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We plan to do a low-budget scouting mission to CLT from RDU in the coming weeks. It would probably be on a Saturday with good weather, drive in the am and return in the pm.
The trip will mainly be to get out of town and to check out CLT for the first time, but also to see it as a potential place to move for work.
Any recommendations on where to go and what to see to get a flavor of the uptown, and, where one would potentially live in an apartment in the suburbs commutable to the business district?
This is what people told me she. I moved to CLT and it's mostly true. Think of Charlotte as a clock (inside 485). You want to live in the areas between 4 and 7.
7-12 are not nice areas at all. High crime and bad schools.
3 to 4 will be ok if you're either extremely close to Uptown or right on the outskirts by 485 (Mint Hill).
12-3 is not very good. The areas that are fine are he areas between 12 and 2 if you're north of WT Harris blvd.
I probably shouldn't have mentioned 'uptown' as I don't know where I'd be working or for whom, but most likely one of the bigger financial firms and I assumed they are located uptown.
We plan to do a low-budget scouting mission to CLT from RDU in the coming weeks. It would probably be on a Saturday with good weather, drive in the am and return in the pm.
The trip will mainly be to get out of town and to check out CLT for the first time, but also to see it as a potential place to move for work.
Any recommendations on where to go and what to see to get a flavor of the uptown, and, where one would potentially live in an apartment in the suburbs commutable to the business district?
Highland Creek area- brand new apartments next to the new section of 485. Easy commute to uptown. Seconds from Concord Mills Mall- check it out when you come. If you have time- check out the Whitewater Center, one of the Nature preserves, and Freedom Park!
Are schools a consideration? There are some good school districts inside the clock example above within the "clock", but there are also a lot of family areas outside of the 485 loop as well. If kids aren't in the picture yet, then staying inside the 485 loop will keep you closer to the trendy areas. If kids are in the picture, then a lot depends on your house budget and school needs. In short, the closer to the city and the better the school district, the higher the house budget.
The larger financial firms are typically either uptown or a bit south of the city in SouthPark & Ballantyne, though there are others sprinkled throughout the city.
If you want to get a flavor of uptown during the weekend, just know that it will appear dead. Uptown residences are growing, but the city is still mainly a commute in and out type of city. That said, a sample 1-day itinerary is below. Many more museums are listed than you'll have time for, so pick and choose as you wish
- Take I-277 and get off College and park at the Green
- Take elevator up to the Green and make a right
- Make a right on S Tryon and take a free tour of the Wells Fargo History museum
- Go back the way you came on S Tryon, crossing Tryon at the Green and visiting Bechtler Museum of Modern Art &/or Mint Museum Uptown
- Walk down Levine Avenue of the Arts and then continue down 1st st to Mint St
- Look left at Bank of American Stadium...take a picture with the large Panther statues out front
- Go back down Mint St the other direction and wave at the uptown baseball stadium
- Enjoy a short walk through Romare Bearden Park and check out Latta Arcade (Breavard Court)
- Continue down Church St for 2 blocks and eat at King's Kitchen and get the fried chicken (might need OpenTable reservation). There are plenty of other good restaurants in this area too
- Make a right on Trade and go down 2 blocks and check out the Epicenter...lots of restaurants, movie theater, bowling alley, etc
- Go to the 2nd floor of the Epicenter and walk down to the Lynx overpass and cross over, waving at the Spectrum Center where the NBA Hornets play
- Keep walking along the Lynx line up towards 7th street
- Make a left on 7th street and check out the 7th street market (it's more busy during the week)
- Stop and see the Levine Museum of the New South (hidden gem)
- Walk up 7th street and have a drink at Duckworth's (& some of their Sweet n Bold Gold wings)
- Walk down Tryon and wave to the ImaginOn library (or go inside) and the Discovery Place Science Museum
- Meander back down Tryon, Church, or College to get back towards the Green and your car
- Drive over to NC Music Factory and park across from VBGB. Stop in and have a snack & beer and watch some volleyball or play big Jenga. Then walk over to The Comedy Zone for an evening show (might need to pre-purchase tickets)
Other places to visit during the weekend:
- For family neighborhoods/towns, drive through Ballantyne, Costwold, Concord, Matthews, Huntersville, Gastonia, Pineville
- For trend neighborhoods/towns, drive through Noda, Dilworth, and others (I'm not as familiar here)
- Walk through Freedom Park and/or take a walk on any of the city Greenways
If you like breweries:
Olde Mecklenburg, Sycamore, Wooden Robot, The Unknown, Birdsong, NoDa, Triple C, Lenny Boy, and Sugar Creek are great. Queen Park Social is a social club by Olde Meck and Sugar Creek also.
For the view, you might have a cocktail at Fahrenheit (won't be cheap). It has a roof top deck on Floor 21 overlooking the rest of the skyline. Essex on the Square at Trade/Tryon is also really good and they have a great patio in the summer.
Stop by Paper Skyscraper in Dilworth for unique Charlotte gifts to take home with you! One of the best gift shops in the city. I also highly recommend Sunflour Baking Company in Dilworth or Elizabeth.
You might also enjoy a night out at BB&T Ballpark or check the Charlotte Symphony schedule. They do free Concerts in the Park in various neighborhoods and towns in the Charlotte metro.
Wow. All of west and northwest Charlotte is high crime and bad. Who knew?
The West...yes. Anything west of I-77 is basically garbage except a small area in the far south where I-77 meets I-485 and we can say that's an "up and coming". The Northwest is also not an area I'd recommend. It's pretty much "the hood".
The West...yes. Anything west of I-77 is basically garbage except a small area in the far south where I-77 meets I-485 and we can say that's an "up and coming". The Northwest is also not an area I'd recommend. It's pretty much "the hood".
All garbage. Nice.
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