the May meeting. The building is also close to the CityLYNX Gold Line streetcar.

Sylvia Bittle-Patton, with the Cherry Community Organization, said the tower could negatively impact the character of the nearby historically Black neighborhood. The current SunTrust building there is just a fraction of the height, she pointed out.

Bittle-Patton told City Council member that Charlotte missed out an opportunity to provide affordable housing units.

“We’re asking you to be more intentional about these opportunities to replace what has been lost,” Bittle-Patton said, invoking the city’s history of “removing and erasing” affordable housing.

Council member Greg Phipps pushed the developer to reconsider adding affordable housing options. John Carmichael, representing Tribek Properties, said that can be discussed in future community meetings.

The rezoning plan still requires some modifications to move forward, according to city staff. That includes ensuring protected bicycle lanes and pedestrian walkways.

Charlotte’s Midtown area is already rapidly developing, accelerated by Atrium Health’s ambitious endeavor to bring a four-year medical school to the Queen City.

Atrium CEO Gene Woods has said the school, situated less than a mile away from the hospital’s flagship Carolina Medical Center in Dilworth, would become an “iconic” part of the Charlotte skyline.

This story was originally published July 19, 2021 at 9:23 PM.