Charlotte Urban Design Center

Charlotte Urban Design Center Charlotte Urban Design Center advances the quality of the built environment, creates public awarenes

☀ Where do you eat lunch when the weather is nice? Chances are you enjoy your meal in a public space. What made you choo...
09/03/2026

☀ Where do you eat lunch when the weather is nice? Chances are you enjoy your meal in a public space. What made you choose that spot? Shade, landscaping, furniture, and walkability all influence where you want to be on a nice day. That is good urban design, and the Urban Design Center wants to celebrate it!

Nominate your favorite spots in Charlotte for the People's Choice Award today! https://cltgov.me/urbies

Charlotte artists, we’ve got an exciting opportunity for you! The City of Charlotte’s Urban Design Center is calling for...
08/29/2026

Charlotte artists, we’ve got an exciting opportunity for you! The City of Charlotte’s Urban Design Center is calling for local artists, designers, and creative teams to help design new neighborhood signage for the historic Greenville neighborhood along the Urban Arboretum Trail.

Deliverables:
• Design artwork for custom street sign toppers
• Create a post-and-panel neighborhood identification sign

Selected artists receive a design commission and will collaborate with community members, neighborhood leaders, and City staff to bring the final designs to life.

Deadline to apply: Wednesday, September 16th at 11:59 PM.
Link to apply: https://publicinput.com/artists_needed_greenville

If you’re passionate about community storytelling, neighborhood identity, and place-based design, this is your chance to make a mark on Charlotte’s public realm.
Let’s see what Charlotte can create! 🎨✨

🐶 To celebrate National Dog Day, we’re spotlighting the real bosses of the UDC. They keep us supervised, supported, and ...
08/27/2026

🐶 To celebrate National Dog Day, we’re spotlighting the real bosses of the UDC. They keep us supervised, supported, and inspired to get outside and enjoy our beautiful city!

Think about the public spaces you and your four-legged companion love, and nominate them for an Urban Design Award! Nominations are open through September 11.

Use this weekend to explore Charlotte’s best spots, then head to our bio for the nomination form and all the details about the “Urbies.” Let’s honor the places that make our city tail-wagging great! 🐾

🏆The People’s Choice Award is now open for nominations!As part of the 6th Annual Urban Design Awards—aka The Urbies—we’r...
08/26/2026

🏆The People’s Choice Award is now open for nominations!

As part of the 6th Annual Urban Design Awards—aka The Urbies—we’re inviting you to recognize a public space in Charlotte that brings people together and makes our city better.

Know a spot that deserves the spotlight? Nominate it today and help us celebrate the designs shaping Charlotte’s future. Big or small, good public space deserves recognition!

📅Nominations are open through September 11.
🔗Find the form in our blog using the link below:
https://people-make-cities.com/2026/08/25/urbies-2026/

A Targeted Investment in the Safety and Functionality of Tryon StreetUDC Project HighlightWe recently teamed up with par...
08/26/2026

A Targeted Investment in the Safety and Functionality of Tryon Street

UDC Project Highlight

We recently teamed up with partner departments in the City of Charlotte to refresh Tryon Street’s beloved streetscape - making it safer, more functional, and a whole lot more comfortable for everyone. We didn’t just swap old benches for new ones; we looked closely at how our community uses the street today to guide our urban design approach:

More Bike Parking: We noticed the existing racks were always full, so we added more!
More Places to Pause: Seeing folks eating lunch on the go proved we needed more casual spots to sit and relax.
Modern Access: We removed outdated payphones, legacy street-side shelters, and old media stands to make room for today’s curbside needs

This project was possible through significant interdepartmental coordination, with our team at the Urban Design Center handling the design and placement of new amenities and overall project management, Economic Development leading stakeholder engagement and coordination, General Services managing construction and project management support, and CDOT Street Maintenance taking care of removal and paver repair.

Most importantly, we worked directly with the city teams and property managers who maintain Tryon Street every single day. Their perspective was instrumental in making this project a success.

Next time you are Uptown, take a stroll, grab a seat, and let us know how you are enjoying the new space!

