Market Street Analysis, First Ward Charlotte

First Ward Redevelopment: Best Practices
A report from graduate students at
UNC Charlotte Belk College of Business

and the
Design+Society Research Center at the UNC Charlotte College of Arts+Architecture

August 2010
The project team would like to thank Daniel Levine of Levine Properties for his vision and support in completing this report. We are also very grateful Professors David Walters and Dustin Read for their clear and specific guidance, as well as constant encouragement and enthusiasm.
Client Daniel Levine - Levine Properties Faculty Advisors David Walters - Coordinator of the Master of Urban Design Program, UNC Charlotte Dustin Read - Associate Director of the Center for Real Estate, UNC Charlotte Student Project Team Chris Muryn Daniel Koebel Daniella Fergusson Nicholas Bushon Other Contacts
Michael Bonadies - President & CEO, 21c Hotels Lynn Shanklin Caldwell - Manager, Atherton Mill Farmers Market Robert Ferrin - Director of Research, Charlotte Center City Partners Tracy Finch Dodson - Director of Economic Development, Charlotte Center City Partners Dr. Tom Hanchett - Staff Historian, Levine Museum of the New South Andrew Mock - Assistant Project Manager, Charlotte Area Transit System Jimmy Moses - Principal, Moses Tucker Real Estate
This graduate study internship was funded by Levine Properties under a contract for services with UNC Charlotte Belk College of Business and the Design+Society Research Center at the UNC Charlotte College of Arts+Architecture.
Acknowledgements
Table of Contents
Executive Summary .................................................................................................................................................1 Introduction.............................................................................................................................................................3 Existing Conditions .................................................................................................................................................5 Study Area Overview ............................................................................................................................................5 Neighboring Areas Overview ................................................................................................................................6 First Ward Overview .............................................................................................................................................8 Plan Review...........................................................................................................................................................10 SWOT Analysis .....................................................................................................................................................12 New Infrastructure Upgrades ...............................................................................................................................15 Leveraging Strategic Assets .....................................................................................................................................15 New 9th Street Station..........................................................................................................................................23 New UNC Charlotte Uptown Campus ..................................................................................................................24 New First Ward Park ............................................................................................................................................25 Potential Boutique Hotel ......................................................................................................................................28 Potential Commercial Uses ..................................................................................................................................29 Potential Residential Uses ....................................................................................................................................33 References .............................................................................................................................................................35 Conclusion ...............................................................................................................................................................35 Appendix 1: Farmers & Public Markets .................................................................................................................37 Appendix 2: Cultural and Creative Strategies in Urban Redevelopment...............................................................43 Appendix 3: Incentive Programs.............................................................................................................................47 Appendix 4: Historic Figure Ground ......................................................................................................................49 Appendix 5: Sections ...............................................................................................................................................51
Students with the UNC Charlotte Belk College of Business and the Design+Society Research Center at the UNC Charlotte College of Arts+Architecture were contracted by Levine Properties to create a student project examining current and future conditions for Levine Properties real estate holdings in the First Ward quadrant of Charlotte, NC, as well as formulate a strategic vision that considers developoffice building, street upgrades, and a four-acre First Ward ment in the next 20 to 30 years. This vision can also be taken to Center City Partners and City Council to help steer Park are undergoing planning and permitting. public policy and planning to promote the features of this Levine Properties has designed Market Street, a private site. and pedestrian-oriented retail street between 7th Street Based upon client meetings with Levine Properties the fol- and 9th Street. Market Street, running parallel to the LYNX Blue Line and framing the west side of the new First Ward lowing priorities for the project were established: Park, is intended to be a vibrant and lively street where A place to celebrate life most of the clients objectives are met. Comprised of mixed uses The project team identified the strategic assets in the study Planned for mixed incomes area as an outcome of our SWOT Analysis. The assets iden Designed for pedestrian-oriented retail tified as new are projects that are currently undergoing Suitable for small-proprietor retail planning, permitting, and construction. Assets identified as A resilient urban neighborhood potential are additional assets that could be incorporated into the study area to further enhance the new, planned To date for the target site within First Ward, the client has developments. completed planning and design work through LS3P, ColeJenest & Stone, Kieran Timberlake, and Gantt Huberman The following are strategic assets identified by the project Architects. A $50.4 million, 143,000 square foot building team: for UNC Charlotte is currently under construction. An New Infrastructure Upgrades
Executive Summary
New UNC Charlotte Uptown Campus New 9th Street Station New First Ward Park Potential Boutique Hotel Potential Commercial Uses Potential Residential Uses At this point, it became clear to the project team that Market Street was the most important aspect of Levine Properties holdings, because the urban design of Market Street has the potential to fulfill all of the clients objectives. The following recommendations can help leverage Market Street to meet the clients objectives: Construct Market Street as a curbless road to promote pedestrian traffic between the sidewalks in front of the retail sections and the street vendors on Market Street itself. The installation of curb along the retail side of Market Street, as is currently called for in the plans, is counter intuitive to its purpose by creating unnecessary grade changes and obstacles for foot traffic.
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Incorporate a continuous colonnade in the design of buildings facing Market Street to create a unique retail environment that will improve the pedestrian experience. Emphasize a crosswalk on 7th Street from the former Reids Fine Foods site to Market Street as equally or more important than a crosswalk from ImaginOn to the park. The pedestrian experience is very important to the success of the farmers market and retail on Market Street. Emphasize a crosswalk on 9th Street from the future 9th Street Station directly to Market Street. Consider the types of desired vendors in designing vendor areas and temporary structures on Market Street. Create a consistent architectural character along the Market Street building facades facing the park providing a distinctive sense of place.
Executive Summary
Project Scope
Levine Properties approached UNC Charlotte Belk College of Business and the Design+Society Research Center at the UNC Charlotte College of Arts+Architecture to create a student project to examine current and future conditions in First Ward, specifically on and around Levine Properties holdings, and formulate a strategic vision that considers development in the next 20 to 30 years.
Introduction
Designed for pedestrian-oriented retail to create a vibrant, walkable neighborhood, retail areas should be designed to maximize amenities for pedestrians Suitable for small-proprietor retail to create this vibrant, walkable neighborhood, retail opportunities should encourage entrepreneurship and be suitable for small business owners to avoid creating an outdoor mall with large chain retailers. Such retail could include a public market, as the low barriers to entry in a market make entrepreneurship and small business development possible. A resilient urban neighborhood the area should be designed in such a way that it improves and becomes more complex over time, flexible enough to adapt to changing environmental, social, and economic conditions. To date, the client has completed planning and design work through ColeJenest & Stone, LS3P, Kieran Timberlake, and Gantt Huberman Architects. A $50.4 million, 143,000 square foot building for UNC Charlotte is currently under construction. An office building, street upgrades, and a four-acre First Ward Park are undergoing planning and permitting. As part of the street upgrades, Levine Properties has designed Market Street, a private and pedestrian-oriented retail street between 7th Street and 9th Street. Market Street, running parallel to the LYNX Blue Line and framing the west side of the new First Ward Park, is intended to be a vibrant and lively street where most of the clients objectives are met.
Client Objectives
At our initial meeting, the client established the following priorities for the project, imagining that the Levine Properties holdings would be: A place to celebrate life local Charlotteans and regional residents come to First Ward to celebrate life events, like birthdays, holidays, anniversaries, graduation, weddings, and other significant occasions Comprised of mixed uses the study area would consist of residential, commercial, and institutional uses, with the commercial uses encompassing local-service office and retail as well as retail uses that cater to tourists
Planned for mixed incomes the housing stock The client emphasized the need to identify the factors of reflects First Wards history of diversity, the existing sucsuccess of other places that exhibit a mixture, or all, of the cessful Hope VI project, and the variety of market rate objectives. housing in the adjacent Garden District
Research Process
To begin, the project team reviewed the history and heritage of First Ward. Afterwards, the team examined existing planning documents and policy in the Ward, identifying
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potential synergies and conflicts between the clients goals and the City of Charlottes goals for the area. Following this initial research, the project team completed a SWOT Analysis, taking care to include areas of congruence and conflict between the clients goals for the study area and the Citys priorities. At this point, it became clear to the project team that Market Street was the most important aspect of Levine Properties Holdings, because the urban design of Market Street has the potential to fulfill all of the clients objectives. Afterwards, the research team conducted more in-depth precedent analysis of the assets in the study area identified in the initial analysis. Research primarily focused on Market Street, as it had been identified as the most important asset.
First Ward Park Site Plan by Shadley Associates
New UNC Charlotte Building - Kieran Timberlake/Gantt Huberman Architects
Introduction
Figure 1: First Wards Districts from 1996 First Ward Master Plan
Existing Conditions
The project team began by identifying the study area, reviewing the history and heritage of First Ward, existing planning policy in First Ward, and the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and challenges of the study area.
Study Area Overview

First Ward is one of the original four wards in Uptown Charlotte, making it one of Charlottes original neighborhoods. For the purposes of this report, First Ward has been defined as the area in the eastern quadrant of Uptown between 1-277, East Trade Street, and North Tryon Street. The 1996 First Ward Master Plan divides the ward into four distinct districts: the Garden District, the Parkside District, the Courthouse District, and Downtown First Ward (see Figure 1). The study area is primarily located in the Downtown First Ward district. In Figure 2, the study area is specifically outlined and the Levine Properties holdings are identified.
Neighboring Areas Overview

Second Ward
Second Ward was known for decades as Brooklyn, a vibrant African-American community. The community, designated as a blighted neighborhood in the 1960s, was bulldozed. Today, Second Ward is home to the citys convention center, completed in 1995. Since then, Second Ward has accommodated office buildings, government offices, Mecklenburg Courthouse and jail, the nationally renowned park The Green, and the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
Figure 2: First Ward and Levine Properties holdings (Study Area)
Third Ward
In the late 1800s, the Victor Cotton Mill anchored this southwest quadrant of the city. Today, Third Ward is home to Bank of Americas 1.5 million square foot Gateway Village complex, Johnson & Wales University, the new Duke Energy building, and the Wells Fargo Cultural Campus, which includes the Mint Museum of Art, the Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, the Knight Theater and the Harvey Gantt African American Culture Center.
Fourth Ward
In the 1800s, Fourth Ward was a prosperous community of merchants, ministers, and physicians. However, the development of the streetcar system attracted residents to the new suburbs, Dilworth and Myers Park. In 1974, the Junior League championed a restoration initiative with North Carolina National Bank (Nations Bank/Bank of America). Recent development in the Fourth Ward includes The Vue and the Avenue high-rise condominiums, as well as several mid-rise condominium projects. The North Carolina Music Factory, a mixed used arts and entertainment complex including a 5,000 seat concert venue, is the newest addition to this historic area.
Existing Conditions
Figure 3: Property Ownership in First Ward
Figure 2 shows an aerial of First Ward today (outlined in red). Within First Ward, the Levine Properties holdings are outlined in orange. Just as the 1996 First Ward Master Plan identifies an area of the Downtown First Ward District as The Tracks, the Levine Properties holdings in the study area are located along a light rail right of way. The LYNX Blue Line, which currently terminates at 7th Street, will continue to 9th Street in the medium term and further north to UNC Charlotte in the long term.
Figure 3 shows property ownership in First Ward, putting the Levine Properties holdings in context. The red parcels are Levine Properties holdings. Yellow parcels are owned by other private property owners. Green properties are Charlotte Mecklenburg Properties. The Hal Marshall Center is one of these sites, and it is slated for redevelopment. Purple sites are undeveloped parcels owned by the Charlotte Housing Authority. Blue sites are cultural and spiritual amenities. The yellow line running through the study area is the LYNX Blue Line, with the existing 7th Street Station and proposed 9th Street Station identified. Clearly, the Levine Properties holdings are contiguous parcels that are conveniently located along the light rail line. The Levine Properties holdings in the study area are also in close proximity to a number of cultural and educational amenities.
Although much of First Wards history does not exist today as visible structures on the ground, the street grid and block structure is practically the same as the original street grid laid out in 1885, while the location of the Lynx light rail line follows exactly the rail corridor that bisected downtown for many decades. Figure 4 shows that a few historic buildings remain, also, including: William Treloar House (1887) - 328 N. Brevard St. St. Peters Episcopal Church (1892) - 115 W. 7th St. First United Presbyterian (1893) - 210 E. 7th St. John Price Carr House (1903) - 200 N. McDowell St. Old First Baptist Church (1908) - 318 N. Tryon St. suburban centers, and the urban renewal projects took most of the life and culture of neighborhoods out of the city center leaving only offices as the main use. As part of this renewal process, the problematic Earle Village public housing project was developed in First Ward, which in its turn was demolished in the early 1990s to make way for a much-improved $41 million HUD HOPE VI mixed income housing project as part of the overall First Ward Master Plan developed between 1990 and 1996. The project is a 200-unit family-focused self-sufficiency community with a community center. Office building continued in the downtown core during the 1980s, when banking was becoming a large industry in Charlotte and downtown began to redevelop. However, by the mid-1990s, the investment pattern shifted in the core, with the development of Uptown housing such as Transamerica Square, 201 North Tryon Street, and the conversion of the old Iveys department store. This residential expansion continued through most of the first decade of the twenty-first century, until the recession of 2008 brought development to a standstill. In 2010, the current residential population within the loop of I-277 remains fairly static at about 11,000 people. New residential construction includes Court 6, Quarterside, and Courtside. Existing Conditions Philip-Carey Warehouse (1910) - 301 E. 7th St. Old Little Rock AME Zion (1911) - 403 N. Myers St. Carolina Theatre (1927) - 226 N. Tryon St.
First Ward Overview

