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The area around the Sugar Creek light rail station is seeing a major transformation as developments move in.
On Friday night, Charlotte’s newest night club called The Side Room held its grand opening around the corner from the station. The intimate club is attached to the Blackbox Theater, focusing on house music and local talent.
It’s one of many new spaces breathing new life into the neighborhood that sits on the edge of NoDa. Raleigh Street is changing from industrial sites and vacant buildings to a booming center to eat, work, and play.
"I am happy to see the new growth," said Shanell Littlejohn, a Sugar Creek resident.
A major development connected to the Sugar Creek Station is called The Pass. Its campus will house offices, restaurants, and retail. Some businesses have already opened shop. Fans of Soul Gastrolounge are excited for the restaurant to reopen here after it was forced to close its Plaza Midwood location in 2022.
The mixed-use project is also building 335 apartments across the street.
"It’s kind of giving me more reason to be over here because most times I don’t stay over here that long, I just go to work and go back home," Kenneth Black shared.
In between The Pass and Blackbox Theater, a new café and cocktail lounge called Eighty Eights is in the works. Developers shared with WCNC Charlotte that the space, which is in the same building as The Independent, will feature live music several nights a week. It's expected to open at the beginning of September.
Littlejohn welcomes the change to her neighborhood and hopes it will be positive.
"I do think that they're working to make the area safer," she said.
Black noted he feels like he has seen a little less crime in the area recently.
"Sometimes it can get a little rough, but it’s not as bad as it was before, honestly," he said.
However, he worries growth will lead to higher rent.
"Prices are definitely going up," Black said. "It's kind of getting harder to find a good place that’s not too expensive."
As new spots continue to move in, a developer is also working on an affordable housing project in Sugar Creek in hopes of helping some residents avoid getting priced out.
Contact Julia Kauffman at jkauffman@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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