Opportunities to eat, drink and be entertained abound in Uptown. The number and variety of Uptown restaurants keep growing, with fine dining, down-home Southern standbys and ethnic cuisine all part of the mix.
Prefer to dine on your rooftop terrace or by your urban window? Reid’s Fine Foods at Seventh Street Station parking garage supplies Uptown kitchens. In summer, you can supplement the fare with farm-fresh produce from the Center City Green Market in the Station’s plaza.
Until recently, the Charlotte trolley could be heard clanging from the Atherton Mill in South End up to Ninth Street in Uptown. Its operation has been suspended until late 2007 while the light rail line is constructed in South End. The #85 car was built at the Dilworth Trolley Barn in 1927 and is Charlotte’s only original electric trolley car still in operation. When operation resumes, the trolley will run seven days a week.
The current route was rebuilt to accommodate the light rail system, which will share the trolley corridor. The system, which runs through the Charlotte Convention Center and the Westin Hotel, will link Charlotte to outlying towns beginning in late 2007. Anticipation for the light rail system has caused property values to skyrocket along the proposed route.
For a long time, Fourth Ward was the only residential pocket in what was the concrete expanse of Uptown. The turn-of-the-century homes in this quaint quadrant between North Tryon and West Trade streets had fallen into disrepair but were restored by determined homeowners and the bank that became Bank of America.
Fourth Ward is now one of the most charming spots in the city with its sidewalks and street lamps, its cozy front porches and Fourth Ward Park. Nearby, Ark Group is converting an old textile mill in the area into a “stroll district” with outdoor stages, night clubs and a recording studio.
A new condominium community, The Citadin at Fourth Ward Square, covers the entire block between Eighth and Ninth streets on North Graham. With retail on the street level, The Citadin is composed of two 25-story towers and two 11-story buildings. The 427 units range from the $300s to around $2 million.
Fifth and Poplar, a 305-unit mix of penthouses, condominiums and townhomes, offers a number of amenities, including a concierge service, state-of-the-art fitness center, central courtyard and its very own Harris Teeter Supermarket.
In Third Ward, Uptown’s southwest quadrant, small, renovated homes mix with new condominiums and apartments. It’s flanked on its southern side by Bank of America Stadium, the Panthers’ practice field and on its northern side by West Trade and Gateway Village – Bank of America’s mammoth new mix of homes, retail and office space that also houses Johnson & Wales University students. The Village stretches along five blocks of West Trade and also has a YMCA. Gateway Lofts and Post Gateway Place near Trade Street also add hundreds of residential units to Uptown. Property in Third Ward is also being considered as the eventual home of an Uptown baseball stadium. |
