STATESVILLEAVENUE

Charlotte, North Carolina

Camp North End is in the heart of the North End Smart District. The site is 76 acres and includes buildings that date back to 1924, when Ford built a factory there to produce Model T’s and Model A’s. It later became a manufacturing site for missiles. In its modern stage, CNE is a creativity hub, allowing space for young entrepreneurs the opportunity to flourish in affordable spaces. Building off the creativity the area currently holds, Camp North End is an ideal location for art and inclusivity, which became large focuses throughout its redesign.

Being the anchor for the North End Smart District, the central design idea of Camp North End was to provide a space for urban and digital art, the cultivation of food, and depiction of Charlotte’s history. The site will serve as a cultural node that is inclusive to all and will allow for social engagement between neighborhoods and other surrounding areas. An initial analysis of the site showcased the lack of green space as well as a lack of larger scale living near social landscapes became apparent. These became parts of the design that were deemed necessary.

Navigation throughout the site was an important factor in CNE’s design. Due to large scale of the site, creating a road and pedestrian network was vital. Most of the important programmatic pieces are branched off of Main Street, the most central street within the site. Some of these programmatic pieces are: Working/Productive Landscapes, Social Landscapes, Ecological Landscapes, Community Open Spaces.

The vision for the site was to create a mixed-use community based on the creative arts and innovation that could adapt to changing times. Similar to how Camp North End has adapted to use changes from its humble beginnings as a Ford Factory, to an artillery and ammunition factory during World War II to a drug store factory at the later years of its usage, the goal was to program flexible spaces that could serve various functions and promote walkability and interactive streets. Historic buildings would be repurposed to serve the needs of tomorrow. Social engagement is something that Charlotte lacks was something that needed to be addressed at the site so this was pushed by having green spaces off of the Main Street to connected to the Plaza at the heart of Camp North End and the Commuter Rail Station. Both the Plaza and the commuter rail station would be hubs of activity and social engagement.