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Charlotte does have a few national and international tourists destinations. That's more than many cities it's size.
First of all, as I have already pointed out in an earlier post, the NC National Whitewater Center. I love going there and often meet international tourists. Some who have planned their vacation around visiting this marvel.
Another place is Carowinds, celebrating it's 40th season this year. For families that love amusement parks, and for individual roller coaster enthusiasts, it has finally become a destination park. Just 2 years ago the European Coaster Club started their their itinerary at Carowinds. People travel to do just these things.
Also, the NASCAR HoF. There are millions of race fans, and the HoF is, to many of them, the holy grail.
All these places, for the most part, are unique attractions, not identical to any other place in the world.
I love Charlotte dearly and it offers more than what many know or would admit, but I certainly wouldn't call the Whitewater Center, Carowinds, and the NASCAR HOF "unique attractions" as most people would understand such. Man-made whitewater facilities, amusement parks, and sports halls of fame can be found in several cities all across the country.
Charlotte's tourism industry is becoming increasingly more centered on large-scale special events, conventions, etc.; thus, people who are visiting usually do so for a specific reason. This puts the city in a greater spotlight in terms of its identity, character, etc., and so people who expect Charlotte to be a city like Charleston, Savannah, etc. where one can wander aimlessly in the urban core and come across interesting things and places to explore are disappointed. There are definitely things to do, but you've got to know the when and where in Charlotte--at least until Uptown fully fleshes out into a true all-around urban destination. And Charlotte has history, identity, and character, but they just aren't centered on anything particularly exciting or exotic. Textile mills and stock car racing don't exactly send chills up anyone's spine and there are no real geographic defining features like mountains, a coast, or a river running through downtown, but Charlotte has embraced them in an authentic way (e.g., the refurbished mills, NASCAR presence, etc.), thus remaining true to its roots even in the face of rapid urbanization.
Indianapolis has Broad Ripple for night on the town bars. Besides the Indy 500 what else is there to see in Indianapolis? The NFL Colts, the NBA Pacers, the AAA Indians, the Brickyard 400, Indianapolis has more memorials than any other city in the country after Washington D.C., you have Circle Centre mall in downtown, one of the largest and most successful downtown malls of any major city, then you have the Canal to boat down or walk along if you're into that scenic sort of thing.
Hate to go off subject, but Circle Centre is far from being one of the most successful downtown malls.
They lost Nordstrom and from my understanding, teens fighting is prominent.
Hate to go off subject, but Circle Centre is far from being one of the most successful downtown malls.
They lost Nordstrom and from my understanding, teens fighting is prominent.
Nordstrom's wasn't going to keep two stores and a rack. Nordstroms and Nordstrom rack are both on the north side where a huge chunk of the customer base resides. Doesn't make sense to try and keep the downtown store. As far as malls go, CCM is still pretty successful with around 800k visitors a month which isn't much lower than when Nordstroms was there. Flow stream has always been pretty steady and the bulk of downtown malls built in the traditional mall fashion are decaying and dying or already dead in many downtown cores where they exist(ed).
Nordstrom's wasn't going to keep two stores and a rack. Nordstroms and Nordstrom rack are both on the north side where a huge chunk of the customer base resides. Doesn't make sense to try and keep the downtown store. As far as malls go, CCM is still pretty successful with around 800k visitors a month which isn't much lower than when Nordstroms was there. Flow stream has always been pretty steady and the bulk of downtown malls built in the traditional mall fashion are decaying and dying or already dead in many downtown cores where they exist(ed).
But the reason the store closed was business loss and operated for four years after the Keystone store was opened.
Not going into further detail about the subject because it is not on topic.
I have never left it as I own a home in one of the older neighborhoods in the city. Had it for decades. I've stated this before on this forum. Fail.
You didn't answer the question. That is, you claimed that you are an authority on the "soul" & "character" of the city based on living here some time. You said the other party was "clueless" because they didn't match you on this. I'm interested in your definition on what this time limit might be since presumably, anyone who has lived here longer than you would be more knowledgeable on the subject. If this is something that you would rather not answer, then you can just say so. I completely understand.
Here's a tip for you. Charlotte is a fine city. You don't need to defend it by attempting to discredit those of us who care enough about it that we are willing to discuss the problems that it has. IMO, if this is all that you can do, then you really don't know much about the place at all.
who gets to decide "the problems" Charlotte has?
what is a problem to you may be a positive to someone else...
what is a problem to you may be a positive to someone else...
Along those lines . . . not so much "problems" . . . but what might be a "deficiency" to one person could be something another would not even notice.