Charlotte was established in the 1760s, when founder Thomas Polk laid out the city grid along Native American trading routes. In the 1800s, Charlotte experienced a gold rush. By the mid-nineteenth century, railroads allowed Charlotte to trade textiles in a regional market, and the city experienced a boom period. Evidence of this boom can still be seen today in the form of First Wards street grid pattern and the railroad corridor (see Appendix 4). First Ward was created in 1869, when the City of Charlottes two electoral wards were redrawn to create four wards. Towards the end of the nineteenth century and into the early decades of the twentieth, an electric trolley system was constructed, expanding the city out into the new suburbs. However, by the 1930s, cars had become a predominant form of transportation in Charlotte. By the 1960s, Charlottes formerly thriving downtown had fallen into decline. To combat this, city leaders undertook urban renewal projects, demolishing houses and small stores in the downtown area. During this time, almost 1,500 buildings, including homes, stores, offices and civic facilities, were demolished to make way for new construction, displacing many African American residents. However, retail establishments continued to relocate to the new
First United Presbyterian Church - Steve Minor
Philip-Carey Warehouse - Steve Minor
Old First Baptist Church - Steve Minor
William Treloar House - Steve Minor
Figure 4: Historic Assets
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Plan Review
The clients vision is consistent both with historical and new planning documents. The 1996 First Ward Master Plan by Urban Design Associates lists development guidelines for the Downtown First Ward District, envisioning that the district will become a: Dynamic, 24-hour urban district which currently does not exist in Charlotte. The transformation of the inactive rail line into a new street and trolley lines will re-energize this currently underused area. This new street will create an address for an active mixed-use area which includes office, retail, housing, and multi-use developments in both converted industrial buildings, as well as new infill structures designed to complement the theme of the historic existing buildings. Almost fifteen years later, this vision holds true today. In particular, the 1996 First Ward Master Plan included guidelines, such as: New development along the rail line with heights up to 6 stories and ground floor retail oriented toward the rail line Development between Sixth, Ninth, Caldwell, and Brevard Streets service as a transitional area, with heights ranging from three to six stories. Greatest heights along Brevard Street. Buildings with minimal setbacks and entrances directly on the street Primarily structured parking, especially between Brevard Street and College Street. Parking should be located in the center of the block or should include ground floor retail. Additional on-street parking to support ground floor retail uses
Charlotte Center City Partners (CCCP), in collaboration with the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, are currently working with a consulting team to develop and facilitate an innovative ten-year growth, development, and urban design plan for Charlottes Center City, including First Ward. This plan updates the previous 2010 Vision Plan and includes the following priority areas: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Regional Economic Engine Walkable, Full Service Neighborhoods Integrated Transportation Hub Network of Parks, Recreation & Open Space Premier Arts, Cultural & Entertainment Destination Thriving Retail & Restaurants Lifelong Learning Wellness & Healthy Lifestyles Civic Heart of the Region
Figure 5 shows the potential impact of the Center City Partners 2020 Vision Plan on the Study Area. The information included in Figure 5 is based on informal conversations with Center City Partners.
10. Leader in Environmental Sustainability
Table 1: Comparison of Clients goals, 1996 First Ward Master Plan, 2020 Vision Plan
Clients Goals A place to celebrate life Comprised of mixed uses Planned for mixed incomes Designed for pedestrian-oriented retail Suitable for small-proprietor retail A resilient urban neighborhood
Existing Conditions
1996 First Ward Master Plan
2020 Vision Plan
Figure 5: Potential Impact of Center City Partners 2020 Vision Plan on Study Area
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Figure 7: Graphical SWOT Analysis
SWOT Analysis
After reviewing First Wards history, heritage, and planning policy, the project team conducted a SWOT Analysis of the Levine Property Holdings. The purpose of the exercise was to identify specific opportunities within the study area and potential challenges that may need to be overcome. As an outcome of the SWOT Analysis, the project team identified strategic assets within the study area and decided to focus more specifically on best practices for Market Street. Figure 6 shows the results of the SWOT Analysis. In particular, the SWOT highlights the advantages of the study area, namely the proximity of cultural, educational, transportation, and vocational amenities between two very stable residential neighborhoods. The lack of local-serving retail stands out, identifying the potential for Market Street. Other interesting conclusions from the SWOT Analysis are: Opportunity to develop a unique retail and residential product to overcome the challenge of soft markets Importance of continuing development around new First Ward Park to enclose this outdoor urban room and protect investment in the park.
Existing Conditions
Figure 6: SWOT Analysis
Strengths
Contiguous parcels Low basis in the land Current conditions are primarily surface parking lots Central Business District (CBD) location Proximity to cultural amenities (Levine Museum of the New South, ImaginOn, Discovery Place, North Carolina Dance Studio, and Bobcats Arena) Proximity to spiritual amenities (United House of Prayer, First United Presbyterian Church, Little Rock AME Zion Church, St. Peters Episcopal, and First United Methodist) Proximity to schools (First Ward Elementary School and Trinity Episcopal School) Proximity to well-established residential areas (Garden District to the east and Fourth Ward to the west) Planning and permitting in process for first stage of development, which includes a 2-block park, university building, and office tower Few property owners
Weaknesses
Poor connectivity to newer residential areas north of I-277 Lack of family-oriented housing in Uptown Charlotte
Opportunities
Proximity to public transit (Pending new 9th Street Station light rail stop) Desire for Charlotte to attract larger events and conventions creates a need for hospitality development Proximity to planned streetcar line (To connect CBD with well-established, fullservice neighborhoods - Elizabeth and Plaza-Midwood) Potential redevelopment of adjacent publicly-owned site (Hal Marshall Center) Planned infrastructure upgrades (Brevard Street, 7th Street, 8th Street, and 9th Street. Proposed Market Street and 10th Street extension) Opportunity to offer a differentiated housing product in a soft market Opportunity to provide unique retail product in soft market Many of the clients vision statements are in line with the currently under development 2020 Vision Plan being completed by Center City Partners. There is an opportunity to shape this process.
Threats
Soft residential development market High commercial vacancy rates Street-level retail is challenged in CBD by above ground retail (Overstreet Mall) Stroll District identified in Second Ward, but has few amenities As Center City Partners has merged with the South End Municipal Service District, the organization may be over-stretched with planning areas and be less able to deal effectively with detailed planning and design issues Although incremental development may be the best way to achieve the clients vision, existing conditions may negatively impact small redevelopment initiatives. For example, a 4-acre park that is surrounded by open, undeveloped land and surface parking may not feel like an attractive urban space despite good programming
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Existing Conditions
The project team identified the strategic assets in the study area as an outcome of the SWOT Analysis. The assets identified as new are projects that are currently undergoing planning and permitting. Assets identified as potential are additional assets that could be incorporated into the study area to further enhance the new, planned developments. The following are strategic assets identified by the project team: New Infrastructure Upgrades New 9th Street Station New UNC Charlotte Uptown Campus New First Ward Park Potential Boutique Hotel Potential Commercial Uses Potential Residential Uses Each strategic asset is analyzed in terms of a) the explanation of the concept, b) best practices for the concept, c) economic concerns, and d) how the concept applies to First Ward. Special attention was given to Market Street, as this has been identified in the most important area in Levine Properties holdings during the SWOT analysis.
Leveraging Strategic Assets

