Peter Gordon's "City Lite" Blog

Peter Gordon's blog has an interesting article that described Birkdale and others like it: Legacy in Plano near Dallas; Atlantic Station near Atlanta; Santana Row near San Francisco. This blog sight relates a WSJ article that talks about New Urban developments that are modeled after traditional downtowns. The gyst of the article is that Birkdale style developments are becoming more popular. Some places like Bishop Road are so large and complete that some residents never need to leave since that place also includes a business park.

As a kid I used to wonder what it would be like to live in a large mall. At the time a new mall had opened near our house and it looked so cool. Now I despise traditional malls as loud, noisy, traffic nightmares. I guess that someday people will live on Mars on indoor malls. In retrospect what attracted me about malls was the action and the sense of life. I think Birkdale and developments like it offer the sense of life with the ability to enjoy the outdoors and to do more than just shop. This is an interesting quote about Birkdale style development vs the traditional mall:

"Only one mall has opened in 2006, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers, a New York City-based trade group. By contrast, more than 60 so-called lifestyle centers -- outdoor shopping areas with plazas, fountains and pedestrian streets -- are planned to open this year and next."

I wonder if that one mall was Northlake of Highway 77, Exit 18?

Saturday Morning Bootcamp

Ever wonder who all those people were running up and down Birkdale Commons Parkway or running through the village on Saturday mornings carrying random things like 10 lb bars and backpacks? Well, they're all a part of Mike Scotto's and Terry Vaughn's Bootcamp experience.

Its a unique outdoor fitness challenge. Mike Scotto started it indoors at the Birkdale Fitness Center (Fitcare) last spring and it was called High Intensity Team Training. Terry then took it outdoors and since starting his class in September we've had great Saturday weather ever since.

The class usually starts about 9:30 AM in front of the Birkdale Fitness Center and lasts about an hour to an hour and a half. This is a great self paced work out that will leave you feeling challenged and fulfilled all weekend long. Plus, its a fun group of people. Terry and Mike usually mix the classes up between runs, sprints, and muscular workouts. We had an out of town visiting friend take the class with us and she was cursing us for a week afterwards. Of course she ran track in high school and wanted to strut her stuff - you don't have to push that hard first time out (Diethra, thinking of you).

The more then merrier so come on out. And if you see us running by cheer us on to work harder and to push ourselves.

Check out Terry Vaughn's website:

http://www.highintensityteambuilding.com/index.php

McDowell Creek Greenway

Birkdale will eventually be connected to the Mecklenburg Country Trailways system. McDowell Creek which runs right behind Birkdale is part of that plan. Above is the map of the Birkdale Village piece of the trail that will incorporate our current pond walkway and will run right behind the movie theater. Here is the link to Mecklenburg County's McDowell Creek Page and Map:

http://www.charmeck.org/Departments/Park+and+Rec/Greenways/Upper+McDowell+Creek.htm.

This section of the Greenway will initially run 1.5 miles from West Moreland Road to Sam Furr. It will connect Birkdale, Stratford Forest, the future Robbin's Park, and the Alexander Chase neighborhood. The design is largely complete and they should start construction this summer.

I wrote Jason Pauling, Mecklenburg County's Greenway Planner, to suggest that the trail might be better off running beside the village along the gas line that runs between the village itself and the Greens at Birkdale Houses. Here is his great response:

"Thank you for your email and questions. The issues at Sam Furr relate to the fact that we will not be able to go under Sam Furr at this time due to the fact that the box culverts are too small, plus we do not own any land next to the creek and would have a tough time trying to get through the Birkdale golf course. Therefore, the best crossing would be at the intersection of Birkdale Commons Parkway and Sam Furr Road as you have mentioned. We would most likely widen the sidewalk along Sam Furr, which is currently 5-feet wide and separated from the road by a planting strip. We have not researched the possibility of using the gas easement, but I will do that and let you know if it looks feasible. Birkdale Commons Parkway contains sidewalk and bike lanes, and is a good overland connector for the greenway to continue. The next leg of McDowell after that will most likely extend from the end of Birkdale Commons Parkway, back to the creek, and then run behind the Wynfield neighborhood toward Gilead Road, where it will connect to the Torrence/Lower McDowell Creek system."

I also asked about a future possible connection to the northcross shopping center and eventually to the light rail stop at Sam Fur/73 and 115. Can you say weekend morning walks to the Bagel Bin? He replied:

"As far as a connection to Northcross, there is a tributary of McDowell Creek called Caldwell Station Creek that runs behind the Northcross Center. Not sure if it runs all the way to 115, but it gets close. I think that developing a greenway along this tributary is something that would be in the Town of Huntersville and Town of Cornelius Greenway Master Plan. It's a good idea, although getting under I-77 would be a challenge and major cost factor. Check with Michael Jaycocks with the Town of Huntersville Park and Rec. dept. to see if this creek is in their master plan. His number is 704-766-2228. In the meantime, We will be improving the existing boardwalk/bridge crossing at Townley Road, which will provide a connection to Northcross Drive, where there is a CATS Park and Ride lot. By using the greenway and the boardwalk/bridge, you would avoid having to get on Sam Furr Road. Safety of bicyclists and pedestrians, and connections to a number of destinations is our primary goal."

I look forward to the day a few years from now when I could
eventually Bike for miles on the interconnected Greenway system of Mecklenburg County.

Best Bagels in Charlotte!

From New York or at least the North East? Do you miss great bagels? Well a Long Island Pharmacist turned baker has moved to Huntersville and opened The Bagel Bin. It's in the North Cross shopping center - that's the one with Lowe's and Target at the intersection of 21 and Sam Furr. Well, the Bagel Bin is kind of behind Target on the right side while looking at it. I only describe all this because the first time I looked for it I couldn't find it and I didn't realize that there were more stores that continued around the right ride of the shopping plaza.

