CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Plaza Midwood leaders plan on taking the next steps to create a social district.
“It still comes with a lot of responsibility, and we’re looking forward to taking on that responsibility," Jason Michel, Executive Director of the Plaza Midwood Merchants Association, said.
Social districts are areas where people can walk with open to-go containers of alcohol. They became legal after Governor Roy Cooper signed a law allowing social districts in September of 2021.
The Plaza Midwood Merchants Association said they will submit a formal application to the City of Charlotte this week, with the hopes of creating a social district by October.
“I think this will just add to the charm,” Michel said.
Several surrounding cities and towns have created social districts including Albemarle, Hickory, Kannapolis, Mooresville, and Salisbury.
Meanwhile, in Charlotte, it's taking some time.
There is a 15-step process in place.
“The requirements have an extra couple layers, as far as getting approval of the property owners," Michel said.
Michel believes there are several extra steps in the application process due to concerns about the volume of people and Charlotte being one of the largest cities in North Carolina.
Last August, Charlotte leaders approved the creation of social districts.
Several areas like South End, Uptown, NoDa and LoSo have shown interest, but none have moved forward yet.
Now, an application for Plaza Midwood will be sent to the city.
The proposed district would be along Central Avenue, running from Two Scoops Creamery, past Workman's Friend and continuing all the way to Morningside Drive. The social district would also expand towards Independence Boulevard to include Pecan Avenue, Thomas Avenue and The Plaza. It will also contain some land in Chantilly.
“There's a lot of businesses around our store that have opened up," Patrick Jones, employee at Social Status, said. “It should be fine, if you’re responsible.”
Social Status is an upscale street fashion and sneaker boutique on Central Avenue. He believes a social district would encourage people to get out and spend their money at local businesses, while also attracting more tourists.
“A lot of people don’t like coming to Charlotte because they don’t know the culture of it. We can’t have fun stuff like Atlanta or New York, so this could add us on the list of places to go visit," Jones said.
Plaza Midwood leaders say they plan on using stainless steel cups for the social district, instead of plastic ones.
Once the application is formally submitted, a public hearing will be scheduled, likely in September.
Contact Lexi Wilson at lwilson@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.