New Infrastructure Upgrades
During the 1970s and 1980s in the adjacent Fourth Ward, infrastructure upgrades were used to leverage new development in the neighborhood. Subsequent revitalization and new construction resulted in a $120 million property value increase from $56 million in 1970 to $126 million in 1995. This illustrates the potential for infrastructure upgrades in First Ward, which include road and sidewalk upgrades, street lighting, street furniture, street trees, and the 9th Street Station on the LYNX Blue Line. As one of the centerpieces of the redevelopment opportunities, the proposed new Market Street is intended to be a private road, allowing the client more flexibility regarding the particular infrastructure upgrades completed. The infrastructure upgrades section has the most impact on Market Street, so it contains the most detail. The following recommendations can help leverage Market Street to meet the clients objectives: Construct Market Street as a curbless road Incorporate a continuous colonnade in the design of buildings facing Market Street to create a consistent architectural character along the Market Street building facades facing the park Emphasize a crosswalk on 7th Street from the former Reids Fine Foods site to Market Street as equally or more important than a crosswalk from ImaginOn to the park Emphasize a crosswalk on 9th Street from the future 9th Street Station directly to Market Street Consider the types of desired vendors in designing vendor areas and temporary structures on Market Street
Curbless Road
Concept
In considering the width of Market Street and the proposed uses for the street -- such as closing the road to traffic on occasions -- a seamless connection from the retail and sidewalks on Market Street to the market vendor area on
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the street itself provides better access for people of all ages and abilities. The installation of curbs on both sides of Market Street creates grade changes that hinders pedestrian movement from sidewalk to street and provide potentially dangerous opportunities for accidents in a crowded street market environment.
Case Study: Curbless Streets
A variety of precedent examples of streets that are pedestrian only on occasion demonstrate how the use of no curbs or small curbs encourages walking. Two examples from Vancouver provide illustrations. Granville Island in Vancouver is an industrial redevelopment that supports a Public Market, Art Institute, and scores of small proprietor businesses.. The development was designed in the 1980s with small curbed streets to prioritize pedestrian use over car use. Granville Street in Vancouver was redesigned ahead of the Winter 2010 Olympic Games to have only small curbs. In Vancouvers entertainment district, crowds often spill out of night clubs and bars, and Granville Street is closed to cars on evenings and weekends to accommodate this successful street life Southeast False Creek is a new neighborhood in Vancouver that opened in April 2010, and was imagined as the citys greenest neighborhood. Designed to be mostly car-free, the entire neighborhood has curbless streets and utilizes bollards and trees to indicate pedestrian-only areas. While most parking is accommodated in underground parking structures, unmarked on-street parking is designed into the streetscape. Overall, the precedents show that lowcurb or curbless streets can be used to: Prioritize pedestrian movement over vehicular movement Increase the safety of pedestrians on roads by slowing traffic down or making the street amenable to street closure to vehicles
Michael Gruenewald
Best Practices
Granville Island in Vancouver, British Columbia, is a 41-acre historic industrial site on Vancouvers waterfront. In 1973, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) purchased the site and redeveloped it using existing building envelopes within a decade, using a $25 million grant to develop infrastructure, buy out existing leases, and develop the two anchor institutions on the island, Emily Carr Art Institute and the Public Market. CMHC appointed the Granville Island Trust as an advisory body to recommend to the Federal government how to implement the development of Granville Island. As Granville Island transformed into a mixed-use community, the Granville Island Trust became the administrative body for the site. Responsible to the CMHC, Granville Island Trust manages leases and new development. The Granville Island Trust hand-picked tenants outside of market conditions over the islands ten-year development. The island has a mix of subsidized and market tenants, with the subsidized tenants having an art focus. Market-rate tenants are restaurants and tourist-oriented retail establishments. Granville Island receives 12 million visitors annually and makes approximately $130 in profit each year.
Daniella Fergusson
Vancouvers Southeast False Creek neighborhood is an 80-acre former industrial site near downtown Vancouver. It was constructed to house athletes for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Afterwards, buildings were converted into a highend, mixed-use neighborhood. The pedestrian-focused layout features curbless streets and upgrades the City of Vancouvers bike and pedestrian waterfront trail system. Vehicular parking is accommodated in underground lots, with priority given to electric and car share vehicles. The neighborhood has a district heating system based on reusing waste heat from a sewage treatment facility. Fully built-out, the neighborhood will have 5,000 residential units, 10 acres of parks, and urban agriculture. Leveraging Strategic Assets
Daniella Fergusson
Justin Martin
Case Study: Colonnade
Provide improved access and mobility for people of all ages and abilities.
Colonnade
Royal Crescent Bath - David Walters
Concept
To accommodate retail uses along Market Street, a colonnade should be incorporated into the building design to improve the pedestrian experience on Market Street and offer a unique retail environment in Charlotte. In warmer climates, especially cities with French or Spanish influence, colonnades are often used to create a shady and weatherprotected pedestrian environment along retail and cafe corridors within city centers. These colonnade retail corridors provide great pedestrian friendly access and connections to streets by allowing pedestrians to move in and out with ease. They also make it more convenient for retail businesses to extend their frontage along a proposed market street. For example street cafes in Paris and many European cities are also located under colonnades. More creative signage and lighting can also be offered when incorporating a colonnade into a retail space design plan. The architectural character of the buildings on the two blocks that create the frontage to Market Street has yet to be determined in any detail. However, it is important to note that these faades should have a large measure of consistency, not only at the colonnade level on the street, but also in the design of the upper stories as well. The desired effect should be one of harmonious regularity, so that a well-scaled building wall should frame one side of the large urban room that is the park. This is not the location for architectural variety fronting this major landscape space.
Appropriate precedents include the Rue de Rivoli in Paris, opposite Le Jardin des Tuilleries, and (without the arcade) the Royal Crescent at Bath, two of the greatest urban ensembles presented to us from architectural history. Both examples show a strong and consistent faade that encloses public space to create an urban room. As the photographs show, the buildings have two distinct characters the front of the buildings is formal, disciplined, and consistent. Applied to buildings facing the proposed First Ward Park, this type of architecture creates the appropriate scale for what will be Charlottes grandest public space. By contrast, the read of the buildings is individualized, ad hoc, pragmatic, and idiosyncratic.
Rue de Rivoli - David Walters
New Orleans French Quarter has elements of a colonnade. On south-facing streets in particular, proprietors often install blinds on balconies above their storefronts to shade the shop and pedestrians from the sun. However, as the photographs show, the balconies are not deep enough to accommodate sidewalk caf seating and pedestrians. Also, while the balconies are an attractive architectural statement on two or 3-story buildings, they would be lost on a mid-rise structure.
French Quarter - Daniella Fergusson
Best Practices
A colonnade that is more than 10 feet deep can permit two couples to pass each other with ease. With additional depth, the same space also allows for pedestrian circulation and
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caf seating. The project team recommends a 16 foot deep colonnade. Seating under the colonnade can be placed adjacent to storefronts, leaving areas nearest the columns and public space for pedestrian circulation (like the photograph near right). However, reversing this pattern by providing for circulation next to storefronts and seating nearest the columns of the colonnade presents some advantages (see the photograph far right). First, caf seating can spill out of the colonnade onto the public space, allowing for larger seating areas and an enhanced feeling of activity in the retail area. Second, with the spaces next to storefronts unencumbered, retailers can take advantage of their window displays.
example of how Market Street could be closed to vehicles and converted into a pedestrian only environment. In other situations, the street can accomodate two lanes of vehicular traffic, sidewalk cafes, and pedestrian circulation.
Crosswalks
Concept
While infrastructure upgrade plans currently identify a crosswalk across 7th Street between ImaginOn and the proposed park, some caution should be considered with this approach as it diminishes ease of access to Market Street. Creating two crosswalks would be ideal. A crosswalk connecting the 7th Street Station to Market Street would Figure 9 provides an illustration of a colonnade for Market be advantageous for several reasons. First, people enter and exit the light rail cars on the western side of the tracks, Street with a curbless street and temporary vendor stalls. which is the same side as the former Reids Fine Foods site. The openness of the colonnade combined with the seamThe former Reids site could potentially be an excellent loless transition from sidewalk to street creates a flexible space appropriate for many uses. The illustration shows an cation for a major public market. It would thus make sense
Figure 8: Pedestrian Circulation Along Market Street
to draw pedestrian traffic from the light rail and the Reids site directly to Market Street via a crosswalk on that side of the street. Conversely, a crosswalk between ImaginOn and the Park on 7th Street will draw people away from Market Street and into the park. This is significant because the park will be separated from Market Street by fences to separate the tracks from the park and road, except for a few designated crossing at 8th Street. The infrastructure plans are not definitive regarding pedestrian access from the proposed 9th Street light rail station. As a central platform station, pedestrian movement will be directed to the 9th Street end of the platform, where, ideally, pedestrian crossings should straddle the street both sides of the light rail tracks, If only one pedestrian street crossing is provided, this should definitely be on the Market Street side. With the more unified curbless street design, and with a continuous, uniform paved surface, pedestrians crossing 9th Street would be received onto a safe and welldefined pedestrian space as the entrance into the Market Street experience.
Best Practices
Figure 8 shows pedestrian circulation on Market Street. The red line illustrates how crosswalks across 7th Street and 9th Street can bring people directly from 7th Street Station and 9th Street Station light rail stops. The orange line illustrates how far a pedestrian would have to walk to access Market Street from 7th Street if the crosswalk were between ImaginOn and First Ward Park, instead.
Vendor Configurations
Concept
As one-sided retail streets, like the proposed Market Street, are unusual, the street can be designed to accommodate temporary vendors to create a complete retail environment. In conjunction with curbless streets, space can be provided for vendors directly on Market Street when the Leveraging Strategic Assets
street is closed to vehicular traffic. The temporary vendor space strikes a balance between having a farmers market and creating a permanent infrastructure for small business owners and entrepreneurs.
Best Practices
The project team investigated a variety of possible configurations for vendors, vehicles, and pedestrians on Market Street. Appendix 1 contains more information about precedent market areas, ranging from ad hoc farmers markets to infrastructure-heavy public markets.
Application to First Ward

The recommendations regarding infrastructure upgrades for Market Street meets all of the clients objectives, which are: A place to celebrate life Comprised of mixed uses Planned for mixed incomes and shady atmosphere it creates will make for a pleasant walking, shopping, and dining experience a place to cel A resilient urban neighborhood ebrate life. Retailers will likely be attracted to the strong architectural statement of the colonnade, as it offers a unique All of the design concepts work together as functional fearetail environment in Charlotte. The curbless streets also tures to maximize the pedestrian environment of Market improve pedestrian circulation on Market Street, improve Street and create an environment that can support smallthe flexibility for the street to have different uses for various proprietor retail. events, and permit the erection of temporary vendor structures directly on the street. The temporary vendor space Good pedestrian connectivity between the light rail system creates an opportunity for local entrepreneurs to start busi(7th Street and 9th Street Stations) and Market Street is a nesses and perhaps offer products that attract all income key component of bringing people to Market Street. Current levels. Overall, investing in quality infrastructure is the key plans for the area show pedestrian crossings on the park to defining a place that can withstand the test of time. side of the light rail. As noted on the previous page, this needs to be changed to direct pedestrians to Market Street. The colonnade will also attract pedestrians, as the vibrant Suitable for small-proprietor retail Designed for pedestrian-oriented retail
Paris, France -
The recommended infrastructure upgrades should be considered as a complete package. Without the crossings, pedestrians will have to jaywalk or navigate the park to arrive at Market Street mid-block, hurting the potential consumer base for retail. Without the colonnade, Market Streets retail environment becomes more typical and Overstreet Mall presents a greater threat to retailers. Without the curbless road, Market Streets potential to be a pedestrian-only street during certain times is undermined.
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Hamburg, Germany - ManofMode.blogspot.com
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Figure 9: Market Street Colonnade Perspective
Figure 10: Study Area Concept Plan of Market Street and First Ward Park
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Section 2
5 sidewalk 7 buffer
5 sidewalk 7 buffer
32 train right-a-way 45 Market Street
Section 1
Figure 11: Sections of Market Street both pedestrian only and with vehicles
16 arcade
16 arcade
Section 1
Section 2
Table 2: Demographic Snapshot of Transit Oriented Developments
New 9th Street Station

