Fortune magazine rated Charlotte #1 in the nation for its "pro-business attitude"

The U.S. Conference of Mayors declared Charlotte the nation's "most livable city"

And Much More......

Know further about:
The City's History
Fast Facts
Climate
Neighbourhood Profiles

The earliest inhabitants of the southern Piedmont were Native Americans. Beginning in the 1750s Scots-Irish Presbyterians and German Lutherans followed the Great Wagon Road from Philadelphia into the backcountry. Here the cultivation of cotton eventually transformed the region into the leading cotton-textile producing area in the country. In the 19th century, Mecklenburg and surrounding counties became the gold mining capital of the United States resulting in Charlotte acquiring the first branch of the U.S. Mint. With the strength of the railways in the 1850s, there emerged a transportation and business hub that gradually led Charlotte to its preeminence as a major banking center in the Southeast.

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· Relative Humidity

· Climatological Summary

The area's climate can best be described as moderate, pleasant and sunny. Forget about the winter blues of our northern neighbors or the stifling summer heat of our southern friends. In Charlotte, the weather entices you outside all year round.

· Friendly Winters

Charlotte's winter offers you a taste of the old man, without all the shoveling, swerving and salt. Only half of the winter days fall below freezing, and below zero (-18° C.) temperatures have only occurred five times since 1878. Snow is infrequent, with an average annual accumulation of less than six inches, but Charlotte is only two hours away from excellent snow skiing in the North Carolina mountains. Residents can enjoy the snow, without having to endure it.

· Favorable Summers

The summer months lure Charlotteans outside. The bright sun and clear skies, dappled with pure white clouds, fill the summer days. Unlike cities to the south, though, very hot weather conditions (90° F, 32° C) occur only 36 days in Charlotte compared to 81 days in Jacksonville, Florida and 83 days in Houston. On the average, temperatures reach 100°F (38°C) only twice a year. And with an average summer temperature of 76°F (24° C) with an average daily range of 20 degrees, these inviting days are punctuated by cool nights under starry skies.

· Fantastic Springs and Autumns

The transformations of the seasons in Charlotte are the most breathtaking times of the year. The slow emergence of spring, from mid-March through May, provides residents with a visual extravaganza. The Carolina blue skies accentuate the pinks, reds, yellows, purples and soft whites of the spring blooms, which fill the city.

Those same skies, crisp and clear, provide the setting for the brilliant array of colors, which paint the trees during a fall, which extends well into November. Both seasons are appreciably long, providing a slow, enjoyable gateway into summer or winter. The average frost-free season lasts 216 days from mid-March to mid-November. October and November welcome the cool temperatures, which invite people outside to enjoy those brilliant fall colors, which rival those of New England, but are unknown in the deep south.

· Normal Temperatures       

· Absence of Severe Weather

Severe weather, such as hurricanes and tornadoes, is a rarity in Charlotte. The city is located outside principal tornado zones and the typical path of hurricanes along the east coast is such that storm centers are usually at sea by the time storms reach this latitude. The few storms that pass close to the North Carolina coast have little adverse effect on Charlotte

· Up to the Minute Forecasts

Accurate weather information for Charlotte is only a phone call away. The Charlotte office of the National Weather Service has a number of ways to keep you informed:

Forecasts: For recorded forecasts for the local area, beaches and mountains, dial (704) 359-8466.

Other Weather Information: Contact the National Weather Service at (704) 359-8284 for personalized service between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday. The office is located at 5318 Morris Field Drive, Suite 200, Charlotte, NC 28208.

NOAA Weather Radio: The continuous broadcast at 162.475 MHz (VHF-FM) will keep you posed on forecasts, weather watches and warning, weather map features, educational information, and provides safety tips during severe weather.

· Climatological Summary

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Neighbourhood  Profiles 

Uptown Charlotte:

Roughly defined by the I-277 freeway loop, this one square mile represents the original city. There's almost nothing old remaining -- just the 1790s grid system of streets and the 19th-century names for the four political wards. Uptown is largely shiny, new and bank-oriented. In the past couple of years -- fueled by Bank of America's money, vision or both -- parts of North Tryon and North College streets have become weekend nighttime hot spots, with restaurants, bars and trendy/artsy clubs. Trust us -- 10 years ago you could have lain in the street after 9 any night and been in danger only of being tripped over by transients. Still missing: significant shopping draws, but the locals have hopes.