Project Name: Tryon Street Refresh | Client: City of Charlotte | Partner Departments: CDOT, Corporate Communications, General Services | Furnishings: Landscape Forms, mmcite, Victor Stanley

Music Off the Rails was a blast! Even with the rain, the energy never dipped. We moved inside our spacious studio and ke...
08/01/2026

Music Off the Rails was a blast! Even with the rain, the energy never dipped. We moved inside our spacious studio and kept the music going with Piedmont Porch, the acoustic version of Carolina Vibe Merchants, and Annie Haden. Potions & Pixels brought their Artcade units funded by the 2025 Placemaking Grant. Attendees enjoyed drinks from our South End partners and explored our Placemaking Showcase gallery featuring projects completed over the past year. Past and current grantees connected, shared stories, and offered advice. With more than 70 guests, the night was full of great music and meaningful conversations set to the sound of steady rain outside.
🎶🎸🌧

☕️ Start your morning right! Join us for Coffee & Conversations with Eric Kronberg on Thursday, August 27th at 8:00 AM! ...
07/31/2026

☕️ Start your morning right! Join us for Coffee & Conversations with Eric Kronberg on Thursday, August 27th at 8:00 AM!

Ever wonder how great places come to life or how neighborhoods evolve? Whether you’re an architect, designer, planner, or just a curious local, this free, community-focused meetup is exactly where you want to be!

We are thrilled to welcome Eric Kronberg, founder of Kronberg Urbanists + Architects and a nationally recognized leader in small-scale development, zoning reform, and adaptive reuse. He has a brilliant gift for breaking down complex planning topics into clear, friendly, and inspiring ideas. 💡

Come enjoy a relaxed environment to sip coffee, learn something new, and connect with fellow community builders.

🗓️ Date: August 27, 2026
⏰ Time: 8:00 AM
🎟️ Cost: 100% FREE!

🚨 Space is limited, so make sure to grab your spot today! 🔗 Hit the link in our bio to register. We can’t wait to see you there! 👏

🏠Charlotte’s growth is inspiring fresh, creative approaches to housing. From reimagined residences to adapted and preser...
07/28/2026

🏠Charlotte’s growth is inspiring fresh, creative approaches to housing. From reimagined residences to adapted and preserved spaces, the city is thinking beyond the single‑family home to offer thoughtful, welcoming places for more residents.
Explore the innovative methods shaping Charlotte’s future neighborhoods on our blog, People Make Cities!

The Mailbox Mural is a community-driven placemaking project in Medford Acres that reimagined a long-abandoned USPS mailb...
07/23/2026

The Mailbox Mural is a community-driven placemaking project in Medford Acres that reimagined a long-abandoned USPS mailbox dating back to the 1980s.

With support from the Placemaking Grant, local artist and resident Chalice Meikle designed an original abstract mural for the mailbox, and neighbors participated through a cleanup day and a live paint event.

Located at a central point connecting both sides of the neighborhood, the newly painted mailbox now serves as a vibrant landmark, bringing color, identity, and renewed pride to the Medford Acres community.

Want to learn more about placemaking projects around Charlotte? Join us tomorrow for the 2025 Placemaking Showcase with live music, refreshments, and a gallery featuring all the latest projects completed over the last 12 months. RSVP on Eventbrite: https://cltgov.me/UDCevents

Joy in the Shadows is a community-led public art streetscape at the intersection of Fulton Avenue and Tippah Park Court ...
07/11/2026

Joy in the Shadows is a community-led public art streetscape at the intersection of Fulton Avenue and Tippah Park Court in Plaza Midwood. Funded by the 2025 Placemaking Grant and created with neighborhood participation, the project transformed a previously underutilized, litter prone pedestrian corridor into a vibrant, welcoming passage connecting residents to Central Avenue, Veterans’ Park, and nearby transit.

Led by artist Elizabeth Palmisano, the installation features a large street mural, a sculptural element, and a series of small cameo sidewalk artworks inspired by shadow imagery collected from the community. Designed to elevate neighborhood pride and enhance walkability, the artwork serves as a joyful landmark that encourages drivers to slow down, supports pedestrian safety, and fosters a sense of shared ownership and care for the space.

Want to know if there are placemaking projects in your neighborhood? Join us on July 23 for the 2025 Placemaking Grant Showcase! We will be displaying projects completed by community members over the past year. After viewing the gallery, enjoy Music Off the Rails! with live music and refreshments provided!

RSVP for Free: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/music-off-the-rails-tickets-1991792220148?aff=oddtdtcreator&keep_tld=true

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1507 Camden Road
Charlotte, NC
28203

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