Concept
The proposed 9th Street Station will be the terminal stop for the LYNX Blue Line until light rail construction continues to UNC Charlottes main campus in the next decade. Development of the 9th Street Station is important for the redevelopment of First Ward, because the station will act as a solid infrastructure investment that can catalyze further development. The 9th Street Station will bring new users to Charlottes light rail system, in particular students and residents traveling south. The stations preceding 9th Street Station, such as Convention Center and Epicenter, are used by commuters working in the primary employment centers in the central business district, transit users switching between light rail and the bus system, and people traveling to the main entertainment areas downtown. By contrast, 9th Street Station is too far away for many of these users to ride the LYNX this far. Instead, the station will be a more convenient stop for Garden District and some 4th Ward residents who want to travel south and students attending classes in UNC Charlottes new campus. In sum, 9th Street Station will be characterized by the following: Terminus stop for up to a decade until line is extended to University of North Carolina at Charlotte In central business district, but more than a comfortable walk to the primary employment center
Project The Pearl District, Portland OR Mockingbird Station, Dallas TX The Cedars, Dallas TX Center Commons, Portland OR Village Green, Arlington Heights IL Triangle TOD, La Grange IL Market Square Townhomes, Elmhurst IL Addison Circle, Addison TX The Round, Beaverton OR Gaslight Common, South Orange NJ
Transit Mode Streetcar Light Rail Light Rail Light Rail Commuter Rail Commuter Rail Commuter Rail Bus Light Rail Commuter Rail
TOD Type Urban Downtown Urban Neighborhood Urban Neighborhood Urban Neighborhood Suburban Center Suburban Center Suburban Center Suburban Center Suburban Center Suburban Neighborhood
Demographic Snapshot High income, retiring seniors, childless urban professionals, limited lower income units by developer agreement 30-45 year old professionals who can afford to own but prefer to rent Lofts occupied by young professional couples and empty nesters Mixed income by design, 75% earn less than $25,000, seniors housing Empty nesters and childless professionals Over 50 empty nesters, under 30 professionals with no kids Long-term local residents seeking smaller, easy to maintain properties in town Choice renters, singles, empty nesters, young urban professionals with no kids Sales targeted to young urban professional couples with no kids and retirees Childless households
effects of less desirable transit users like homeless people, and tend to continue transit once they start working. Once the line extends to the main university campus, student users can be expected to increase quite dramatically, especially at non-peak hours.
Economic Concerns
ness district. Furthermore, a number of precedents, like Portlands MAX line, Minneapolis Hiawatha Line or Dallas DART System, have a stop at the airport, which the LYNX line in Charlotte does not. Minneapoliss Hiawatha Line is a good precedent, because the system is approximately the same size with a similar number of users compared to Charlottes LYNX system. Generally, people who live along new transit systems (in transit-oriented development) are childless singles or couples, who are either younger working professionals or older empty-nesters. The table (from Arrington and Cervero 2008) shows that light rail stations attract wealthier childless singles and couples who are young professionals or
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Closest stop for existing North Carolina Dance Theat- The project team identified precedent light rail systems in er, McColl Center for the Arts, existing First and Fourth other cities to estimate the potential economic impacts of Ward residences, and North Tryon Street office buildings the proposed 9th Street Station in First Ward. Often transit-oriented development is concentrated along a transit Closest stop for future downtown university camline outside of a central business district. Thus, its impact pus. Students in particular are important transit users, on surrounding property values often features numbers because they use transit in off-peak hours, mitigate the that are not directly relevant to those of the central busi-
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Hennepin Ave. / Warehouse District Stop - Wikimedia
retirees regardless of whether the station is downtown or in a suburb. Mixed-income developments were designed with that purpose. Overall, people who live near transit tend to be: Childless singles or couples. Younger working professionals, or older emptynesters. There is a wide age spectrum. Low, medium or high incomes - driven by the design and price of the specific TOD housing, and TOD developers will target/be able to predict their market. TOD households are almost twice as likely to not own any car, and own almost half the number of cars of other households. The top three reasons households give for selecting a TOD are housing/neighborhood design, housing cost, and proximity to transit.
Case Study: Transit Oriented Development
New UNC Charlotte Uptown Campus

Concept
Universities have a number of impacts on their surrounding communities. Generally, successful universities attract new and retain existing people and capital to an area in the form of students, faculty, staff, endowments, grants, and research facilities. As residents interact with the university, they experience increased earnings as their skills improve. Educational facilities attract new income by serving students who live elsewhere and commute or move to the area to attend the institution. They also can retain people who would have gone elsewhere for their education and thus capture their spending power. This is significant, because people who move to attend school are more likely to remain in that area to look for work after completing their degrees. In finding tenants for the university building downtown, it may be advantageous to survey area high schools and ascertain which non-Charlotte universities (and programs) are popular with matriculating students, with the intent of attracting those institutions and programs to the downtown campus. People who typically live near downtown universities are faculty, students, staff, and retirees who take advantage of continuing education programs, alumni events, cultural programming, healthcare, housing affordability, and transit.

The 9th Street Station may attract new residents and businesses to First Ward. Residents are likely to be young professionals or retirees, who are childless singles or couples. The income of potential residents depends on the price of available housing. So, the provision of various levels of affordable housing near the light rail stop could attract a mixed-income profile. The precedent studies indicate that entertainment, local-serving retail, and food service businesses tend to locate near light rail stations. Commercial buildings pay a premium to be slightly further away from the station. Overall, public transit in general encourages people to walk and promoting communities that are less reliant on cars creates a resilient urban neighborhood. Comprised of mixed uses Planned for mixed incomes Designed for pedestrian-oriented retail A resilient urban neighborhood
For residential property along the entire Hiawatha Line corridor in Minneapolis, studies show that there is a $5,300 price premium for single family homes and $15,700 premium for multifamily homes all within mile of the station. For commercial property, downtown commercial properties on the Hiawatha Line increased by 33 percent per square foot ($11.07 absolute) for properties within a mile of the stop between 2001 and 2004. Commercial properties within mile of a stop increased 32 percent per square foot ($11.55 absolute), showing that commercial property slightly away from the stop is more attractive, or attracts higher rent-paying tenants. In examining the tenant mix around central business district stops in Minneapolis, surrounding uses relate to office or entertainment uses. Hennepin Station would be most similar to 9th Street Station, as it was the original terminus of the line and is the stop after Nicollet Mall Station, the heaviest trafficked station for downtown office uses. In a one-block radius of the station are three night clubs, numerous restaurants, and three local-servicing service retailers. Slightly further away are the Minnesota Shubert Performing Arts and Education Center, Hennepin Center for the Arts, and Minnesota Dance Theater School. Adjacent to the station are four cafes. Leveraging Strategic Assets
Economic Concerns
Universities can spur economic development through research and infrastructure development. In terms of research, university facilities, students, and faculty may make new discoveries that lead to the development of new businesses, attracting related industries to co-locate. For example, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute developed a new biotech center in Albany. Nearby, the University of Albanys Nanotech Institute employs more than 1.000 people. Or,
students may undertake service-learning projects, leading to the development of human capital in participating neighborhoods. Universities can contribute positively to an area by undertaking infrastructure improvements, too. They can build performing arts centers, community centers, healthcare facilities, and affordable student-focused retail like coffee shops, restaurants, bookshops, and school and office supplies outlets. Generally, universities can help a downtown feel more residential and contribute to the impression that a place has less crime, more social cohesion, better public health, and higher levels of civic responsibility. Nevertheless, the reported economic impact of universities should be taken with some caution. Economic impact reports for universities are a poor predictor of what kind of impact a downtown university campus would have on First Ward. First, many economic impact analyses overstate the benefits by not measuring real, additional economic activity. Second, many analyses examine whole university systems or universities rather than one campus located in a downtown. A Brookings Institution study found that median multipliers in college impact studies for expenditure were 1.7, and for employment were 1.8. Often, the overall impact of expanding a university is equal to the universitys budget, because the spending/employment multiplier (higher than 1) balances out the percentage of people captured by the university who would have traveled outside of the region to addend a different school (less than 1).
Other organizations include three colleges and a supplemental learning center for school children. SFU Surrey and the City of Surrey signed an agreement regarding economic development through the Citys Economic Development Office to develop programs and initiatives targeted at retaining and growing Surreys businesses. SFU Surrey offers a number of cutting-edge programs in the field of applied sciences, criminology, business administration, and interactive arts and technology.

Research conducted by the project team indicates that the new UNC Charlotte campus will impact the following client objectives: Comprised of mixed uses Planned for mixed incomes The UNC Charlotte campus is likely to generate traffic for area retailers, rather than having a pronounced impact on the overall business environment in the central business district. The campus will add to the mix of uses in the area, with students, staff, faculty, and the public using the building during the day, evenings, and weekends. If appropriate housing is available for each groups income level, the university may attract students, staff, faculty, and retirees to live nearby. The university may attract office supplies and printing-related retail, coffee shops, and book stores.
Case Study
Located in a suburb of Vancouver, British Columbia, Simon Fraser University Surrey (SFU Surrey) is a second satellite campus for Simon Fraser University. The SFU Surrey campus is a few floors of a 570,000 square foot office tower in a 620,000 square foot mall on an important regional light rail system stop. SFU Surrey, which opened in 2002, is one of a few educational institutions within the office tower.
Simon Fraser University Surrey - sfu.ca
New First Ward Park

Concept
The proposed First Ward Park is a four-acre park at the center of the study area. The park will be bisected by East 8th Street. The area closer to 7th Street and ImaginOn will have features for children, including two interactive fountains. This side is also planned to have a lawn that can seat
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Figure 12: Site Section of First Ward Park
UNCC Building Height
Brevard St Solar Angle 35
Market Street Colonnade
Rear Service Alley
about 4,000 people for concerts or other activities. Walking paths surround the lawn.
munity gardens, group exercise (like yoga or boot camp), performances, movies, and music events.
Economic Concerns
Parks offer a number of opportunities and challenges. Parks can have an economic impact that can be measured by increases or declines in surrounding property values or impacts on users of the parks. Studies show that parks that are a similar size to the proposed First Ward Park positively impact properties 500 feet on each side of the park, especially properties bordering park entrances. Parks can employ gardeners, landscapers, food vendors, and community police. They attract regional tourists who come downtown for other reasons, like visiting museums. Out of town guests, who come to town for another reason like attending a conference, visit parks to access urban greenspace. People on fixed income, like retirees, visit parks for recreation and exercise. Programming in parks can range from environmental education programs for children and youth to com-
park well to attract users. Specially designing programming in the park to attract women or moms can attract them to retain the feeling of safety in the park. Moms may use the park without programming considering the proximity of Best Practices family-oriented activities in First Ward, like schools and The main challenge with parks is ensuring that they stay oc- ImaginOn (see Figure 13). However, as residential decupied and tidy. If they feel empty for a long period of time, velopment occurs in the study area, research suggests that they can earn the reputation of feeling unsafe. According to residents are likely to be childless singles and couples who John Compton, parks feel empty when fewer than five peo- are either young professionals or retired. So, if moms are a ple per 1,000 square feet are occupying the area. An impor- desired group of users for the park, programming will have tant demographic to attract to a park to retain the feeling to be created for them at this time. of safety is women, especially moms. For example, during the 1980s when Bryant Park in New York was especially Second, the park should be well-maintained. Studies show crime-ridden, less than one-third of users of the park were that parks that are kept tidier create an atmosphere of women. Now, after the parks revitalization, almost half of respect, so users in-turn keep the park tidy. These two users are women. points indicate that a management and funding system for the park should be carefully considered. Most successful As First Ward Park will be surrounded by surface parking parks examined in this analysis utilized business improvefor some time before the land is redeveloped, the park may ment districts, a voluntary tax financing program, to fund a feel overexposed. So, care should be taken to program the management organization that runs and programs the park. Leveraging Strategic Assets
Figure 13: Family-oriented amenities in First Ward
As programming the park will be important while it is surrounded by surface parking lots or construction, ensuring that appropriate funding and management is available for such programming is crucial. Overall, it is worth considering how long the park will be finished before adjacent surface parking lots will be developed. This is important, because the park may feel overexposed or not enclosed. Figure 12 illustrates a site section showing how buildings on Market Street and Brevard Street can enclose the park. If the park is left in an unenclosed arrangement, that is, with no buildings to act as walls to the parks green urban room, it will likely fail to reach its potential and may generate a negative image and reputation. Marshall Park in Second Ward is a prime example of this mistake, and must not be repeated. Programming on its own is not enough to guarantee success. The construction of buildngs to enclose the park needs to occur as quickly as possible and as economic circumstances allow.

