What urban design challenges and opportunities does the Center City of Charlotte present?
The biggest design challenge for the Center City is enriching the quality of streets and public spaces. Tryon Street has become vibrant but so many other streets are not. By redesigning streets to accommodate multiple modes of movement – cars, transit, walkers, bikes, etc., we can start to spread the life of Tryon Street outward. Building quality parks and public places that are well connected back to Tryon Street is another obvious need. For example, people lament the lack of vibrancy in Marshall Park – but once you consider how disconnected it is from the rest of the city, how inaccessible it is, and how it is surrounded by buildings that do not open up to the park, the reasons are clear. Connections of every possible form are the foundation of active city spaces. What specific projects are you engaged in Charlotte? What is your hope for these projects? We are working with the Levine family and Faison Development to transform the parking lots in the First Ward into a vibrant urban vi
