New 1.5-mile stretch of the Cross Charlotte Trail by Park Road Shopping Center is now open

State of play: The city of Charlotte recently completed the Brandywine Road to Tyvola Road (B2T) stretch of greenway on the Cross Charlotte Trail — a collaboration with Mecklenburg County also known as XCLT. The trail will eventually span to the county’s northern tip and includes parts of the Little Sugar Creek Greenway.

• B2T starts behind Park Road Shopping Center and connects to the rest of the Cross Charlotte Trail at Tyvola Road near Queens University of Charlotte’s sports complex and the Marion Diehl Recreation Center.

By the numbers: The new section of trail is 1.54 miles, and there’s an additional 0.4 miles of trail connecting it to neighborhoods. The project budget was $26.5 million, which included planning and design, utility relocation, construction, permits, landscaping and public art.

Details: “Rivulet,” a large blue sculpture by artists Laurel Holtzapple and Shaun Cassidy that’s located where Westfield Road and Brandywine meet, is a nod to the tributaries of Little Sugar Creek, per the city. A few feet away are sculpture benches called “Sycamore” by the same artists.

• Nearby, there’s street parking on Westfield Road and a dedicated parking lot at 2229 Tyvola Road.

What’s next: The city will hold an official ribbon cutting on July 27 at 10am at Brandywine Plaza (3352 Westfield Road) near the public art.

Zoom out: B2T allows people to travel 18.35 miles from Brevard Street in NoDa to the South Carolina state line, but there is a section of greenway closed due to greenway renovations and Atrium Health’s construction at Morehead Street and Kings Drive. The marked detour will lead you to Freedom Park where you’ll jump back on the greenway by the tennis courts.

• The county is responsible for this stretch of greenway, which is expected to be complete in mid-2024 and will include wider and higher paths, Katie Lloyd, Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation senior planner told Axios in March.

The big picture: It will be years before XCLT is complete. Some segments, like Matheson Avenue to East Craighead Road, are in the design phase, while others are in the process of real estate acquisition. For others, such as East Craighead Road to North Tryon Street, utilities are being relocated.

Take a look around.

Photo: Ashley Mahoney/Axios