5 miles of new greenway now open in the Charlotte area plus 6 projects we're anticipating
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Mecklenburg County expects to have around 78-79 miles of greenway completed by the end of 2024. Photo: Ashley Mahoney/Axios
Roughly five miles of new greenway have opened in the Charlotte area in 2024, with more expected to open by the end of the year.
Why it matters: Greenways connect more people to nature and allow for alternative travel routes without having to navigate congested streets.
Zoom out: There are currently 16.3 miles of trails under construction in Mecklenburg County, Park and Recreation senior planner Katie Lloyd tells Axios. This will add to the 74.29 miles of existing greenway across the county.
- Plus, there's an additional 4.85 miles of greenway under construction by the city of Charlotte.
Driving the news: Below is a list of new sections of greenway that have opened so far in 2024 and how much they cost. Plus, several others that'll open by the end of the year.
Stewart Creek Tributary 2
A 1-mile stretch of trail, from Yellowstone Drive to Lakewood Avenue, opened in west Charlotte this spring.
Cost: $3.6 million
Long Creek Greenway
The 2-mile second phase of Long Creek Greenway opened in the spring. Long Creek Greenway now stretches 3.5 miles from the Target in Northlake to I-485 off Beatties Ford Road.
- Phase three of Long Creek is underway. The new 2.1-mile section will extend from I-485 to Oakdale Road and should be complete by spring 2025.
Cost: $15.7 million for phases two and three.
Go deeper: New stretch of greenway opens in north Charlotte
McIntyre Creek Greenway
The 0.9-mile section opened in the spring, extending from Beatties Ford Road to Clarencefield Drive on the backside of Hornets Nest Park in northwest Charlotte. It will ultimately connect to Long Creek Greenway and Oak Hills Park.
Cost: $1.8 million
Torrence Tributary 2
Details: The 0.9-mile section opened over the summer. It connects the Huntersville Gateway Park and Ride (located at Compass Street) to Rosewood Meadow Lane.
- It also incorporates a tunnel under I-77, which NCDOT completed.
- The tunnel features public art called "State of Flow" by Adam Buente, founder and owner of Project One Studio.
Cost: $5.6 million
Go deeper: New stretch of Torrence Creek Greenway opens in Huntersville
What's next: An additional 10.86 miles of funded trails in Mecklenburg County are in the design phase.
- There are another 6.9 miles that have funding approved in the Capital Improvement Plan, but the design phase has not started yet.
- Plus, an additional 6.07 miles of trails are funded and will be designed by other entities — think surrounding towns like Huntersville or the city of Charlotte.
Some projects that'll wrap up by the end of the year include:
Briar Creek/Little Hope Creek Greenways
The 1.1-mile segment is expected to open in November, serving as the east-west connector to Little Sugar Creek Greenway. It will connect Keystone Court to Manning Drive, running through Marion Diehl Park in south Charlotte.
Cost: $3.7 million
Stewart Creek
The 0.5-mile section should open by the end of the year. It will connect from State Street, near the former Blue Blaze Brewing site in west Charlotte, to Coronet Way.
- The project will include an 181-foot bridge, the longest in the greenway system.
Cost: $3.2 million
Paw Creek Greenway
The 1.5-mile section from Little Rock Road to Loy Court should open by the end of the year. It will connect Robert L. Smith Park at Little Rock Road to nearby neighborhoods.
Cost: $5.5 million
Caldwell Station Tributary Greenway
The 0.8-mile section will connect Caldwell Station Greenway to the Northern Regional Recreation Center on Old Statesville Road in Cornelius by the end of the year.
Cost: $3.3 million
McDowell Creek Greenway
Segment 1B of Huntersville greenway stretches 0.6 miles from Chilgrove Lane to Gildead Road, which should be open by the end of the year.
Cost: $1.3 million
Little Sugar Creek Greenway
Context: Little Sugar Creek Greenway off Morehead Street and Kings Drive closed in spring 2022 as part of Atrium Health's main campus expansion and a Charlotte Water project.
- Atrium Health is funding the renovated 1-mile section, which is expected to open by the end of the year. It includes wider paths and improved flood control.
The big picture: 119.3 total miles are funded through fiscal year 2029. You can weigh in on the Park and Recreation public input dashboard here.
Go deeper: 30 best outdoor activities within 2 hours of Charlotte