Anyways, the Bagel Bin is the place for great breakfast food and its only a short distance from Birkdale. We love to start our Saturday morning at the Birkdale Fitness center and then drive over to the Bagel Bin for bagels before heading home to cook up some bagels and eggs. Don't get there too late because they close by 1 PM I think. Also, expect to stand in line for about 15 minutes. Yes, they are worth the wait! Just think, it is their popularity that brought all those people in front of you.

Awesome 'For Sale By Owner' Idea

Check it out: http://8720camberly.com/default.aspx.
It seems that Birkdale Village Real Estate is so hot right now that For Sale By Owner is all the rage. While on one of our twice daily dog walks around the village we saw this awesome house for sale at 8720 Camberly. Even cooler is that the flyer references a really neat website dedicated just to describing the house. It seems like a great idea especially if you're not registered with the MLS and just relying on drive by drivers. Who doesn't want to look at pictures and be able to point family and friends to a website to help make or solidify the purchase decision.
In Birkdale For Sale By Owner works because there's usually so few houses of a certain type for sale that buyers want to see everyone available before deciding. I know that when we bought here (it was December) there were only 3 houses available at the time and of those there was only one that met our criteria for price and square footage. Right now (Spring Time) it seems that For Sale and For Rent signs are blooming like the flowers. Last year at this time I was concerned that there were too many houses for sale and yet they all sold and the prices went up - go figure. Hopefully, this year will be more of the same and supply with stay tight so that the village continues to see property appreciation.
I view property appreciation as a double edged sword. On one hand it prices out people that would love to live in a mixed use community. On the other hand, hopefully, it conveys to both developers and the planning board that people really want to live in great quality of life locations. Now, if developers build more Birkdale Villages, would Birkdale continue to be so special? Ah, what a conundrum.

The Village Beginnings

Did you know that Birkdale Village was an Equine Farm? I had heard dairy but the developers website actually says equine farm. It's also amazing when we meet a local who tells of riding their bikes as kids up Sam Furr to the intersection of Hwy 21. At that time there was no highway entrance or exit and both 73 and 21 were just two lane roads. What is equally amazing is how few locals we meet in our travels around the area. That's part of what we like about this place. Almost everyone here is new and that makes everyone so much more willing to reach out and engage their neighbors in line at Starbucks, the Bagel Bin, or anywhere really for that matter.

While designing Birkdale the developers took extra care to ensure minimal conflict between the various uses. For example, the street lights are lower to the ground than typical street lamps and have lower watt bulbs so that the apartments above are not bothered by the light. However, to ensure that the retail had enough light and that pedestrians felt safe they added many more street lights than normal as well.

Did you know that Birkdale village has 15,500 parking spaces. Yes, that's fifteen thousand! I find this hard to believe because there just doesn't seem to be that many spaces. Especially so on nice summer nights when you see cars waiting in line for parking spaces - thankfully, we live in the Greens at Birkdale and don't have to worry about parking.

Did you know that Birkdale Village was patterned on a Nantucket village, which has two to three story buildings with offices/residences above first floor shops. Of course, Birkdale's buildings are much larger than a typical village building.

Here is an except about the humble beginnings:

"In Northern Mecklenburg County, just North of Charlotte, suburban developments and golf course communities are quickly replacing what was once farmland. As the population continues to grow, residents have expressed concern that the area lacks a sense of place and community. Pappas Properties, LLC, and Crossland, Inc. kept this concern in mind when they developed Birkdale Village, a mixed-use, village style town center. The center combines 233,000 square feet (21,646 square meters) of street-level retail and 54,000 feet (4,924-square-meter) movie theater surrounding a town green where residents and visitors gather for community events."

Ramsey Creek Dog Park

Is Fido driving you nuts? Does he need attention and wants to play? Then the Dog Park is for you. The Dog park extracts all that excess energy and leaves our dog content to sleep. Watch out though. The dog park is addictive. Once we started going our dog was so much better behaved that when it was raining or we couldn't go it was amazing how bad we felt for him.

Ok, so this is not exactly in Birkdale Village. But since so many people here have dogs we feel we must tell everyone about this great place.

It is a 4 Acre off leash place for your dog(s) to run free. Our dog absolutely loves it as he leads other dogs on a great circular chase around the park or as he play boxes with other dogs his size. Its great for the people too. We have met so many wonderful people at the dog park. In fact, we tell family back home that since moving to Charlotte all of our friends come from the dog park or the gym. The best times to go are weekdays from 5 PM till dusk (later in the summer due to the heat) and Saturday mornings 9 to 11 AM. There are two sections. One for large dogs and one for small dogs but everyone just goes to the big section. The little dogs have a knack for taking care of themselves.

When you go for the first time, dog not walk in with your dog on the leash. So many new people try to protect their dogs by keeping them on the leash for the first time. This doesn't work out so well when 10 or more dogs come running to check out and say hello to their playmate! So many poor owners become entangled. It is both best and most appropriate to let your dog off the leash between the two entrance gates and trust that the dogs will sort out appropriate behavior on their own. Once accustomed to so many other dogs your dog will have a blast!

Check out the Dog Park Link and Application Form on the right side of this blog. A $35 Pooch Pass is required but this is good because all dogs must be vet certified and vaccinated to get a pass. This helps protect all dogs.

How To Get There:

1 – Take a left out of Birkdale Village at NC-73 W/Sam Furr Rd
2 – Turn right at W Catawba Ave
3 – Turn Left at Nantz Rd
4 – Follow the signs for Ramsey Creek Park. The Dog Park is on your left as you enter the Park.