Part of the former Centene campus in University City will now be apartments
What was once set to be a sprawling commercial campus in University City with over 3,200 employees will now be housing for over 500 families.
Atlanta-based Flournoy Development Group plans to turn 52 acres at 2200 One Electrolux Way and 10200 Claude Freeman Drive near Research Park into over 500 apartments and town homes and 7,500 square-feet of commercial space.
The first step in the redevelopment was getting the area rezoned for residential use. That was approved by City Council on Monday.
It’s a vastly different project than what was originally planned.
A pulled billion-dollar investment
Back in 2020, housing wasn’t on the table for the undeveloped area in Research Park. It was going to be a hub for Centene Corp., a St. Louis health insurance giant.
Centene planned to build its East Coast headquarters there, along with a technology hub spread across 2.4 million square feet.
It was a $1 billion investment that would initially bring at least 3,237 jobs to Charlotte. At the time, it was the state’s largest job announcement and was dubbed a “historic occasion” by Mayor Vi Lyles.
The following year, construction began on a 700,000-square-foot main office.
The 10-year plan was running smoothly at first. Then, Centene abruptly backed out in August 2022.
The health insurer said with all of its employees working either fully remote or hybrid, it would be reducing its real estate footprint, rendering the campus unnecessary.
Vanguard and housing
Centene finished constructing the main office building and it was eventually sold to wealth management leader Vanguard.
The Pennsylvania-based investment firm purchased the 91-acre campus at 2405 Governor Hunt Road last year for an undisclosed price. Vanguard said it was planning to consolidate its operations and have more than 2,400 employees on the site. That office is set to open this year.
Now, housing will follow.
Nestled between appliance-maker Electrolux’s headquarters, the Charlotte University City DMV, a Duke Energy facility and another apartment complex, Flournoy Development will add over 500 housing units. The development will occur in two phases.
The first will bring seven buildings with up to 320 apartments. It also will include about 3,000 square feet of commercial space.
The second phase will add 240 apartments through six buildings, 20 attached town homes and 4,500 square feet of commercial space.
There’s no timeline on the project. It’s also unclear what the commercial elements will look like.
The site is zoned for no drive-throughs. The planning agreement also states that if a commercial element is unable to be developed within five years of the rezoning, a non-residential use wouldn’t be required.
The rezoning conditions also include 2 acres of open space as a public amenity and Flournoy will be contributing $10,000 to Mecklenburg County Parks & and Recreation for park improvements. Flournoy previously told the Charlotte Business Journal that it would eventually purchase the site from Centene.
Research Park growth
If it seems like more housing and retail is flooding that area of University City and Research Park, that’s because it is.
Further north of the Flournoy site along Mallard Creek Church Road, a 15-acre mixed-use development is underway. It’s across the street from Trader Joe’s.
The project by Stiles, a Southeast-based real estate development firm, already has a few tenants including Starbucks, Chipotle and DECA Dental Group.
There’s also housing. Homebuilder Taylor Morrison is constructing 135 town homes on the site. Starting prices for the town homes are a little over $490,000 and the project is almost complete.
