CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Plaza Midwood area could soon be home to more apartments.
Right now, Charlotte city leaders are considering a proposal for mid-rise apartments and some retail space on Central Avenue near Uptown. Developers want to replace businesses on Central Avenue and residential lots on Sunnyside Avenue with an eight-story apartment building.
Despite the recent influx of apartments in Charlotte, developers are still flocking to the Plaza Midwood area to build.
On Central Avenue, the Commonwealth project is building 383 apartments. In February, city leaders approved 175 apartments on Commonwealth Avenue. Now, Republic Metropolitan is hoping to build 315 units along Central Avenue and Piedmont Street.
"It's really chipping away at the core of our neighborhood and destroying what we have and what we deserve," Craig Miller, a homeowner in the Sunnyside neighborhood said.
Miller said he supports growth but he’s against the development proposal because it would overtake two residential properties on Sunnyside Avenue.
"They will be basically destroying that buffer, " he said.
The building would be 85 feet tall on Central Avenue and lower down to 50 feet tall on Sunnyside Avenue, which is directly across from single-family houses in a residential neighborhood.
Keith McVean, the land use attorney for Republican Metropolitan on this rezoning petition, said during the public hearing for the project that the developers have limited building height and density. However, neighbors are worried about the lack of transition from high-density housing to their residential neighborhood. They also think cut-through traffic on their neighborhood streets will worsen.
McVean said the project takes the neighboring residents into account and makes several improvements like adding a public walking path and a potential traffic light on Central Avenue.
"We worked diligently with the architect to look at context-sensitive design," McVean said in response to concerns about the apartments not blending in with the neighborhood.
Still, Miller thinks the building is too close for comfort.
"We want the city to be smart about what they allow," he said.
Developers said the project will offer retail space at a minimum of 1,500 square feet and a maximum of 5,000 square feet if the market allows. Neighbors are hoping they will agree to increase retail and decrease the number of apartment units.
The city’s zoning board could consider the rezoning petition as early as next month.
Contact Julia Kauffman at jkauffman@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.