Research conducted by the project team indicates that the new First Ward Park will impact the following client objectives: A place to celebrate life Planned for mixed incomes As parks are open to everyone, people of all income levels will be able to use the First Ward Park. People may even use the park for special events or informal gatherings.
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Potential Boutique Hotel

Concept
Boutique hotels have a wide range of meanings to many different people. However, it is generally accepted that boutique hotels have a specific concept and atmosphere, have no more than 200 rooms, incorporate a distinctive design, and offer a high level of customer service. Boutique hotels generally lever these features in their marketing attempts, focusing less on the buildings facilities, such as conference rooms and ballrooms. With fewer rooms, a distinct style, and enhanced customer service boutique hotels are generally a more expensive lodging option and typically have a clientele in their early 20s to mid 50s with an income range of mid to upper class. However, due to the independent nature of boutique hotels they have an advantage of not having to conform to a national standard and can tailor their level of comfort to fit the consumer base while keeping a unique style.
Case Study: Boutique Hotel

Founded by philanthropists and art patrons, 21c Museum Hotel is a 90-room boutique hotel, contemporary art museum, award-winning restaurant, and cultural civic center in historic downtown Louisville. The hotel offers over 5,000 square feet of art-filled meeting and event space. Rooms run approximately $300+, with an emphasis on packages including meals and cultural events. The hotel has other locations coming to Austin, Bentonville, and Cincinatti. The Bentonville location is a $28 million, 130-room hotel. 21c president and CEO Michael Bonadies said the company plans to build as many as 15 hotels over the next three years. Selection criteria for hotel placement include: Local partner--city or arts patron, ideally both City has a strong cultural and arts scene Downtown location close to key corporate headquarters and/or in the arts district, accessible mass transit, downtown entertainment district. Key is downtown as the hotel is an urban core concept Secondary city with a university and a growing economy, has two or more events per year that can drive rate (Kentucky Derby, University of Texas home football games, music festivals, film festivals, major league sports games)
21c Museum - Raytio (flickr)
Best Practices
The site selection criteria for boutique hotels differs depending on each hotel, as each company brings a different atmosphere and product. The research team contacted a range of hotel companies, ranging from more affordable concept hotels to luxury hotels. A summary of site selection criteria for 21c Hotels is in the text box. On the more affordable side, Portlands 79-room Ace Hotel offers an urban-eco-chic vibe, with sustainable features, free rental bikes, and free wi-fi. The hotel includes a popular expresso bar and an event space that hosts music concerts on weekends.
Sufficient air lift, best if city attracts tourists as well as business travelers Lack of a boutique hotel in the market Regional agricultural that can support farm-to-table Citys and business communitys commitment to and evidence of downtown revitalization efforts being successful

Boutique hotels tend to attract a more adventurous traveler than a traditional hotel that is more inclined to venture out of the CBD making the target sites proximity to the 7th and
21c Hotel Louisville - 21c Hotels
Hotel Palomar Atlanta - Hotel Palomar
9th street light rail stops a positive externality. The proposed light rail to the north of the city will connect to the University of North Carolina at Charlotte creating easy access for visitors to the UNCC campus and the future UNCC football stadium. The target site is located within close proximity to cultural amenities such as the Levine Museum of the New South, ImaginOn, Discovery Place and the North Carolina Dance Studio; satisfying the criteria of being near an arts scene and strong culture. With the citys culture a draw to boutique hotel patrons it is also safe to assume they will be drawn to the culture and city experience of the farmers market on Market Street. While it is unlikely patrons of the hotel will purchase produce the increase in tourism will help support the craft vendors. Boutique hotels have also proven to be successful when comprised of mixed uses. Examples of this include the art museum located within the 21c in Louisville, KY and the restaurant and concert venue located within the Ace in Portland, OR. These examples also show how boutique hotels can be used to further promote the local culture of the community. A number of boutique hotels have identified Charlotte as a good market. 21c is looking to build as many as 15 hotels in the next few years, and looking at the site selection criteria, First Ward meets many of the site selection criteria. Hotel Palomar in Atlanta, which is part of the Kimpton Hotels group, is an eco-friendly, high-design spot in Midtown. Currently, the company has listed Charlotte as an area of interest for expansion. Hotel Sierra is currently being constructed adjacent to Bobcats Arena. Part of the Hyatt, Hilton, Hampton, and Aloft group, Hotel Sierra is Charlottes newest hospitality addition. Hotel Sierra offers a more intimate and luxury hotel compared to more commercial products. However, with the location of
Starbucks coffee bars and inspiration from luxury consumer products, the hotel seeks to attract a consumer-conscious and aspirational clientele. This type of guest is looking for a different kind of experience compared to someone who would stay at 21c or Ace Hotel. The location of a boutique hotel in First Ward would satisfy the following client objectives: Comprised of mixed uses
Potential Commercial Uses

Concept
The client identified that street level (pedestrian-oriented) retail is an important component of the project, with the placement of retailers that cater to locals and tourists. While street level retail is possible throughout the entire study area, some streets are more likely than others to have more pedestrian circulation. For example, the proposed Market Street, with good connections to 7th Street and 9th Street Stations, could have more foot traffic. The project team identified three types of retail that could be appropriate for the study area: 1. Local and Tourist Retail suited for a downtown location with public transit, cultural, park, and educational amenities; 2. Market Street temporary vendor areas that encourage entrepreneurship and small proprietor businesses; and 3. Commercial Uses that are within the creative industries sector.
Ace Hotel Portland - Ace Hotel
Hotel Palomar Dallas - Hotel Palomar
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Local and Tourist Serving Retail

With an estimated 40,000 square feet of potential retail space, Market Street offers the best location for local and tourist retail. As previously described, the project team recommends that Market Streets commercial frontage be designed with a colonnade that spans from 7th Street to 9th Street. The colonnade would create an attractive, pedestrian-oriented environment best suited for cafes, restaurants, delicatessens or grocers, and soft goods retailers because the space could accommodate seating areas and storefronts. In Figure 10 and Figure 13 (pages 21 and 27), the project team has illustrated a development scenario where the ground floor retail can be served by a rear alley. An additional 40,000 square feet of commercial could be located on a second floor for local-serving office needs. While the lot size does not permit enough depth for Class A offices, the project team believes that second floor office space on Market Street would be attractive to local-serving businesses who would benefit from being in a residential area, such as: Doctors Dentists Insurance agents Community banks
Case Study: Types of Markets

The Dane County Farmers Market in Madison, Wisconsin, is a bi-weekly market that takes place in the grounds surrounding the State Capital building. The countrys largest producer-only market, the Dane County Farmers Market seeks to promote Wisconsin farm products and provides booths for local non-profit organizations. Approximately 150 to 300 Wisconsin farmers set up their own tents. The Market is funded by a city agency and is managed by a cooperative. Vendors are members of the cooperative, and seven elected vendors serve on the Board of Directors.
Dane County Farmers Market - Katekat (flickr) River Market Little Rock - CardsFan27 (flickr) Greenvilles Artisphere - Susan Grey Photography
Market Street Temporary Vendor Retail

The client expressed the design to support small proprietors and entrepreneurs. As a result of examining retail environments that support new and small businesses, the project team believes that short of subsidizing retail space through a foundation or non-profit organization, small businesses can be accommodated easily and flexibly in market environments. So, dozens of markets, ranging from ad hoc farmers markets to large institutions like Pikes Public Market in Seattle, were examined to understand the management structure, financing, and success factors that influenced each market (see Appendix 1 for highlights). The text box
The City of Greenville, South Carolina, organizes events year-round on Main Street to enliven downtown. Events include a concert series, movies in Reedy River Park, Saturday Market, Main Street Fridays, Downtown Alive, an art festival, and Fall for Greenville festival. Leveraging Strategic Assets
Greenvilles Main Street - olympusjgreen (flickr)
The River Market District in Little Rock, Arkansas, was established in 1995. With more than fifteen permanent vendors in a year-round Farmers Market Hall, two architect-designed outdoor shelters accommodate more vendors on a seasonal basis. The Market Hall is managed by a non-profit organization. The $5 million project to construct the Market Hall and outdoor shelters was financed with $3.5 million from municipal bonds and $1.5 in community pledges.
Figure 14: Market Street Detail, with Market
Figure 15: Market Street Detail, no Market
Table 3: Comparison of Farmers Markets and Public Markets
Farmers Market Produce Outdoors Seasonal
Public Market Produce, Meats, Prepared Foods, Crafts Indoors Year-Round
on page 30 describes three different market areas in more detail. The Dane County Farmers Market is a City-funded, bi-weekly, and producer-only market that celebrates Wisconsins farm heritage. The City of Greenville hosts numerous pedestrian-only celebrations on Main Street throughout the year to create a vibrant downtown culture. The market in River Market District in Little Rock, Arkansas, is part of a redevelopment project that combines a mix of a permanent market building and outdoor shelter. The facilities are often rented for events.
Creative Industries Sector Commercial Uses

Appendix 2 provides an overview of the economic impacts of creative industries clusters. The overview specifically drills down into the impact of community-based street festivals, given the planned Market Streets potential to be closed to vehicles for pedestrian-only events. Essentially, the research shows that there is a potential for creative industry clusters to contribute to the economic development of a city; however, the exact mechanisms for creating a cultural industry cluster remains unknown and it remains to be seen how much a government can intervene before the cluster loses its authenticity and subsequent innovation. Furthermore, orthodox and Richard Florida-supported strategies for using creative industry clusters to promote economic development advocate for top-down programs that risk alienating the local community, making the economy more unequal, and gentrifying the diverse, gritty, and creative community that spawned the cluster in the first place. Research suggests that successful strategies implement programs into the local, marginalized community to foment innovation and arts in the long-term. Thus, even a short-term program such as a one-time or annual festival
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Figure 16: Markets described in Appendix 1
Figure 17: Additional Markets

City Austin, TX Portland, OR Charleston, SC Santa Fe, NM Structures Temporary Temporary Management Non-profit Self-organized Funding Non-profit City City City Purpose
Local & sustainable food Urban food culture Tourism NM Culture
City Madison, WI Greenville, SC
Structures Temporary Street accommodates temporary structures
Management Funding Co-op City Agency City City
Purpose Producer Farmers Market for County Events to bring county-wide residents downtown Area Redevelopment Entrepreneurship & Interna+onalism High end Public Market Historic Public Market Public Market & Low-Income programs
Perm + Temp City Market Preservation Trust Perm + Temp City
LiIle Rock, AK
New construc+on Non-prot Non-prot
Public/ Private Public/ Private Private Public/ Private
Florence, Italy
Kansas City, MO Milwaukee, WI Vancouver, BC Columbus, OH
Perm + Temp Unknown

Permanent Permanent Permanent Permanent Farmers Market Review Committee Non-profit
Unknown
Market for locals

community landmark
Minneapolis, MN Re-used exis+ng structure Portland, ME Roanoke, VA
Public/Private Historic
Award-winning Private new construc+on Non-prot Purpose-built & renovated historic structure Historic
Public/Private Local economic

development
Redevelopment
Grandville Island Trust Public Non-profit
SeaIle, WA
Public/ Market Founda+on & Private Pike Place Market PDA
North Market Redevelopment Development and entrepreneurship Authority Public

