City floats Main Street-style program to support neighborhood business districts
The program would aim to align city staff, business owners and community groups around shared goals
The following article appeared in the February 6, 2026, edition of The Charlotte Ledger, an e-newsletter with smart and original local news for Charlotte. We offer free and paid subscription plans. More info here.
Charlotte wants to revive struggling commercial corridors — but accountability is a concern
The city of Charlotte is considering a local version of the national Main Street America program that would bolster areas of town that aren’t big or prosperous enough yet to be a Municipal Service District, which is a specially taxed area to help fund local improvements and projects. (Center City, SouthPark and University City are Charlotte’s MSDs.)
But key questions remain about how such a program would be implemented, and whether lessons have been learned from local business district grant initiatives.
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