West Charlotte’s 1,400-acre River District gets its first commercial tenant
The River District in west Charlotte is getting its first piece of commercial development. A convenience store and gas station.
Dash In, a Maryland-based retail and gas station chain, will be opening on West Boulevard near Interstate 485 in the next few years. Construction on the 5,600-square-foot site, along with a 400-square-foot covered outdoor dining area, will begin next year.
Dash In purchased the 3-acre site last week from developer Crescent Communities for $2.1 million, according to Mecklenburg County records.
The site will be part convenience store with made-to-order food such as burgers and all-day breakfast. There will also be gas pumps and a car wash.
It’s a milestone announcement for the $6 billion, 1,400-acre mixed-use redevelopment district, which has been in the works since 2016. For years, the district has been adding people, and a troll, to the once vacant plot near the airport.
Dash In would be the first commercial tenant.
It’s also a major announcement for the retail chain, which is expanding into North Carolina. Dash In is owned by The Wills Group, one of the largest independent fuel distributors in the Mid-Atlantic region, according to its website. It has more than 300 locations and next year, the group will celebrate its 100th birthday.
The group plans to open 10 locations in the Charlotte-region, according to a news release. It also intends to open locations in Raleigh and the Triad.
About the River District
The district has come a long way from being a heavily forested area.
Last month, Crescent held a formal opening for the development’s first neighborhood, Westrow. Residents began moving into the neighborhood in August, where single-family and town homes are being built by David Weekley Homes, DRB Homes, Saussy Burbank, and Toll Brothers.
NOVEL River District, the 318-unit, seven-building multifamily development, is in its pre-leasing phase. And Crescent recently broke ground on the development’s new areas Basswood and Forge Village.
Basswood will be a residential neighborhood and Forge Village will host a 2-acre urban farm, a farmer’s market, an event lawn and additional retail.
Last month, the district also welcomed Big Pete with the Big Feet, a 65-foot tall wooden troll that’s part of the “Trail of a Thousand Trolls” project from renowned recycling artist Thomas Dambo.
In November, Duke Energy purchased almost 27 acres from Crescent for about $6.7 million, according to Mecklenburg County records. The site will address “the growing need for reliable electricity in the Charlotte region,” Duke Energy previously said.
Ultimately in the next two decades, The River District will be home to 5,000 homes, millions of square feet of office space, half a million square feet of retail space and 1,000 hotel rooms.
This story was originally published December 15, 2025 at 2:40 PM.