Historic
Philadelphia, PA
Permanent
Non-profit
Pittsburgh, PA
Permanent
Non-profit
Public/Private Redevelopment
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Street festivals are just one form of economic development based in the creative cities idea. Street festivals and temporary attractions function like shopping districts, museums, art galleries, performing arts centers; they are consumption-side products and services that appeal to consumers, especially tourists. First Ward is filled with these cultural amenities already. By contrast, production-side amenities, like working fine art, film, television, radio, and music production studios, apparel manufacturing and finishing, publishing, and internet technologies and media production create high-value goods and services that can be exported and attract capital. These production-side industries can also attract young, mobile workers to the region. They are also eligible for North Carolina economic development programs. Generally, research supports the idea that creative industry sectors are associated with the feeling that a city is world class and that a place feels artsy or authentic. Some communities have created industrial-based live-work districts, rather than commercial live-work units. The difference is that industrial live-work units permit additional uses, such as glassblowing, welding, printing, and similar cottage industries that would be too noxious in a commercial zone. The units are specially equipped with ventilation equipment to accommodate these uses. For example, both Cleveland and Bostons Zoning Codes allow for artist mixed-use (live/work) in industrial zones. These uses are more appropriate on secondary streets -- such as 8th Street within the study area. Considering there is potential for an estimated 40,000 square feet of ground floor retail (and an equivalent for a second story of retail, if viable, along Market Street alone, there is opportunity to include some creative industrysector uses along secondary retail streets. Space could be used for:
Though not live-work units, Greenvilles Art Crossing Studios house more than 20 artists in storefronts along the Reedy River. Open from 11 to 5 on Tuesdays through Saturdays, the art studios are open to the public, providing special demonstrations during downtown events. Art Crossings 5,000 square feet is part of the River Place Phase 1 Development in downtown Greenville that includes the 87,000 square-foot office building with ground level retail space, featuring tenants including Plaza Suite, Michelin on Main, Starbucks and High Cotton; two residential buildings (155 RiverPlace with 36 condo units and River House with 10 condo units); Hampton Inn and Suites; and a parking garage, riverwalk and water feature. Phase 2a, which was recently completed, is a mixed-use building dubbed The Terrace, featuring 35,000 square feet of office space currently home to Bounce Agency and Allora LLC, 51,000 square feet of residential space and 15,000 square feet of ground-level retail space. Atlantas Ignition Alley is a co-working space and business community for freelancers, developers, creative people, marketers, and entrepreneurs. Amenities include a conference room, locker use, an event room, dedicated desks, and a mailing address. Prices range from $35 per month for occasional use to $285 a month. A mile from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Carrboro Creative Co-working is a shared professional workspace with a community atmosphere. It is designed for microbusinesses, freelancers, home-office workers, entrepreneurs, starts-ups, tech workers, writers, designers, and other professionals whose work does not fit a normal office template. For a fee, the co-workers receive access to an office space and amenities, like conference rooms, coffee, wireless, a mailing address, and the company of other professionals. Prices range from $15 a day to $200 a month. TechShop in Raleigh, North Carolina, is a co-working facility that offers equipment and classes in electronics, wood working, metal working, and robots among other areas. The facility offers members milling machines and lathes, Epilog laser cutters, sheet metal equipment, welding equipment, an indoor automotive work bay, woodworking equipment including a 5 x 8 CNC ShopBot router, plastics working equipment, hand tools, a 3-D printer, computer-controlled vinyl cutter, industrial sewing machines, and other equipment. Memberships range from $99 per month to $1600 annually. Leveraging Strategic Assets
Carrboro Creative Coworking 0 Brian Russell
should include such programs and engage with the local community.
Case Study: Creative Industries
Ignition Alley - Tim Dorr
Live-work units zoned light industrial. This may require rezoning. Live-work units tend to require direct access from the street or a public lobby. They also tend to have high ceilings (as much as 17 feet) and be unfinished. Units may be 1,000 square feet to 1,500 square feet. A community arts center an incubator-type facility, co-working, or Maker space that is equipped with machines, equipment, and work stations for rent (See the text box) Labor training center for skills associated with the industries locating to the area. This could be co-located with, associate with, or part of the UNCC campus.
2. Market Square Historic District in Houston, TX incorporates a one square block urban park with retail surrounding the majority of the four sides. The retail surrounding the park focuses entirely on hospitality consisting of 9 restaurants/bars. While this park is located in a well established and historically significant area of Houston it has been through multiple makeovers that have allowed it to stay vibrant and attractive to both young and old consumers.
Based upon this, we feel that in the initial stages of development hospitality retail for the park frontage along Market Street should me the main focus with the more diverse community retail, sought after by the client, only coming in after completion of more residential units in the surrounding area. Restaurants adjacent to farmers markets are also excellent complements with the farmers market providing fresh, affordable food to the restaurants and the restaurants providing a draw and foot traffic for the farmers market.
Best Practices
Research shows that areas with local parks and transit stops tend to have hospitality-oriented retail, especially bars and restaurants. As the client expressed the desire to create a full-service neighborhood in First Ward, rather than an entertainment district, a market push to develop hospitality-related retail in the study area could be mitigated by developing residential units first to create a market for local-serving retail.
3. Civic Space Park in Phoenix, AZ is roughly a two block urban park opened to the public in 2009. The immediThe retail recommendations meet the following client obately surrounding area of the park is also experiencing a jectives: large amount of new development including Arizona State Comprised of mixed uses Universitys downtown campus building. While the area Planned for mixed incomes around the park is still developing, mostly consisting of surface parking lots, the current surrounding retail consists of Designed for pedestrian-oriented retail 3 restaurants, a YMCA, a bail bonds, and an entertainment Suitable for small-proprietor retail venue for events within the park. In examining the wide range of markets across the United States, a number of best practices emerge. First, most successful developments utilized a public-private partnership to manage and finance development. Second, most of the markets are managed by non-profit organizations or cooperatives. To keep operating costs low and keep vendor space accessible, many of the projects involved redevelopment of existing facilities. Many have close proximity to public transportation. Finally, a number of projects received indirect government funding, such as tax abatements or grants.
Potential Residential Uses

Concept
As mentioned earlier, people who tend to live along new transit systems are childless singles or couples and older To select the potential mix and location of retail surroundempty-nesters. The same group of people is also attracted ing the park other comparable urban parks throughout to living near universities. However, their income groups the country were examined to understand retail needs and may differ. While people living in transit-oriented demixes. The three examples below are ranked in population velopment may have low, medium, or high incomes, the density and infrastructure investment around their urban residents income is driven by the design and price of the parks from highest to lowest. housing development. Students choosing to live near a uniApplication to First Ward versity generally are lower income. However, in attracting 1. Riverfront Park in Little Rock, AR is a rambling park faculty and staff to live near an urban university campus, This report focuses on hospitality and local serving retail on roughly 3 blocks long running between the River Market there is an opportunity to attract families downtown. CurMarket Street, because it may be the most feasible to impleDistrict and the Arkansas River. The River Market District rently, downtown Charlotte has very few affordable options ment shortly after the completion of the First Ward Park fronting the park is filled with retail consisting of 22 resfor families. So, a market analysis could be conducted to taurants/bars, 17 shopping retailers, and 8 service retailers. and UNC Charlotte building. From the three precedent sites ascertain the latent demand for family-oriented housing in above it can be concluded that urban parks are most able to The River Market District is well established and is surFirst Ward in addition to the single family homes within the rounded by a large amount of development and investment. provide support to hospitality retail with the sustainability Garden District. An important consideration is that many for other retail services and shopping coming after inpeople who live downtown are childless couples, who may creased population density and infrastructure investment.
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move to the suburbs to start a family, but may prefer to stay place for families. First Ward offers a number of advantages downtown if an appropriate and affordable housing option in terms of providing family-friendly housing. For example, were available. First Ward already has a number of amenities for children and the new First Ward Park is designed with children in mind (see Figure 13). The project area in First Ward is also Economic Concerns nestled between two stable residential neighborhoods. There are a few advantages of offering a family-oriented Fourth Ward is also home to two schools, First Ward Elhousing in First Ward. Given the soft residential developementary and Trinity Episcopal School. Finally, with the ment market, a differentiated product, like family-oriented soft market for real estate development, as there is a lack of housing, despite its lower development density, could be family-friendly housing in Uptown Charlotte, offering such more successful than other types of residential developa product in First Ward could reach a niche market. ment. Also, having a strong presence of women, especially moms, in the First Ward Park will help it feel safer and Overall, residential development, whether it be for young occupied. Furthermore, First Ward has an elementary professionals, retirees, or new families, would meet the folschool and Trinity Episcopal School. Finally, ImaginOn and lowing client objectives: Discovery Place are important amenities to First Ward, too. Comprised of mixed uses
Best Practices
Planned for mixed incomes
To encourage young families to stay downtown or attract new families to urban areas, the following amenities are important: Childcare facilities Child-friendly parks 2+ bedroom, multifamily housing, such as townhomes or rowhouses with yards. Secondary (basement) suites can provide rental income to offset the higher cost of urban homes Affordable housing for families Full-service neighborhood amenities within walking distance, including grocery stores, drug stores, and schools

While the amenities planned for First Ward, including the UNC Charlotte campus and 9th Street Station, are likely to attract childless singles and couples who are either young professionals or retirees, First Ward can also become a Leveraging Strategic Assets
After focusing on Market Street as the most important feature of the development, due to its ability to utilize all of the clients desires for the overall site the following recommendations were made: Construct Market Street as a curbless road Incorporate a continuous colonnade in the design of buildings facing Market Street Emphasize a crosswalk on 7th Street from the former Reids Fine Foods site to Market Street as equally or more important than a crosswalk from ImaginOn to the park Emphasize a crosswalk on 9th Street from the future 9th Street Station directly to Market Street Consider the types of desired vendors in designing vendor areas and temporary structures on Market Street Beyond these recommendations to help leverage Market Street other recommendations to consider in order to help the many different development features thrive are: Creating a residential environment to attract families that will support and benefit from the family friendly facilities in First Ward. Phasing the retail to initially focus on hospitality along Market Street with community retail being phased in as residential development around the site progresses.
Conclusion
Build simultaneously around the park to enclose it and prevent the park from becoming blighted. Be aware of the Hal Marshal site and potential First Ward park and recreation area when designing and constructing the proposed design elements Manage the farmers market as a non-profit venture and potentially co-op, similar to the successful markets in Madison, WI and Birmingham, AL.
References
Anhar, Lucienne. The definition of boutique hotels. http://www.hospitalitynet.org/ Arrington, G. B. and R. Cervero. Effects of TOD on Housing, Parking, and Travel. Transit Cooperative Research Program Report 128, 2008. Artist Link. Artist Space in Industrial Zones. http://www. artistlink.org/?q=spacetoolbox/formunicipalities/zoningforartists/industrialzoning Artshound. Main Street / Market Square Historic District. http://www.artshound.com/venue/detail/332 Bartik, T. J. and G. Erickcek. The Local Economic Impact of Eds and Meds. Brookings Institute Metropolitan Policy Program, 2008. http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/ Files/rc/reports/2008/1210_metropolitan_economies_ bartik_erickcek/metropolitan_economies_report.pdf
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Carrboro Creative Coworking. http://www.carrborocoworking.com Chapman, Parke. Boutique hotels defy upstream economics. Real Estate Weekly , March 2001. http://findarticles. com/p/articles/mi_m3601/is_34_47/ai_73284015/ Charlotte-Mecklenburg Planning Commission. First Ward Master Plan (Charlotte: City of Charlotte, 1996). City of Greenville. Special Events. http://www.greenvillesc.gov/PublicInfo_events/SpecialEvents.aspx City of Phoenix. About Civic Space Park. http://phoenix. gov/PARKS/civicprk.html
Ignition Alley. http://www.ignitionalley.com/ Ko K. and X. Cao. Impacts of the Hiawatha Light Rail Line on Commercial and Industrial Property Values in Minneapolis. Center for Transportation Studies Report 10-05. http://www.cts.umn.edu/Events/transporteconomics/ presentations/14_Ko.pdf Newman, P. and J. Kenworthy. 2006. Urban Design to Reduce Automobile Dependence. Opolis 2(1). http://escholarship.org/uc/item/2b76f089 On the Horizon. Greenville Business Magazine, January 2009. http://virtual.angstromgraphics.com/display_article.php?id=104423
DC9BB1FB-3102-40D6-BC74-F87300A2A476/43205/SurreyEconomicDevelopmentStrategyFINALVERSION.pdf Wooley, Helen. Urban Open Spaces (Spon Press: New York, 2003).
Pushkarev, B. and J. Zupan. 1977. Public Transportation Crompton, John. Parks and Economic Development (American Planning Association Planning Advisory Service: and Land Use Policy. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. Washington D.C., 2001) Compton, John. The Impact of Parks and Open Space on Property Values and the Property Tax Base (National Recreation and Park Association: Ashburn, VA, 2000). Dane County Farmers Market on the Square. About the Dane County Farmers Market. http://www.dcfm.org/ aboutmkt.asp Garvin, Alexander and Gayle Berens. Urban Parks and Open Space (Urban Land Institute: Washington, D.C., 1997). Gourley, Catherine. Island on the Creek: The Granville Island Story (Madiera Park: Harbour Publishing, 1986). Hanchett, T. W. Sorting Out the New South City: Race, Class, and Urban Development in Charlotte, 18751975 (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1998). River Market District. http://www.rivermarket.info/ Song, Yan and Gerrit-Jan Knaapb. 2004. Measuring the effects of mixed land uses on housing values. Regional Science and Urban Economics 34: 6, 663-680. http://www. sciencedirect.com/ TechShop Raleigh Durham. Community Website. http:// techshoprdu.com/ 21c Museum Hotel. Welcome to the 21c Museum Hotel. http://www.21chotel.com/hotel/ Vancouver Economic Development. Green Buildings in Vancouver (Vancouver: City of Vancouver, 2009). Vann Struth and Eric Vance & Associates. City of Surrey Economic Development Strategy (Surrey, BC: City of Surrey, 2008). http://www.surrey.ca/NR/rdonlyres/ Conclusion
Market Research
This market study explores multiple types of farmers markets and public markets located throughout the United States. Each market chosen in this study was analyzed and categorized by its setting, structure, management, funding, and purpose. These market characteristics were then organized by compatibility for First Ward Charlotte. The markets are shown in order from low cost start up farmers markets to high-end permanent markets. The areas in purple are the current market study sizes overlaid onto an aerial of First Ward to show spatial analysis. The following communities are included in this analysis: Madison, WI Greenville, SC Little Rock, AK Minneapolis, MN Portland, ME Roanoke, VA Seattle, WA The research indicates the following best practices with regards to developing markets: Development utilizes public/private venture Non-profit manage company
Appendix 1: Farmers & Public Markets

