CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The city of Charlotte broke ground on the long-awaited revitalization project of the old Eastland Mall site off of Central Avenue.

The dozens of acres, which used to be home to North Carolina’s largest shopping mall, have sat mostly empty since the mall was demolished in 2013.

What You Need To Know

Charlotte city leaders broke ground at the site Wednesday, promising a new future for the nearly 70 acres

Late in July, Charlotte Football Club announced it would not proceed with its plans to put practice facility, team academy and other offices at the site

The site will be the future home of retail, residential and park space when the first phase of construction is complete in 2024

“The east side was the place to be, but that was in 1975,” Mayor Vi Lyles said at the presentation Wednesday. “Eastland was the 1970s version of South End. New apartments, you know everybody was coming in to get a job.”

The old Eastland Mall opened in July 1975 and featured a variety of attractions, restaurants and retail over the next few decades, before eventually fading in both business and popularity in the 2000s. In 2012, the city purchased the property and began work to redevelop the site, according to Wednesday’s presentation.

Now, the newly named Eastland Yards project will take over the space. The plan is to fill the more than 60 acres with a mix of residential, commercial and park projects. Starting Wednesday, the developers will begin infrastructure construction and site preparations, before moving to vertical construction in the later half of 2023. Phase one would open sometime in 2024, according to Crosland Southeast managing partner Tim Sittema. 

The city and Crosland Southeast plan to build 155 townhomes and single family homes, more than 70 affordable units for seniors, 280 apartments and nearly 18,000 square feet of retail space, according to a city of Charlotte press release detailing phase one.

“I have a message for any doubters out there, the sun always rises in the east,” said current District 5 city councilman Matt Newton to a round of applause. “A brighter dawn is breaking on the east side.”

The project is not without recent controversy. In late July, Tepper Sports and Entertainment announced it would not move forward with plans to place Major League Soccer’s Charlotte Football Club’s practice facility, club academy and MLS Next Pro team at the site.

“After a great deal of consideration, the timeline for the Eastland project posed challenges that led us to research expedited alternatives. We continue to work towards a practice facility for Charlotte FC’s first team, the club’s academy and its MLS Next Pro team and will provide updates as our plans are finalized. We continue to have discussions with the City of Charlotte as we work towards driving economic engagement through sports and live entertainment,” according to a Tepper Sports and Entertainment spokesperson.

The Eastland timeline was discussed at Wednesday’s press event. Sittema acknowledged challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic stopped the project from continuing for the last two years.

However, this is the second project related to David Tepper, owner of Charlotte FC and the NFL’s Carolina Panthers, canceled in recent months.

Earlier this year, the Carolina Panthers canceled and halted all construction at its practice facility project in Rock Hill, South Carolina, leaving millions of taxpayer dollars tied up in construction and infrastructure costs. The project currently sits abandoned and incomplete near an interstate.

The city of Rock Hill, York County and businesses associated with Tepper are fighting it out in court to determine how to proceed with the project’s bankruptcy. Since the project’s pausing and then eventual cancellation, Rock Hill, the Panthers and York County have argued over who’s to blame for the failed project.

On Wednesday at Eastland, Tepper Sports and Entertainment was on the mind of some of the city councilors.

“I recognize we still have miles to go, with finding a solid partner like the Crosland Southeast to redevelop the remaining 20 acres,” said at-large city council member Dimple Ajmera. “We are going to find a solid partner that is not going to waiver from their commitment.”

But, another member of council said Tepper, and his impact on Charlotte, deserved a thank you at Wednesday’s press event, despite the cancellation of the Charlotte FC plans.

“It’s very easy in this community to be a Monday morning quarterback and look at very complicated, long-term strategic visions that are still in their infancy and critique them. But, I will tell you with absolute certainty, we have an organization and a leader in our community that has invested in our community already,” said District 6 councilman Tariq Bokhari. “That has invested in our football team, that has brought us a professional soccer franchise. And whether it worked out in the beginning with the original plans or not, had a large part for the reason we’re all able to stand here today at this milestone.”

Meanwhile, a business owner near the Eastland site said the city should move past Tepper Sports and Entertainment and focus on the site with its full attention.

“I remember when there used to be cars, passing by, you know a whole lot,” said insurance agent Uwem Equan from his office across the street from the old mall site.

He has worked across the street for 28 years.

“We attracted so many people across the country to come here, because we had a skating rink, we had the best movie theater, we got the best restaurants. It was the center of the city, and all of us were gravitated to come here,” Equan said. 

In the 28 years since he opened his office here, he’s seen the area fall on hard times as stores came and went.

“In the last three months they have broken into this place about three times. See the evidence?” Equan said, gesturing to a broken window at the front of his business. Just days ago, the insurance agent said someone stole a catalytic converter from a parked car in his lot.

Now, the city’s groundbreaking of a mixed-used residential and retail project at the site is welcome news.

“We really want the city to come and assist us, make this place be where it needs to be. It’s a beautiful area,” Equan said. “My message to the city is this, forget about TSE, forget about the situation in North and South Carolina. Come. This is a beautiful place. It was once the best — one of the best areas in the city.”

In the meantime, Equan said he plans to stay at his location because this part of town needs businesses they can trust.

“This was Charlotte, it is Charlotte. And it’s going to be Charlotte again,” Equan said in his office.