Another requested rezoning in Charlotte shows that neighborhoods are at the mercy of developers. Ascent Real Estate is under contract to purchase the block of E. 36th Street between Alexander and McDowell in NoDa and has filed with the City to rezone the property from residential to mixed-use.

The design for the property entails a 5-story, 70-foot-high structure of 200 market-rate rental units with first-floor retail spaces—a massive, out-of-scale structure that would tower over the adjacent single-family homes, many of which are historic mill houses. The architectural style doesn't even try to blend in with the rest of the neighborhood. The proposal includes demolition of a 1929 church and the elimination of green space and mature trees. The new complex, like a high-priced dorm, has the potential to increase traffic, sanitation problems, noise, flooding, and crime. 

NoDa already has a glut of market-rate rental units—a combined 2,000 units at 7 complexes, all within 1 mile of the 36th Street lot, with hundreds more in the works. All of the existing rental developments have availability and vacant units. At the same time, Charlotte is experiencing a for-sale housing shortage. According to Axios, Charlotte even ranks no. 1 among Gen Z (20-something) homebuyers in the East—young people you might expect to prefer rental units.

Charlotte City Council should deny this petition for a development that residents don’t need or want. The neighborhood wants to work with a responsible developer who will respect the wishes of the people who actually live there.

Neighborhood pride starts with your voice. Please join with us and sign our petition! You can find out more at our neighborhood website.