Redevelop current facilities Close proximity to public transportation Procure indirect government funding
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Dane County Farmers Market
Madison, WI Established: 1972 Vendors: 150 to 300 Structures: Temporary Mgmt: Co-op Funding: City Agency Purpose: Producer-only market with county-wide draw Relevance: Low infrastructure requirement Entrepreneurship
Main Street Greenville, SC
Established: 1990s Vendors: 40+ Structures: Street Mgmt: City Agency Funding: City Purpose: Events to bring county- wide residents downtown Relevance: Temporary, but integrated into street
Appendix 1
River Market District LiIle Rock, AK
Established: 1995 Vendors: 15+ Structures: New Construc+on Mgmt: Funding: Purpose: Non-Prot Public-Private
Global Market Minneapolis, MN
Farmers Market + Hall Relevance: Redeveloped Site to help turn area into cultural and entertainment district
Established: 2006 Vendors: 50+ Structures: Permanent Mgmt: Non-Prot Funding: Public-Private Purpose: Foster interna+onalism and entrepreneurship Relevance: Redeveloped Exis+ng Building Mul+cultural neighborhood
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Public Market House Portland, ME Established: 1998 (2006) Vendors: 10 Structures: Award-winning new construc+on Mgmt: Private Funding: Libra Founda+on Purpose: Revitalize downtown with Maine culture and small business incuba+on Relevance: Purpose-built construc+on Cau+onary tale
Historic Roanoke City Mkt Roanoke, VA
Established: 1882 Vendors: 42 Structures: Permanent Mgmt: Non-prot Funding: Public-Private Purpose: Preserve historic market Relevance: Redeveloped Exis+ng Building Founda+on receives tax credits & leases from private rm EDAs
Appendix 1
Pikes Market SeaIle, WA
Established: 1907 Vendors: 200 Structures: Historic Mgmt: Pike Place Market PDA Funding: Public/Private Purpose: Public Market, Low- income Services, Heritage Programs, Low- income housing Relevance: Mul+-purpose, successful
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Appendix 1
Given the focus of the project on Market Street and the clients desire to create an authentic and vibrant place, the project team research ways that creative cities strategies and streets can come together in the context of economic development. Relatively new forms of urban redevelopment are economic development strategies that seek growth through the support of creative industries and culture. The idea that creative industries and culture can foster economic development is supported by the economies of agglomeration and economic base theories. Generally, creative industries can create economic development by importing people and exporting goods and services. Governments can encourage creative industries by creating an enabling environment for them to exist, but supporting industries is not the only way to create a creative city. In fact, home grown festivals or festival market places can contribute to economic development. While government or corporate-sponsored events may import capital and tourists, they risk both alienating the populace who originally made the place feel creative and crowding out investment into that populace. The result is gentrification that destroys the creative social fabric that made the area creative in the first place. There is some anecdotal evidence of this happening in Charlottes SouthEnd. When SouthEnd had its own Business Improvement District, local property and business owners initiated Art and Soul street festivals that were
Appendix 2: Cultural and Creative Strategies in Urban Redevelopment

entirely locally sourced and managed. When the SouthEnd BID merged with its larger Uptown counterpart and came under the overall management of Charlotte Center City Partners, the vivacity and authenticity of these events declined, with some considerable disgruntlement on the part of the original local entrepreneurs, who felt that their ideas had been taken over and weakened by a larger corporate entity. sales market when they are members of the same sector (Scott 2006, 5). A famous cluster of high-tech companies is Silicon Valley. Another, more generic, example would be a motor mile, a term that refers to the collocation of competing automobile dealerships along the same road. Once again, Charlottes SouthEnd, with its Design Center, a cluster of design related businesses located in a series of converted textile mills plus a variety of smaller new buildings adjacent to the light rail line, serves as a clear example of the success of this conscious branding exercise. Nevertheless, firms can experience some disadvantages to co-locating. The high concentration of firms together may lead to congestion and pollution. These negative externalities slow the growth of the cluster. Although economists generally agree that the positive outcomes from agglomeration economies outweigh negative externalities like pollution and congestion, there is little information regarding how negative externalities in this cluster occur, or when the negative externalities may overcome the benefits of clustering.
Agglomeration and Clustering

The economies of agglomeration describe the benefits that related firms experience when they co-locate or cluster. When multiple firms in the same industrial sector cluster, they experience economies of scale that both lower the cost of production and increase the market potential for selling goods and services (Scott 2006, 9). The average cost of production is reduced, because the firms can work together to achieve economies of scale in sourcing materials from suppliers. Firms can also specialize and share a more flexible and cheaper labor pool. Even when competitors co-locate, they can reduce production costs and broaden the potential
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drivers of local economic development and cites literature that supports the potential for cultural-products industry The creative city is a city that actively encourages the creato create jobs and urban development (2004, 463). Two tion of a creative industries cluster. According to Scott, mechanisms exist by which creative cities can promote creative industries include economic sectors that offer 1) economic development: exporting products and importing entertainment and information services, like print media, people. Florida elaborates on this idea by arguing that cities film, and recorded music, and 2) manufactured products must compete to attract the people who work in the creative that consumers use to individualize themselves, like jewelry industry cluster, the creative class, in order to develop a or fashion apparel (2004, 462). Nevertheless, a consistent creative industry cluster (2002). Nevertheless, there is little definition of cultural industries that specifies individual agreement about the definition of cultural industry clusters industrial sectors, for example by NAICS codes, does not and on the extent the government should intervene in the exist. Furthermore, as sector classification descriptions and cluster. Authors also question whether cultural industry identifying codes differ from country to country, comparclusters are even beneficial; however the literature generally ing cultural industries between countries and over time agrees that cultural industry policies are politically amenabecomes difficult, if not impossible. ble. Generally, creative industries can be divided into two categories: consumption-side and production-side. Consumption-side creative industries are products or services that appeal to end users, like tourists, and may include entertainment and shopping districts, museums, art galleries, and performing arts centers, or temporary attractions like festivals (Scott 2004, 470). Production-side creative industries include art studios, film and television production, music production, new media, publishing, and apparel (Scott 2004, 469). Scott omits fine arts production in production-side creative industries. The lack of a consistent definition of cultural industries has caused a wide range of claims about the impact of cultural industries on the economy. On one extreme, Richard Florida proposes that cultural industries have a significant impact on the economy. Critics of Florida, such as Scott, McCann, and Peck, point out that Florida loosely defines creative labor, whereas most academics focusing on creative industries cite employment numbers based on standard industrial categories (Scott 2004, 465). Overall, academic research overwhelmingly criticizes Floridas exuberant claims about the impact that the creative class has on cities, citing Floridas lack of reliable research and his omission of necessary and sufficient conditions that cause the creative class to congregate and influence an economy (Peck 2005, Scott 2006). In fact, Scotts empirical work suggests that cultural industries only comprise a negligible proportion of national economic system; however, they do generate large contributions to employment and income (Scott 2004, 466). Furthermore, there is a dearth of literature describing how to create a successful creative industry cluster. In fact, the literature generally concludes that conditions for each place Appendix 2
The Creative City
in different times can enormously influence the success of a creative industry cluster (Mommas 2004; Scott 2004). Many authors question whether government policies promoting creative industries can actually create economic development, because successful creative clusters emerged organically (Mommas 2004, 521). The very act of planning may destroy the creativity of the cluster (Leslie 2005). Scott argues that there are ways that government can intervene in a creative industry to promote its growth without undermining the authenticity of the cluster. He maintains that government intervention should ensure that the firms in the cluster trust each other and can synergistically work together. Government can also promote high-skill local labor markets and encourage local innovation. He specifically lists labor-training programs, centers of excellence, exhibition organization, trade mission organization for product exporting, and quality control (2004, 478). Overall, the literature provides no conclusion about how much the government can intervene in a creative cluster before it becomes too artificial to succeed. The literature also questions whether creative industry clusters may benefit a community. Empirical evidence suggests that creative cities have higher income inequality than comparable cities and lead to gentrification (Grodach 2007; Harcup 2000; McCann 2007; Peck 2005; Scott 2006). McCann also points out that the creative city is tightly linked to the ideas of smart growth and livability; however, the definition of livability is an Anglo definition that trumps other cultures concepts of livability (2007, 194. See also Peck 2005, 745). Finally, the bulk of research focuses on Western Europe and may or may not be applicable in other contexts. Whether or not creative industry clustering has a large or small impact on the economy, the literature agrees that it is an attractive form of economic development. Scott points out the cluster tends to grow quickly, be environmentally friendly, employ high-skilled and high-wage creative people, and contributes to the quality of life and the stature of
Creative Cities and Economic Development

The creative cities idea emerged in the early 1990s, informed by the ideas of Bianchini, Landry, Worpole, among others. Nevertheless, Richard Florida takes much of the credit for popularizing the idea as the creative class. The creative cities idea postulates that creative industry clusters can attract capital to an area by attracting tourists and young, mobile workers while also creating high-value goods and services for export out of the region. For example, Scott asserts that cultural-products industries are visible
the place where it is located (2004, 477). Harcup argues that creative industry clusters help enforce the idea that a city is world class (2000, 221). More importantly, creative city development strategies tend to be politically amenable (Peck 2005, 760-1).
Theres no festival without community

The literature emphasizes the importance of supporting the local community with cultural industry economic development programs. This is important, because creative city strategies rely on the authenticity of the gritty, artsy, and marginal parts of the city. If the creative core of the city ceases to exist, the engine driving the cultural industry cluster stops. Thus, top-down intervention programs run the risk of gentrifying the creative area by not investing in the social fabric that made the creative industry cluster possible in the first place. Furthermore, ensuring that the local community benefits from creative industry clustering strategies is ethically important given the evidence that creative cities have wider income gaps. The literature overall argues for the creation of an enabling environment for innovation and creative production. Grodach argues that festivals that successfully contribute to economic development within a community involve arts education and training programs that have some longevity (2007). Strategies may include creating community arts centers, arts education programs, or subsidized artist livework lofts. In another example, Quinn describes a successful and annual Irish festival that has used such techniques (2006). In fact, Grodach emphasizes that creating small cultural facilities are crucial because they deliver services to more focused areas of interest and locations (2007, 363). Otherwise, investment goes to organizations that fit a more orthodox definition of economic development, like museums or entertainment districts, and overlook community organizations that promote arts creation. Successful festivals also build strong relationships with the local population, seeing the community as a source of ideas, contributors, staff, volunteers, and audience (Quinn 2006, 299). In other words, it is a mistake to alienate the local community (viz. the SouthEnd example noted above).
Street Festivals as a Strategy

