The Visual and Performing Arts Center (VAPA), Charlotte's mall for artists, will celebrate its one-year anniversary today from noon until 9pm.

Why it matters: VAPA is home to more than 300 creatives in a city struggling to provide access to affordable space. The center is at 99% capacity, executive director Arthur Rogers tells Axios.

What to expect: Enjoy a conversation about VAPA from 12-1pm, an artist talk from 1-3pm and artist demonstrations from 3-7pm. Also, catch stage performances, food trucks and guided tours throughout the day.

Location: 700 N. Tryon St. Admission and parking are free.

The big picture: VAPA's initial lease of the Mecklenburg County building is for three years, but Rogers says they won't need to worry about what's next until around 2027 given the county's timeline for redeveloping it.

He's excited about the connections they've made with the community and the collaboration with the county, and hopes people will see the value in VAPA when the time comes to develop the site.

• "It'd be a shame to go through all this and have something that this many people are excited about just kind of disappear," Rogers says.

Flashback: A Sears store once occupied VAPA's current site.

Charlotte will have a St. Patrick's Day Parade for the first time since 2019.

Details: The parade — which will be held 11am-1pm on Saturday, March 11 — will be part of a larger Uptown festival celebrating Irish culture with marching bands, floats, food and vendors.

• Check out the parade and festival route here.

Context: The parade was canceled in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic, and again in 2022 by the original organizers, husband and wife duo Frank and Lisa Hart, due to health issues, per the Observer.

• Rory Wall, who is leading this year's efforts, tells Axios they developed the upcoming parade "from scratch," modeling it after New York and Savannah's, which have been around for nearly two centuries.

Every party is better with pizza, especially when it's a fresh, hot, crispy and chewy pie from the Wheelz truck.

How it's done: The Wheelz team will work with you to create the perfect menu for your event, then they'll roll up and serve fresh pizzas that are ready in minutes.

Book the truck.

🎤 Raleigh is hot right now — first for its good major league sports team and now for its homegrown music festival with a stacked lineup (looking at you, Dreamville.) *Plays We Be Burnin' by Sean Paul on repeat*

🏈 Jerry Richardson's legacy is complicated. The Carolina Panthers founder died on Wednesday. He brought the NFL to Charlotte, but he also sold the team amid allegations of workplace misconduct.

⚕️ North Carolina is the closest it's ever been to expanding Medicaid.

🍔 You can now get a Zack's Special burger at OMB. Zack's closed in 2021 after 46 years.

🚌 RATP Dev is the company with the keys to Charlotte's bus system. Recent disputes with the local bus drivers' union and frequent CATS bus delays has focused new attention on the city's process to hire a third-party entity to run its buses.

Pickleball isn't just having a moment. It's here to stay.

Driving the news: Rally — the pickleball version of TopGolf where you can play, eat and drink —  will open this summer at the corner of Old Pineville Road and Southside Drive.

Details: The two buildings comprising Rally will include a full-service restaurant and eight pickleball courts.

Of note: Rally's recently hired executive chef Cory Chunn who was previously at La Belle Helene and has appeared on Top Chef.

Context: The sport rose to popularity amid the pandemic. You can find a court to play on here.

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