An even bigger change is the housing rebirth. Fourth Ward -- the Victorian pocket neighborhood with some of the city's oldest remaining homes -- has been a showplace for 15 years. But now there are several upscale, midrise condominium projects on North Tryon and North Church streets, with plans for more.

Meanwhile, decaying 1960s-era public housing projects have been razed in the long-forgotten First Ward, six blocks east of The Square. ("The Square'' is the city's historic center, the intersection of Trade and Tryon streets). In place of the projects: 350 new townhouse-style apartments, painted tastefully taupe, marketed to lower- and middle-income city dwellers alike.

Highlights:
Bank of America Corporate Center, an art form inside and out; Elmwood Cemetery, one of the oldest public cemeteries in town, off West Sixth Street.

Look For:
The "steps to nowhere'' bordering Stonewall Street near Midtown Square, in the shadow of Interstate 277. They once led to one of hundreds of tiny houses in Brooklyn, a predominantly black neighborhood dating to the 1890s. The area was bulldozed in 1960s urban renewal

Old Charlotte:

Dilworth, Elizabeth, Myers Park, Plaza-Midwood and Eastover -- "streetcar suburbs'' that were part of Charlotte's first significant expansion south and east of uptown, from about 1898 (Dilworth) to the 1930s (Eastover). Also Biddleville and Cherry, Charlotte's oldest historically black neighborhoods.

Highlights:
Restored "front-porch'' neighborhoods with traditional sidewalks (with a strip of grass between the street and the walk), eclectic shops and eateries, particularly along East and South boulevards in Dilworth (South End, a trendy area of warehouses-turned-retail/restaurants, is the biggest draw), Central Avenue in Midwood and East Seventh Street in Elizabeth. Parts of Dilworth and Midwood have been designated as historic districts.Myers Park and Eastover were built as the city's first high-end "suburbs'' and still are the best places to run into well-heeled Charlotte natives.

Look For:
Freedom Park on East Boulevard, the largest green space near the central city, and Independence Park, a smaller but closer park that straddles Hawthorne Lane along East Seventh Street. Also, the Queens Road labyrinth with its canopy of willow oaks in Myers Park -- one of the city's most beautiful and most frustrating areas to navigate. The odd corner of "Queens and Queens'' came from connecting the old streetcar lines.

North Charlotte:

Charlotte's link to the South's textile past, dotted with old cotton mills, warehouses, rail lines and trucking depots. The area's commercial core -- around North Davidson and 36th streets -- is "historic North Charlotte.'' The "main streets'' for the old mill villages which sprang up earlier this century are still around -- cotton was the county's chief economic fuel until the 1940s.

Highlights:
Self-named "NoDa'' (for North Davidson) artists' district. As housing and office costs spiral upward in and around uptown, artists and other risk-takers have moved to this area, still a quick trip from the center city.

Look For:
Charlotte's railroad terminal (on North Tryon Street); one of the area's oldest churches, Sugaw Creek Presbyterian, built in the 1760s, and a one-room school (considered one of the area's oldest remaining buildings) built shortly afterward.

Westside:

This is the best place to see the juxtaposition of old and new. There still are landowners who trace their family steads to pre-Revolutionary land grants from George III, and pockets of forested idylls. But there's also the largest airport in two states -- Charlotte/Douglas International -- and much of the area's heavy industry.Airport noise hampered residential growth on the far westside. The northwest, around the extension of Beatties Ford Road, has a unique pocket of upper-income subdivisions built and largely populated by black families. To the west, around Mount Holly-Huntersville Road, new middle-income subdivisions have cropped up in the still-rural area, catering to young families and retirees.

Highlights:
Charlotte's regional farmer's market (on Yorkmont Road), the Charlotte Coliseum, Wilkinson Boulevard, whose ``adult entertainment establishments'' make it a notorious thoroughfare.

Look For:
Beatties Ford Road, an alternately impoverished urban street and historic country road, going from uptown to the Catawba River.

Eastside:

An area with two faces. Inside the city, it is mixed racially and economically, with strip shopping centers, Eastland Mall and car dealerships bordered by trim 1950s and 1960s tract homes and a growing international population.Outside the city, it's largely white and quintessentially suburban; Mint Hill was incorporated in 1970 to avoid annexation by Charlotte and to promote a large-lot, rural lifestyle. Construction on the Interstate 485 outerbelt has begun just beyond Mint Hill and, as in other areas of the county, will likely pressure those rural areas.

