Council Quickies: Council Greenlights Providence Square Redevelopment

Charlotte City Council held a zoning meeting on Monday night. Zoning meetings are split into two parts: zoning decisions, in which they vote on whether to approve or deny petitions; and hearings, during which developers are able to present their plans, residents are able to speak in support or opposition, and council members are able to discuss before the decision is scheduled for a later date. 

Below, we’ve included some notable examples of both from Monday night’s meeting.

On the Agenda:

• Providence Square Rezonings
• Vote to Hire Interim City Attorney
• Rezoning Hearings

Providence Square Rezonings

Charlotte City Council was set to decide on three separate rezonings that together will make up the 112-acre Providence Square redevelopment on Monday. Council approved $6.8 million in tax incentives for the project during last week’s business meeting, while the county approved its share of $12.1 million in incentives later in the week. 

The plan, which first came in front of council for a rezoning hearing in April, includes 100,000 square feet of grocery space; 80,000 square feet of retail; 45,000 square feet of office space; and 28,000 of recreational and/or daycare space; plus nearly 2,000 mixed-income housing units.

“For the size and magnitude of this, I am pleasantly surprised how little divisive community uprising is against something of this magnitude,” said district rep Tariq Bokhari, adding that the project will replace deteriorating old buildings in most cases and enhance open space around that.

“This Providence Road corridor is a problem, it has been a problem for a long time and we have just been in a spot of inability to address it,” Bokhari continued. “So while the problem isn’t going to go away overnight, and while this will add more trips to that, this is the first in my seven years being here, seeing a substantial amount of public and private investment into that corridor so the ball can get rolling down the road towards all this.” 

While the new developments together are expected to add more than 17,000 daily vehicle trips to the area, the plan also includes $14.7 million in street improvements to the Providence Road corridor surrounding the development. 

Council approved the first rezoning, a partnership between Horizon Development Properties and Inlivian that will include about 420 multi- and single-family units on 8.5 acres wedged between Providence and Old Providence roads, with at least 20% reserved to remain affordable to residents making 30-80% the average median income. 

The second rezoning, located on 84 acres on the east side of Providence Road, will include five different development areas carried out by Levine Properties, including residential and a mix of uses as listed above. That was also approved by council. 

The third rezoning, handled by Northwood Ravin and located just south of the first one, will be a residential development containing up to 745 dwelling units including apartments, townhomes and single-family homes on just over 20 acres. 

Also in District 6 but unrelated to the previous three, council unanimously approved a rezoning on Sardis Road just east of Providence that will allow for the construction of up to 31 multifamily attached dwelling units including duplex, triplex, and quadraplex buildings. 

Council also approved the expansion of an existing rezoning on J.W. Clay Boulevard, the site of the new library that is set to open in early 2025. The 20.5-acre site was rezoned in 2019 to allow up to 260,000 square feet of commercial use; 40,000 square feet of civic use (the library); and 600 residential units, though Monday’s vote now means up to 903 units will be allowed. 

“This is near the Boardwalk, which is the Mecca of District 4, so we have to be conscientious of its highest and best use,” said district rep Renee Johnson.

She pointed out that the developer, EB Arrow Crystal Real Estate, has contributed $6.6 million in site work for new utilities and a multi-use path; $460,000 for improvements to J.W. Clay Boulevard; $12.6 million for the renovation of a nearby shopping center; and led the financing/construction of the new library. 

LaWana Mayfield was originally against the new rezoning due to the same worries about density that originally concerned Johnson, but said she would support due to the positive statements from Johnson.

Vote to Hire Interim City Attorney

In an unexpected development not included in the agenda, Mayor Vi Lyles announced a vote to hire Anthony Fox as new interim city attorney for the next six months. The vote passed despite No votes from Renee Johnson, Tariq Bokhari and Ed Driggs.

His bio on the website for ParkerPoe, the Charlotte-based firm where Fox is a partner, says he has “more than 30 years’ experience representing municipalities in North Carolina — both as an assistant city attorney and as a town attorney — from Wilmington to Asheville.” 

Fox will serve as a replacement for the outgoing city attorney Patrick Baker, who was forced out of his position by council in late October, reportedly as punishment for Baker’s decision in the spring to comply with state law in fulfilling a public records request from WFAE for a draft document that is public record, as reported by the local NPR affiliate in November. 

In keeping with that lack of transparency, no one on council has yet spoken publicly about the reason for Baker’s dismissal. His role with the city will end on Dec. 31. 

Fox, who helped broker the terms of Baker’s departure, will serve for at least six months while the city carries out a nationwide search for Baker’s full-time replacement. 

Rezoning Hearings

Three residents showed up to speak against a proposed rezoning for up to 38 duplexes (76 units) on a vacant lot on Harris Houston Road between Kempsford and Astoria drives. Renee Johnson asked for developers to host at least one more community meeting to speak with residents and for city staffers to consider the cumulative impact on Harris Houston Road with other rezonings also pending in the immediate area.

Antoinette Mingo with the District 4 Community Coalition spoke in support of the proposed Grier Townes development comprising up to 70 townhomes across the street from Reedy Creek Park, pointing out the limits the amount of units one corporation can buy in the neighborhood and the amount that can be rentals.

Council got a first look at a proposed rezoning that would clear the way for the redevelopment of a parcel that is currently home to two office buildings on Rexford Road in SouthPark. The project would include 675 multi-family units; 277,000 square feet of office space; and 3,000 square feet of commercial use, most likely a restaurant.

Monday night’s meeting was the final meeting of the year, a zoning meeting. They will come together again for committee meetings on Monday, Jan. 6, 2025, followed by wrap-up discussions that evening.