INFORMATION AND WE'LL UPDATE YOU AS SOON AS WE GET IT RIGHT NOW AT 11:00 WE HAVE NEW
DETAILS ABOUT WHAT SOME HOPE TO
BE THE UPTOWN COMEBACK.
THE CENTER OF THE QUEEN CITY
TAKING ONE THE BIGGEST HITS
DURING THE PANDEMIC.
STILL MANY TOWERS ARE NOT FULL
OF WORKERS IN THE STREETS OF+@
UPTOWN AREN'T BUSTLING LIKE
THEY USED TO BUT THAT COULD
SOON CHANGE.
TONIGHT CITY LEADERS GOT AN
UPDATE ON HOW THE COMEBACK WILL
LOOK AND SEE CHARLOTTE'S HUNTER
SIGNS JOINS LIVE WITH THOSE
DETAILS.
HUNTER, A LOT OF PEOPLE STILL
WONDERING WHAT'S GOING ON WITH
WHAT USED TO BE ONE OF THE MOST
POPULAR PLACES BEFORE THE
PANDEMIC.
THE EPICENTER?
THAT'S RIGHT, FRED.
+@SEVERAL BUSINESSES HERE AT THE
EPICENTER ARE NOW GONE.
THIS USED TO BE A PLACE WHERE
PEOPLE WOULD COME TO EAT AT
RESTAURANTS OR PARTY AT NIGHT
BUT IT IS NO MORE AND THE
FUTURE OF THIS COMPLEX IS STILL
UNCLEAR.
IT'S BEEN A GHOST TOWN WITHIN A
GHOST UPTOWN WHEN I MOVED HERE.
IT'S DEFINITELY A CENTER OF
YOU KNOW, THE+@RE'S A LOT OF
NIGHTCLUBS, RESTAURANTS.
IT'S NOT THAT WAY ANYMORE AND
IT HAS CITY LEADERS ALARMED.
THAT IS SO CRITICAL FOR US TO
FIGURE OUT MONDAY NIGHT MICHAEL
SMITH WITH CENTER CITY PARTNERS
TAKING QUESTIONS AFTER GIVING
AN OUTLOOK ON THE HEART OF THE
CITY.
WHAT'S THE FUTURE OF THE
EPICENTER PROPERTY?
LOVE TO TALK WITH YOU OFFLINE
ABOUT THE EPICENTER AND I
YOU HAVE TO TALK TO 11 PEOPLE
OFFLINE ABOUT THE EPICENTER
AFTER THAT COMMENT.
IT'S NOT A GOOD OUTLOOK BUT
SMITH WAS OPTIMISTIC WHEN WE
CAUGHT UP WITH HIM LATER.
IT WILL BE AN EXCITING NEW USE
FOR THOSE VENDORS THAT ARE
CURRENTLY VACANT.
THERE IS SOME CONFIDENCE IN AN
UPTOWN COMEBACK.
SMITH SAYS UPTOWN HOTELS AND
BUSINESSES ARE ALREADY DOING
WELL ON THE WEEKENDS+@ BUT NOT
DURING THE WEEK.
GETTING WORKERS BACK IN THEIR
OFFICES IS CRUCIAL.
IT'S THE RECIPE.
IT'S THE RECIPE FOR THE
VIBRANCY OF TOWN.
IT'S WHY IT WAS SUCH AN
INTERESTING EXCITING PLACE
BEFORE, SMITH SAYS COMPANIES
WILL HAVE EMPLOYEES BAC+@K IN
THESE TOWERS IN FULL CAPACITY
OR IN A HYBRID MODEL BY LABOR
DAY.
BUT BRINGING VISITORS COULD BE
DIFFICULT.
IT'S BEEN PREDICTED THAT THERE
WILL BE SIGNIFICANTLY LESS
BUSINESS TRAVEL, SMITH SAYS
SEVERAL COMPANIES IN UPTOWN SAY
THAT THEY WANT TO HAVE THEIR
PEOPLE BACK IN THE OFFICES BY
LABOR DAY.
MAYBE THAT HYBRID MODEL COULD
BE USED BUT HE SAYS THERE IS
NOTHING THAT BEATS HAVING
PEOPLE PHYSICALLY BACK IN THE
OFFICE.
SO IT'LL BE INTERESTING TO
SE+@E JUST HOW OFTEN THOSE HYBRD
MODELS STICK A LAW STICK AROUND
AND FOR HOW LONG WHEN IT COMES
TO THE EPICENTER HERE IN THE
FUTURE OF IT THERE IS SOMETHING
THAT IS VERY KNOWN HERE.
WE DIDN'T GET MANY ANSWE+@RS
TODAY BUT CITY COUNCIL WILL
CERTAINLY DEMAND THEM LIVE IN
UPTOWN HUNTER SIGNS AND
CHARLOTTE AND WE WILL BE
FOLLOWING HUNTER.+@
THANK YOU SO MUCH.
CERTAINLY WAS A BUSY NIGHT TOO
FOR CITY COUNCIL.
CITY LEADERS JUST APPROVED TWO
POINT SEVEN BILLION DOLLAR
BUDGET FOR TWENTY TWENTY TWO.
IT D+@OES NOT RAISE PROPERTY
TAXES BUT IT DOES INCLUDE
ROUGHLY 10 MILLION DOLLARS AN
INCREASE IN POLICE FUNDING WITH
MOST OF THAT GOING TO PAY
RAISES FOR OFFICERS.
THE BUD+@GET ALSO GIVES A RAISE
TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS THE
MAYOR SO NOW THE MAYOR WILL
MAKE ROUGHLY FORTY THOUSAND
DOLLARS A YEAR IN SALARY AND
THAT'S A FORTY ONE AND A HALF
PERCENT PAY INCREASE.
MEANTIME, CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS
WILL GET THIRT+@Y THREE THOUSAND
A YEAR WHI+@CH IS ABOUT A 50
PERCENT RAISE.
BUT THAT SINGLE ITEM FORCED ONE
COUNCIL MEMBER TO VOTE AGAINST
THE ENTIRE BUDGET NOTING THAT
THE TOUGH YEAR MANY IN THE
COMMUNITY HAVE FACED
FINANCIALLY THERE COULDN'T BE A
WO+@RSE TIME FOR US TO CONSIDER
GIVING OURSELVES A RACE RIGHT
NOW.
SO FOR THAT REASON AND THAT
REASON ALONE I'LL BE VOTING
AGAINST THE BUDGET NOW THE
BUDGET DID PASS IN A 10 TO ONE
VOTE.
IT GOES IN+@TO EFFECT ON JULY
1ST.
CHARLO+@TTE LEADERS ARE ALSO
SEEKING SOLUTIONS IN THE
HOUSING CRISIS TONIGHT THERE
ARE NOW SIX NEW PROPERTIES THAT
COULD BECOME SPOTS FOR
AFFORDABLE LIVING IN THE CITY
CITY STAFF BRIEFED COUNCIL ON
THE LOCATIONS TONIGHT.
THE PROPERTIES INCLUDE LAND OFF
OF SOUTH BOULEVARD, PROVIDENCE
ROAD WEST AND UNIVERSITY CITY+@
BOULEVARD, ALL OF THE LAND
OWNED BY THE CITY.
TWO OF THE PROPERTIES ARE
DONATED TO THE CITY INCLUDING
THE BROOKS FAMILY WHO OWNS