Highlights:
Central Avenue, the best place to monitor Charlotte's changing face. From Central Piedmont Community College to Eastland Mall, Central is the main street for Asian and Hispanic populations, with restaurants, food stores and doctors' offices run by immigrants. Central is also the place to find avant-garde shops, particularly around Plaza-Midwood's old ``main street''-style strip of funky establishments.

Look For:
The Hezekiah Alexander homesite and the Charlotte Museum of History, 3500 Shamrock Drive: A reproduction of the 1770s home of one of Charlotte's forefathers, and a 1,700-square-foot modest museum explaining local history.

Lake Norman area:

Big lake, small towns. Lake Norman was created in the 1950s when Duke Power Co. dammed the Catawba River to fuel its hydroelectric power plants. Development exploded in the past 15 years, creating luxury housing and headaches for three historic towns -- Davidson, home of Davidson College; Cornelius; and Huntersville.The center of Cornelius was once a textile mill; today it has moved west to the glittery Interstate 77 interchange, the gateway to Mecklenburg's Lake Norman development. Davidson has fiercely resisted commercial development and promoted an image of a well-heeled college town. Huntersville, an old railroad depot, has expanded in recent years with commuters, suburban shopping centers and young-family subdivisions.

Highlights:
The brightly lighted retail city that popped up around Exit 25 of I-77, pulling Huntersville's focus north and lake residents south. Also: Jetton Park, Lake Norman's chief public access point.

`New South' Charlotte:

From the SouthPark mall area south to South Carolina, from Matthews to Pineville, this is Charlotte's ``fertile crescent,'' historically the area's premier address.It's where to go to find the city's fancy shopping (the ever-growing SouthPark area) and big traffic headaches (N.C. 51 on a Saturday; Providence, Fairview roads on weekdays). This quadrant of the county developed first and continues to attract developers to any vacant square inch. Homes range from 1960s brick ranches on half-acre lots to neighborhoods filled with new stucco mansionettes.

Highlights:
If the SouthPark area alone were a city, it would be larger than most towns in the Carolinas; by 1990 it had passed Raleigh as the second-largest business district in the state (uptown Charlotte is No. 1). It added the pastel ``minitown'' of fancy shops at Phillips Place in 1996. If a high-end store is going to locate in Charlotte, this is where it will.

Look For:
The changes wrought by the first leg of I-485, finished in late 1997 in south Mecklenburg. Already the massive Ballantyne development -- a golf course, ultraluxe homes, apartments and sprawling shopping centers -- has enveloped a huge part of the land around the belt, in what was once a hunting preserve. Some I-485 interchanges are already rush-hour nightmares.

University City:

Boomtown USA. Fifteen years ago, this was cow pasture and rural byways, with UNC Charlotte (chartered in 1960) plunked in the middle. Today, helped by government money to encourage growth -- away from crowded south Charlotte -- UNCC is spreading, subdivisions and shopping centers open monthly and the western slice of Cabarrus County has become a fast-growing exurban area.

University City was born and grew with the '80s and '90s economic boom. Infrastructure is still catching up with the droves of new residents -- roads, movie theaters and libraries are largely new or under construction.

Highlights:
Lowe's Motor Speedway and the just-opened Concord Mills mall, just across the Cabarrus line; Blockbuster amphitheater; Reedy Creek Park, Mecklenburg's largest nature preserve.

Look For: 
A bit of the old in Derita (Mallard Creek and West Sugar Creek roads) and Newell (Old Concord and Newell-Hickory Grove roads) -- rural communities hard by the railroad tracks that were here before the minivans.

Southwest:

Bordered by the airport on the north, I-77 to the east, the Catawba River/Lake Wylie to the west and South Carolina to the south, the southwestern chunk of the county attracted relatively little attention from developers in the past. The roads are often still rural, though traffic from commuters in South Carolina clogs them regularly.

Much of Lake Wylie's residential development has been on its S.C. side, although some developments have started on the heavily wooded lakefront in Mecklenburg. Airport noise has slowed residential development away from the lake, although industrial development has been steady around I-77. But: It still has a few of the county's best bird-watching areas, around rural ponds and fields.

Highlights:
McDowell Park on Lake Wylie, Paramount's Carowinds theme park on the state line.

Look For:
Change. With the outer belt to make access easier by 2008, developers see dollar signs.

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