Charlotte Center City Partners held its board meeting yesterday at Bank of America Stadium to discuss the health of Uptown.
Some interesting stats:
5%: Crime in center city fell by this much. Violent crime has dropped 1%.
CMPD launched new programs to combat crime in Uptown, including Operation TRIO, which targets the transit center, Romare Bearden Park, First Ward Park and Fourth Ward Park.
900: The number of additional daytime enrollments per week at UNC Charlotte's Dubois Center in First Ward.
Daytime courses at the Uptown campus have doubled since fall 2023.
Another fun fact: UNC Charlotte's student population is now 31,000 after enrolling its largest-ever freshman class of 4,700 students. The university is ditching its longtime "commuter school" reputation: Most students now come from Wake County.
Between 21 to 22%: The Uptown office vacancy rate is roughly 6 million square feet.
A healthy rate is around 13%, says James LaBar, SVP of economic development for CCCP.
Charlotte needs new economic development tools, LaBar says, to address about 4.1 million square feet of problematic office space and reach the 10% range.
Some potential contenders for conversion are 400 South Tryon, One Wells Fargo Center, Two Wells Fargo Center, First Citizens Plaza and BB&T.