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There's been talk in the 85/74 corridor towns of development, for a couple of years. The current Kings Mountain mayor has been talking about light rail to the airport, which would hook up to Uptown. I think that Gaston is currently giving CATS the bird on that topic, but CATS earned it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Carolina Knight
What happens if Interstate 85 and United States routes 29 and 74 cannot be widened further? Light rail is a long-term option.
I think further aspects of the Gaston County lifestyle must be examined, before moving further. In other words, what does Gaston want to be?
This region champions, and claims to employ, smart growth principles. Smart growth principles promote walkability, not auto dependent, developments.
Likewise, light rail encourages high density development.
Is this the kind of development Gaston County residents want?
It seems that Gaston is interested in following the traditional suburban model, but are State officials dedicated to beefing up the infrastructure to properly handle development? Probably not.
The end result will likely be density that won't support mass transit, with roads that won't support suburbia.
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NDL
I think further aspects of the Gaston County lifestyle must be examined, before moving further. In other words, what does Gaston want to be?
This region champions, and claims to employ, smart growth principles. Smart growth principles promote walkability, not auto dependent, developments.
Likewise, light rail encourages high density development.
Is this the kind of development Gaston County residents want?
It seems that Gaston is interested in following the traditional suburban model, but are State officials dedicated to beefing up the infrastructure to properly handle development? Probably not.
The end result will likely be density that won't support mass transit, with roads that won't support suburbia.
The end result won't be pretty.
Keep in mind that the 85/74 corridor is loaded with transplants & the children & grandchildren of the Philadelphia mill workers. The transplants are usually from the Delaware Valley & the Midwest. It's a different situation from Union County, where communities are being created from former farmland. Gaston has pre-existing cities & towns with a very different feel.
Gastonia has a bus system which replaced a trolley system. That explains why downtown Gastonia & the neighborhoods near it look like so many MidAtlantic cities & towns.
On one end of the 85/74 corridor you have Belmont & Mt Holly. They are the bridges to Charlotte. On the other end, you have Kings Mountain, which is also a bridge, but to Shelby & the rural areas. Talk is heating up about the casino again. If that comes to be, that will tie Kings Mountain more securely to Gastonia. It will also change the dynamic.
People in Gaston who want acreage tend to look at the Kings Mountain area & sometimes at Cherryville. Sometimes they look around Dallas & High Shoals or southern parts of Gaston.
Gaston is attracting different people who are looking for something different than people who are looking at Union County.
NCDOT announced plans during Bev's administration to have commuter rail going from Charlotte to Gastonia & Kings Mountain to Shelby & Boiling Springs. If the casino is green lighted, the Catawbas might provide some funding for light rail to the airport. It would be a good investment for them.
Gastonia has a bus system which replaced a trolley system. That explains why downtown Gastonia & the neighborhoods near it look like so many MidAtlantic cities & towns.
I appreciate the history...thank you .
Quote:
Originally Posted by southbound_295
Gaston is attracting different people who are looking for something different than people who are looking at Union County.
I truly hope so. While I prefer developments in Gaston over what I see in SC, I still favor a moratorium on building.
There is a lot of beautiful "untouched" land in South Gastonia
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NDL
I appreciate the history...thank you .
I truly hope so. While I prefer developments in Gaston over what I see in SC, I still favor a moratorium on building.
There is a lot of beautiful "untouched" land in South Gastonia
While other municipalities were busy annexing, Gastonia was working on urban renewal. The Loray Mill was the lynchpin for western Gastonia. Downtown renewal has been 2 steps forward, 1step back since I've lived out here. It's been painfully slow, but there's a visible difference now. Downtown Kings Mountain was terrible. There's still work to be done but over 2 million dollars has gone into it, since I came here. There's an appreciation for density that's developing out here. Single story apartments are giving way to 2 & 3 story apartment complexes. I've seen this sort of transformation before. The municipalities are heavily involved with growth. They aren't just opening the doors to the builders & letting the builders have at it.
