What's up with vacant land by Providence High?

The roads were paved in the early 2010s — but have sat empty since then

The following article appeared in the August 30, 2024, 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.

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You Ask We Answer: Why has land near Providence High School sat vacant for more than a decade? 

It’s time once again for You Ask, We Answer — our popular Ledger feature where you, the reader, volley a question to Ledger-land and we, the reporters, scurry to solve the mystery. 

Today’s question comes from valued Ledger member Margot S., who writes: 

I live in Matthews and I’m always driving on Highway 51 past Providence High School. Not far from the high school there's a residential development that looks abandoned. The entrance is opposite Reverdy Lane. Once upon a time there were streets and curbs in there. It's been at least a decade since there was anything going on in that development. Houses were never built. Can you discover why this development didn't make it, especially when plenty of other developments nearby have, and what, if any, future there may be for this land?

Margot, thanks for the question!