Historically, festivals have been seen as a social safety valve, a way for the general populace to act out anger and frustration and take control of the streets temporarily (Harcup 2000; Quinn 2006). Quinn reinforces this idea by harkening to the entomology of festival. The Latin word festum means feast, implying a celebratory energy that involves the local community (2006, 290). However, Harcup questions whether festivals actually do invert power structures or not, and concludes that the standard top-down organized festival reinforces the status quo (2000). As a method of economic development, street festivals can occur as either a government and corporate-organized activity (top-down) or as a community-organized event (bottomup). The literature generally agrees that bottom-up organized events benefit the community more. Grodach and Loukaitou-Sideris divide creative economic development strategies into three categories: entrepreneurial strategies, creative class strategies, and progressive strategies (2007). They argue that progressive strategies follow a more bottom-up approach that responds to the needs of the local neighborhood and its organizations (2007, 352). Harcup concurs stating that bottom-up organized festivals offer more benefits than their top-down organized counterparts, as the latter tend to import capital while the former are more likely to regenerate social life within a community (2000, 226). In contrast, entrepreneurial and creative class strategies concentrate on building a city for tourists, involve massive, publicly-funded construction projects not subject to public approval, and take investment away from programs that do not directly contribute to a strict definition of economic development
Street Fair in Bath, UK - David Walters
(Grodach 2007, 354). Quinn questions the basic premise that festivals should attract tourism to contribute to economic development. Instead, she posits that a festival can exist for its own sake, using tourism as a way to ensure its own fiscal independence (2006, 298). Overall, there is a lack of research on the impact, economic or otherwise, that festivals have on the local community, but an agreement that bottom-up organization has a longer-term benefits for the community.
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There is no festival without community. Peck cautions that top-down creative industry economic development strategies tend to commoditize the arts and local cultural resources, creating a cultural theme-park tailored to bourgeois tastes instead of developing authentic culture (2005, 763). Thus, using a festival as an economic development strategy within an overall cultural industry clustering strategy can contribute to economic development, if investment is made in programs that exist before and after the festival. In conclusion, there is a potential for creative industry clusters to contribute to the economic development of a city; however, the exact mechanisms for creating a cultural industry cluster remains unknown and it remains to be seen how much a government can intervene before the cluster loses its authenticity and subsequent innovation. Furthermore, orthodox and Florida-supported strategies for using creative industry clusters to promote economic development advocate for top-down programs that risk alienating the local community, making the economy more unequal, and gentrifying the diverse, gritty, and creative community that spawned the cluster in the first place. Research suggests that successful strategies implement programs into the local, marginalized community to foment innovation and arts in the long-term. Thus, even a short-term program such as a one-time or annual festival should include such programs and engage with the local community.
References
Bianchini, F., M. Fisher, J. Montgomery, and K. Worpole. 1988. City Centres, City Cultures. Manchester: CLES. Florida, Richard. 2002. The ride of the creative class: And how its transforming work, leisure, community and everyday life. New York, Basic. Grodach, Carl and Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris. 2007. Cultural development strategies and urban revitalization: A survey of US cities. International Journal of Cultural Policy 13: 349-70. Harcup, Tony. 2000. Re-imagining a post-industrial city: The Leeds St. Valentines Fair as a civic festival. City 4: 21531. Leslie, Deborah. 2005. Creative Cities? Geoforum 36: 4035. Landry, C. and F. Bianchini. 1995. The creative city. London: Demos. McCann, Eugene J. 2007. Inequality and politics in the creative city-region: Questions of livability and state strategy. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 31: 188-96. Mommas, Hans. 2004. Cultural clusters and the postindustrial city: Towards the remapping of urban cultural policy. Urban Studies 41: 507-32. Peck, Jamie. 2005. Struggling with the creative class. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 29: 740-70.
Quinn, Bernadette. 2006. Problematising Festival Tourism: Arts festivals and sustainable development in Ireland. Journal of Sustainable Tourism 14: 288-306. Scott, Allen J. 2004. Cultural-products industries and urban economic development: Prospects for growth and market contestation in global context. Urban Affairs Review 39: 461-90. Scott, Allen J. 2006. Creative cities: Conceptual issues and policy questions. Journal of Urban Affairs 28: 1-17.
Appendix 2
Debt Financing
Community Bonds
Special assessment bonds to pay for facilities One example is Oregons PACE Bond Property assessed clean energy bond
Appendix 3: Incentive Programs

2,150 spaces under Pershing Square, Los Angeles 1951 6-story garage under Mellon Square, Pittsburgh 1953 Vendors Fees for using designated vendor sites (ie. connected to services) Special occasions Weddings Corporate events of pedestrian malls, bike paths, parking facilities, sidewalk canopies, planning and design works, promotions and special events To form one: Develop a report with boundaries, how district meets legislation, and plan to provide services. Notify property owners Have a public hearing Approve resolution to add parcels to district and set tax rate. Non-profit orgs incorporated to run district business First Ward, mostly MSD 2 has lower tax rate than other center city areas NC Article 3J Tax Credits Offers tax credits for companies that create jobs, invest in business property Only specific types of businesses like call centers, IT, manufacturing, R&D etc
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Lease-purchase Revolving Funds Joint-equity partnerships with private sector Loans

Charlotte Business Equity Loan Program as of Dec 2009, provided $5.8m to 160 small businesses Small Business Enterprise Loan Fund
Revenues
Leases
Retail frontage Restaurant in park (Bryant Park) Creates revenue & brings people to park off-peak times
Taxation
Special assessment district / Business Improvement District Do not work well when the neighborhood is poor Charlotte has municipal service districts (Center City Partners, University City) MSDs can use an ad valorem property tax for improvements: decorative, infrastructure, construction
User Fees
Parking Garages 1,700 space garage under Union Square San Francisco 1940
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Business Improvement District Downtown Denver (Denver also has a sales tax dedicated to parks). 16th Street Mall Management District is a 865-property owner organization covering 120 blocks around the park. Money raised used for maintaining trees, flowers, plantings, sweeping, trash collection, security, programming, etc. Bryant Park (Manhattan) Bryan Park Restoration Corporation has a $2m annual budget. Movies, jazz performances, Fashion Week. $250,000 from NYC, rest is BID, Coffee shop, donations, revenues from coffee shop, restaurant, concessions. Rents for offices around park have increased 40% since renovation, leasing activity increased 60%. Park is totally surrounded by retail and office. Bryant park caf is an after work & lunchtime spot for workers. See book for 1998 cashflow report & budget Park at Post Office Square Boston Friends of Post Office Square, Inc. 20-member board from CEO of surrounding businesses. Raised money to redevelop parking deck to be a deck with park on top. In 5 years, making enough money to cover costs on park and garage & loan, but not enough to pay dividends to shareholders (450 shareholders) Pearl District in Portland financed a new streetcar line from downtown Portland with a Benefit Assessment District Tax increment financing Identify an improvement district. Then, city secures a bond for improvements or acquisitions in the area. Bond is secured by projected increase in revenue from existing and new development in the district. Low Income Housing Tax Credit The Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) is the largest federal funding program for the creation of affordable rental housing. To be eligible for the LIHTC, a project must be rental housing (although
lease-to-own is an option in some states). For mixedReferences income housing, the developer must provide either 40 Crompton, John. Parks and Economic Development percent of the units at 60 percent AMI or 20 percent (American Planning Association Planning Advisory Service: at 50 percent AMI. Credits are only available for the Washington D.C., 2001) affordable units.
Park-related businesses
Concessions / food trucks like portland Bike/scooter/segway rental Book carts (like in New York) Local Currency Local Improvement Charges
Compton, John. The Impact of Parks and Open Space on Property Values and the Property Tax Base (National Recreation and Park Association: Ashburn, VA, 2000). Garvin, Alexander and Gayle Berens. Urban Parks and Open Space (Urban Land Institute: Washington, D.C., 1997). Shoemaker, Douglas. Tools for Mixed-Income TOD (Center for Transit Oriented Development: Washington, D.C., 2006). Wooley, Helen. Urban Open Spaces (Spon Press: New York, 2003).
Grants
Sponsorships
Local businesses can sponsor events
Charlotte Business Investment Grant Zone NC Urban Progress Zone
Appendix 3
Figure Ground
The following historic figure ground analyis drawings represent the historic block and building devlopment patterns in First Ward. The study area displayed is the former railroad corridor which is the present day location of the the light rail blue line. The figure ground was developed off of the cities sanborn maps from the labled time period.
Appendix 4: Historic Figure Ground
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Appendix 4
Sections
This appendix contains the following sections: Proposed urban walls on Brevard St. and Market St. facing First Ward Park Market Street during pedestrian only activities Market Street with vehicles
Appendix 5: Sections
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120
Brevard St
Appendix 5
Market St Colonnade
Rear Service Alley
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5 sidewalk 7 buffer
16 arcade
Appendix 5
5 sidewalk 7 buffer
16 arcade
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Market Street Analysis, First Ward Charlotte

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First Ward Redevelopment: Best Practices

A report from graduate students at

UNC Charlotte Belk College of Business

Design+Society Research Center at the UNC Charlotte College of Arts+Architecture

New UNC Charlotte Building - Kieran Timberlake/Gantt Huberman Architects

Study Area Overview

Neighboring Areas Overview

Figure 2: First Ward and Levine Properties holdings (Study Area)

Figure 3: Property Ownership in First Ward

First Ward Overview

First United Presbyterian Church - Steve Minor

Philip-Carey Warehouse - Steve Minor

Old First Baptist Church - Steve Minor

William Treloar House - Steve Minor

Figure 4: Historic Assets

10. Leader in Environmental Sustainability

1996 First Ward Master Plan

2020 Vision Plan

Figure 6: SWOT Analysis

Leveraging Strategic Assets

Case Study: Curbless Streets

Case Study: Colonnade

Rue de Rivoli - David Walters

French Quarter - Daniella Fergusson

Application to First Ward

Hamburg, Germany - ManofMode.blogspot.com

Leveraging Strategic Assets

32 train right-a-way 45 Market Street

32 train right-a-way 45 Market Street

Leveraging Strategic Assets

Table 2: Demographic Snapshot of Transit Oriented Developments

New 9th Street Station

Hennepin Ave. / Warehouse District Stop - Wikimedia

Case Study: Transit Oriented Development

New UNC Charlotte Uptown Campus

Application to First Ward

Application to First Ward

Simon Fraser University Surrey - sfu.ca

New First Ward Park

Brevard St Solar Angle 35

Market Street Colonnade

Rear Service Alley

Figure 13: Family-oriented amenities in First Ward

Application to First Ward

Potential Boutique Hotel

Case Study: Boutique Hotel

Application to First Ward

Leveraging Strategic Assets

21c Hotel Louisville - 21c Hotels

Hotel Palomar Atlanta - Hotel Palomar

Potential Commercial Uses

Ace Hotel Portland - Ace Hotel

Hotel Palomar Dallas - Hotel Palomar

Local and Tourist Serving Retail

Case Study: Types of Markets

Market Street Temporary Vendor Retail

Greenvilles Main Street - olympusjgreen (flickr)

Figure 14: Market Street Detail, with Market

Figure 15: Market Street Detail, no Market

Table 3: Comparison of Farmers Markets and Public Markets

Farmers Market Produce Outdoors Seasonal

Public Market Produce, Meats, Prepared Foods, Crafts Indoors Year-Round

Creative Industries Sector Commercial Uses

Figure 16: Markets described in Appendix 1