Latest delay in Charlotte for $700M Brooklyn Village plan involves new land deal
A portion of the long-awaited $700 million mixed-use Brooklyn Village redevelopment in uptown Charlotte has a new owner. Again.
Meanwhile, development plans remain uncertain.
For $24.3 million, real estate firm First & Early Partners purchased two parcels at 700 and 800 E. Brooklyn Village Ave., according to Mecklenburg County property records posted on June 29.
It’s the second time the 6-acre site has switched hands in the past month. On May 20, developer Peebles Corp. returned the site to its lender, Peachtree Group for almost $24.4 million. That move came weeks after Peachtree Group filed a foreclosure notice on the parcels.
Peachtree, then operating as Stonehill Group, provided Peebles with a nearly $23.6 million construction loan in 2023 for 6 acres of the Brooklyn Village site, according to Mecklenburg County records. Now, Peachtree has sold the land to Charlotte-based First & Early.
It’s unclear what First & Early intends to do with the site. The real estate firm didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.
The Charlotte Business Journal first reported the sale.
The site was supposed to be the part of the first phase of the Brooklyn Village redevelopment, which, after a few changes, was set to be mainly affordable housing. But nothing has sprouted from the ground in the past decade, since Peebles was named master developer of the project by Mecklenburg County.
Horizontal grading was completed about two years ago. But other than that, only delays, disorder and discontent have come from the project.
What’s Brooklyn Village in Charlotte?
Prior to the 1960s, the Brooklyn neighborhood was a flourishing Black community. It was destroyed in the name of urban renewal and has borne the brunt of government interference and disinvestment.
Black-owned businesses and homes were bulldozed for parking lots, the long-shuttered Board of Education building, Marshall Park and Bob Walton Plaza.
In 2016, Mecklenburg County selected Peebles Corp., in partnership with Conformity Corp. under the name BK Partners, to redevelop the area into Brooklyn Village.
The plan was for the 17 acres in Second Ward to be turned into 1,200 residential apartments, a hotel, retail and commercial space. The project was set to be an ode to the Brooklyn neighborhood.
Brooklyn Village delays
But the project has only been an ode to continued disinvestment. And the recent land swap is the latest in a long list of delays for the Brooklyn Village redevelopment.
First, a five-year closing process delayed the project, which was supposed to be completed by 2021. Peebles didn’t officially own the site until the end of 2023 and couldn’t do anything to the site until the closing was complete.
Then, unfavorable market conditions cited by Peebles Corp. in August 2024, including high interest rates, lack of lender support and an oversupply of apartments, delayed the project start date until this year.
Next, Peebles revamped its plan for Phase I for funding and morale purposes. Instead of 552 apartment units, with 55 being listed as income-restricted, there would be 250 apartments all income-restricted for those making 30% to 80% of the area’s median income.
For a family of four, that’s an income range between $33,650 and $89,750.
It was a move Peebles said county commissioners wanted. During a February 2025 meeting, all the commissioners who spoke applauded the addition of more affordable housing.
But later that year, applause turned into discontent voiced in several closed session meetings.
In August 2025, Mecklenburg County decided to end negotiations with Peebles Corp. during a closed session. What negotiations the county was ending was unclear, as Mecklenburg County didn’t elaborate.
The last time the two entities spoke was in November, WFAE reported in April. The county again questioned why Peebles Corp. hasn’t built anything on the site.
There was no answer.
What’s next for Brooklyn Village?
Peebles still owns the remaining portions of the site.
Last year, the developer said a majority of the delays is due to Mecklenburg County. And on Tuesday, the developer said it’s looking forward to working with the county and stakeholders on Phase 2 and 3.
It’s unclear if the county feels the same sentiment.