Since I am more interested in casinos than professional sports, I am going to see that as something Charlotte lacks (casinos) and I am not going to care about the sports (I prefer collegiate sports).
That doesn't mean it is problematic for me. Just means I prefer a city that has "casino boats." So, I visit those cities every so often.
I don't care about clubbing, which seems to be a really big thing for a lot of Charlotte folks - "the club scene." I like Jazz Clubs but there is nothing that compares to what I enjoy in other cities. Doesn't mean I am going to die without this occasional entertainment. I just go to Chicago or Kansas City for my "fix."
I don't think people are necessarily "hating" on Charlotte b/c it lacks things they personally find enjoyable in other cities. It is good to think about what draws folks into any particular city.
In the same vein, I think that residents here who insist that "Charlotte is all that and more" are certainly allowed their opinions, but that doesn't mean their opinion is more valued than someone who doesn't feel the same way.
I think most of us would agree - sure would be nice if Lake Norman had some kind of canal that came through Charlotte!! Too bad we can't have a "riverwalk" of sorts. But it is what it is!
It's a decent city to live in. It is not my favorite city. However, if I want to sit in a drum circle in an intimate setting, I just head to Asheville or Boone. If I want to sip Bloody Mary's beside a bay, I head to Charleston. If I want a week on a yacht, I head to the NC Coast and get on the intracoastal.
Meanwhile, I live in Charlotte. I just find it rather pretentious and silly for folks to be cheerleading Charlotte so heavily b/c of such superficial things as sports and nightclubs and the few skyscrapers we have. An observation restaurant/bar on top of one of our skyscrapers would be a place to take clients, but honestly. . . after you have gazed out from the Signature bar at the top of the Hancock in Chicago (at night) . . . Charlotte's skyscrapers (and views) are more or less "quaint."
I don't get all the puffery, folks. There have been some good points made here about what Charlotte lacks as well as what Charlotte has done right.
Anyone who disagrees with singing How Great Charlotte Is gets minimized (or even mocked). I have always thought Charlotte was a very divided city . . . and I mean - even back in the 70s. There is the country club crowd and then there is the working man crowd and now, the big downtown street and clubbing crowd. Those groups don't mix. Everyone is doing his/her own thing in his/her own section of the city. That is NOT what other successful cities look like.
Just my thoughts - not hating on anyone or any pursuit folks enjoy. I live here and am fine with it. Charlotte is a good place to live -- and has easy access to other places folks might want to visit. But for heaven's sake, stop the madness with the meanness when someone makes a very valid point from their perspective.
URBAN - I agree - there are many interesting spots and places around the city. However, I think most visitors are probably not going to encounter them, if they are sticking to the main byways. Charlotte covers a lot of land mass!
Nice selections, btw. I looked at 4 and will enjoy checking them all out. Thank you for sharing the photos!
URBAN - I agree - there are many interesting spots and places around the city. However, I think most visitors are probably not going to encounter them, if they are sticking to the main byways. Charlotte covers a lot of land mass!
Nice selections, btw. I looked at 4 and will enjoy checking them all out. Thank you for sharing the photos!
Thanks, I decided to show some pics just to remind everyone that we're NOT talking about an ugly city. We're just talking about a city that could use a few more unique features. I never understood why Charlotte doesn't have a public observatory on top of BofA or Duke Energy Center. Also, an urban canal could easily be built using Little Sugar Creek's water. Bringing the Charlotte Knights downtown will certainly help with uptown's Summertime foot traffic and hopefully more retail will follow.
IMO, uptown should spend the next 10 years building the things that people do over-and-over again. Things such as shopping, hair and nails, tanning beds, skateboard parks, basketball courts with pick-up 3 on 3s etc. The history stuff is gone so there's really no need to cry over it, but we still have the chance to build a downtown for the people. I'd like to see a locally owned clothing store uptown that sells over-priced junk that can only be found in Charlotte. We have such places in Plaza Midwood, but none uptown. We need more Chicken Coops and Pikes. We need more places for kids to splash in the water during 90 degree days (I'm talking free outdoor fountains and splashgrounds uptown).
If people could ride a bus or the light rail into uptown and just "hangout" without having to spend a ton of money, downtown would never be the same. As it stands now, the masses just don't feel as though they're invited into uptown unless there's a festival, play, or sporting event going on. Then again, most downtowns in the Carolinas don't even have all of the aforementioned 3.
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Too bad we can't have a "riverwalk" of sorts. But it is what it is! 
