Changing History: The Case for McDonald Avenue

Sitting in the shadow of the city's growing skyline, Charlotte, NC's Dilworth neighborhood has always been one of the city's residential gems. Dilworth was conceived and developed in the early 1900s and became Charlotte's first suburb. Over time, the neighborhood mix of stately homes and smaller bungalows fell into disrepair and hard times. Starting in the mid 70s and over the past 30 years, homeowners have reclaimed Dilworth's past and lovingly restored these homes to their original beauty and condition. Dilworth's designation as a historic district has protected these homes and restricted renovation to stay in keeping with the original architecture of each building.

One block south of Dilworth is McDonald Avenue. Until recently McDonald Avenue was a quiet street in a well established neighborhood of smaller homes built in the 1940s, with large lots and mature shady trees. Like Dilworth, new homeowners took pride in restoring these homes. The properties on McDonald Avenue lie just outside the Dilworth Historic District's boundary, unprotected by any covenant that prevents the design of the existing homes from being disturbed.

The unprecedented increase in gasoline prices has made homeowners in the outlying neighborhoods of the city rethink where they are living. Many of them are moving in closer to the central city to reduce their commute and as a result, the price of homes along Charlotte's main commute corridors has increased dramatically. The South Boulevard corridor has been no exception to this trend and has been further fueled by trendy South End's commercial, retail and residential redevelopment.

McDonald Avenue's experience has been similar, with one disturbing difference. Rather than restoring these older homes to the original condition, builders are opting to buy the properties from older owners and demolish the house to build much larger luxury homes that dwarf the existing smaller homes. The green lawns are gone, replaced by a small patches of green and houses that take up most of the lots. The new homes are completely out of character with the neighborhood. Why is this happening?

Arguably, lacking covenants or zoning restrictions, buyers can do whatever they choose to do with their property. In the case of McDonald Avenue, the builders who buy and demolish these older and smaller homes recognize that many homeowners living large, well equipped homes in Charlotte's outlying neighborhoods want to purchase equally large, well equipped homes closer in to Charlotte's business district. The builders buy the original home, giving the owner a nice profit, and then tear it down to rebuild the larger home because it will sell at a premium price, giving the builder an even nicer profit. After all, the builder is in business to make a profit on what's built.

What about McDonald Avenue? The warmth and character of the street is being changed forever - it will never be the same quiet middle class neighborhood street again. The lots and trees are disappearing, replaced by cement and architecturally alien structures. Casual responders to the question might call it progress or change for the better. It could also be called opportunistic greed. The obvious goal in building these larger homes has nothing to do preserving the trees or retaining the charm of the original homes, and everything to do with maximizing profit.

McDonald Avenue is a microcosm that serves as a reminder that Charlotte is a fast growing, forward looking city with very little respect or appreciation for the history and uniqueness of the buildings that it chooses to tear down rather than preserve. Each older home and building that is demolished to make way for another characterless high-rise or over-sized house robs the city of another piece of its history and culture.

The intangible "special" quality of a city is created in part by recognizing the importance of protecting its past as well as enthusiasm for its future. An intentionally eclectic mix of old and new architecture visually sets a city apart from its contemporaries. This awareness of being unique drives civic leadership, creativity, growth and pride. Sadly, very few cities strive for or achieve this level of being special among newer cities because they miss the point - to become special, a city must dare to be different. Part of being different means the city aggressively takes a stand on what's important in defining itself - architecturally, culturally and in its values - and blends that definition with the city's dreams and goals for the future. Ultimately, it means taking a stand to protect the city's past as well as its future - from the preservation of old buildings in the central city to keeping the character of streets like McDonald Avenue alive and in tact.