The Charlotte Metro is one of the least dense metros in the US among metros of at least 1 million. It would not hurt for the area to become more dense. This area is not going to continue to build freeways. I believe the last freeway to be built in the area could be the Monroe By-pass. If we do not build future freeways then light rail is the answer. But we must have density to make rail doable. Although that density could be along a single line.
Charlotte has said that it wants to go in the direction of Denver because Denver is not building any additional freeways. Instead, Denver has 8 light rail lines in place and plans to build more. They want a regional light rail system.
The Charlotte Metro is 2.5 million and the Denver Metro is 2.8 million. But Charlotte will be 2.8 million in only 8 years. But Charlotte does not have but one rail line in place. Also, Charlotte is trying to figure out how to fund additional lines.
Gaston County is trying to change its brand. For many years it has been one the slowest growing counties in the Charlotte Metro. Gaston wants to grow faster. But it must change its brand to do so. It is in the beginning stages of changing its brand. For example, converting an historic mill to apartments. I believe Gaston would jump on an extension of the Silver Line. That could be a way to jump start the growth. Mecklenburg, York, Lancaster, Union, Cabarrus and Iredell are all growing much faster than Gaston. Chester, Rowan and Lincoln are growing slower like Gaston.
Single story apartments are giving way to 2 & 3 story apartment complexes. I've seen this sort of transformation before. The municipalities are heavily involved with growth. They aren't just opening the doors to the builders & letting the builders have at it.
The Charlotte Metro is one of the least dense metros in the US among metros of at least 1 million. It would not hurt for the area to become more dense. This area is not going to continue to build freeways. I believe the last freeway to be built in the area could be the Monroe By-pass. If we do not build future freeways then light rail is the answer. But we must have density to make rail doable. Although that density could be along a single line.
Charlotte has said that it wants to go in the direction of Denver because Denver is not building any additional freeways. Instead, Denver has 8 light rail lines in place and plans to build more. They want a regional light rail system.
The Charlotte Metro is 2.5 million and the Denver Metro is 2.8 million. But Charlotte will be 2.8 million in only 8 years. But Charlotte does not have but one rail line in place. Also, Charlotte is trying to figure out how to fund additional lines.
Mark it down: Charlotte (and it's residents) are in for a big headache. I have seen this planning pattern before, and the end result isn't pretty.
In NYC, roads are arranged in a grid like pattern, which allows for the free flowing of traffic. Moreover, mass transit abounds. You can live in Manhattan, Brooklyn, or Queens without a car; many people do, and some people go decades without owning a vehicle.
Not only is mass transit lacking in Charlotte, but local streets don't permit "cutting through" a neighborhood; thus traffic is too heavily dependent upon primary roads (which have inadequate laneage).
Real estate in Charlotte is still somewhat affordable, but that will change as population increases, which means that the population will continue to move further and further away from downtown CLT. The idea that people will live close to their places of employment is foolish; people will only do that if they can afford to.
The City needs a solid plan on how they plan to move citizens about the City, in a timely fashion. Light rail is a great choice in that regard, but the City needs to proceed in a proactive fashion before more building (e.g. River District).
Location: The place where the road & the sky collide
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Quote:
Originally Posted by The QC
Gaston County is trying to change its brand. For many years it has been one the slowest growing counties in the Charlotte Metro. Gaston wants to grow faster. But it must change its brand to do so. It is in the beginning stages of changing its brand. For example, converting an historic mill to apartments. I believe Gaston would jump on an extension of the Silver Line. That could be a way to jump start the growth. Mecklenburg, York, Lancaster, Union, Cabarrus and Iredell are all growing much faster than Gaston. Chester, Rowan and Lincoln are growing slower like Gaston.
The current mayor of Kings Mountain has been talking about light rail to the airport. He's 100% for it. It's my understanding that Belmont & Mt Holly are against it. This would mean a change in the route that has long been planned for rail into Charlotte.
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