It was clear that the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance’s first Investor Quarterly Meeting of 2025 had a theme: Partnership.
Partnership was at the forefront of Wednesday’s conversation around the North Tryon Vision Plan. Nearly 300 people packed the Dubois Center at UNC Charlotte Center City, a building that’s a visual representation of the innovation and collaboration that make the Charlotte Region unique.
‘Thrilled to be your research university’
University of North Carolina at Charlotte Chancellor Sharon L. Gaber presented several of the university’s recent achievements to event attendees, including its No. 3 ranking for online bachelor’s degrees and record-setting enrollment numbers.
“We want to continue to serve this region,” Gaber said.
UNC Charlotte is poised to reach Carnegie R1 research status next week, a classification that will draw additional federal and state research funding.
“This will benefit both the Charlotte Region and the state of North Carolina,” Gaber said.
The designation pulls talented faculty and researchers and is also a catalyst for enrollment, talent attraction, and business recruitment.
But Gaber said none of this would have been possible without collaboration, much of which came from people who filled the room.
“You all are the force that has propelled us from the beginning,” Gaber said, later adding, “We are thrilled to be your research university and to be able to drive Charlotte’s economy in new and exciting ways.”
North Tryon Vision Plan
UNC Charlotte is a key component of the North Tryon Vision Plan. The plan focuses on a 60-acre, 50-square-block district in Uptown and implements an innovative vision to catalyze new development in the North Tryon area.
That plan includes the North Tryon Tech Hub, which centers around corporate innovation, academics and research, and entrepreneurship. With UNC Charlotte serving as the academic anchor, the tech hub already includes the Dubois Center and the new CO-LAB.
Michael Smith, president and CEO of Charlotte Center City Partners, touched on the district’s unique assets, including the Carolina Theatre, Charlotte Mecklenburg Main Library, One Independence Center, First Ward Park, and, of course, the tech hub.
Smith went on to moderate a panel made up of leaders who are deeply involved in the execution of the plan: Cathy Bessant, CEO of Foundation For The Carolinas; John Daniels, vice chancellor for research at UNC Charlotte; Catherine Horne, president and CEO of Discovery Place; and Marcellus “MT” Turner, chief librarian and CEO of Charlotte Mecklenburg Library. Echoing Gaber’s comments on UNC Charlotte’s upcoming R1 status, Horne began by talking about the cooperation that went into the plan.
“If you’re a newcomer to Charlotte … you’re absolutely stunned by the partnerships [here],” she said.
Smith asked Bessant what she’s most excited about with the vision plan and where she sees the most opportunities for the district. Bessant, who chaired a North Tryon advisory committee from 2017 to 2021, said it was almost a surreal experience to see the vision play out.
“Some of the things that were only drawings have come to fruition,” she said.
She spoke about the Carolina Theatre, which recently wrapped up construction and is expected to begin programming in the coming weeks.
“I think you’ll expect to see us become a very important partner in the North Tryon Plan,” she said.
The under-construction Main Library is another of the plan’s anchor institutions. Turner said the old library was very traditional and the way the community interacted with it was transactional.
“We’re trying to move from transactional to experiential relationships,” Turner said, later adding that it’s “a new type of library that we feel everyone will be excited about.”
The new building will have amenities like meeting rooms, spaces for writers and authors, terraces, and a room dedicated to the history of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County.
Daniels said the tech hub is what many have called a “Sputnik moment.” He said a lot of other cities and places have had similar visions, but Charlotte is unique.
“None have quite the relationship and the synergy that we have with all of you,” he said.
He said UNC Charlotte stands out among its competition because of the kind of research it prioritizes.
“It helps for the North Tryon Tech Hub to have a thematic focus … what is it that we can be nationally and globally great at?” Daniels asked.
He touted the city’s financial and energy sectors, which include artificial intelligence – something he said the university has strong expertise in because it’s been thought about at UNC Charlotte for much longer than at other institutions.
‘You can be powerful advocates’
Smith asked the panelists to think about who was in the room and share how public and private leaders could help with the North Tryon Vision Plan.
“It is a long journey,” Horne said.
She said they’re focused on ensuring the future of the next generation, and that happens by working together.
“Be aware of our challenges,” Bessant said.
She stressed how vital transportation is to the plan’s success because it creates connectivity from the center city to the rest of the community at large. She said leaders in the room should understand the transportation issues that exist and then support and advocate for solutions.
Bessant said leaders should recognize where growth has happened, pick some lessons learned, and use them to their advantage.
“Push us,” Turner said. “Push us to do more, push us to be more. Inspire us.”
He implored attendees to “help us to become convenient” for people in the region, saying transit and walkability are crucial to making that happen.
‘North Tryon will be a destination’
“Where are we in the next 10 years?” Smith asked.
Daniels described Kendall Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts as a “work, live, play” environment.
“In 10 years, I see us on that path,” he said.
Horne said accessibility would power the district’s future and help people find their places among the institutions. She said there must be a way to move kids and families around.
“I think 10 years from now, North Tryon will be a destination,” Turner said.
He said he believes that will be true even for people who live in other parts of the region outside of Charlotte, but it must be convenient for them.
Turner again emphasized the importance of working together. He said North Tryon leaders like him and his fellow panelists should partner and know what each institution has in the works.
To Bessant, North Tryon is poised to become a go-to place that draws constant and consistent engagement and events.
“I don’t think you can describe the 10-year vision in terms of buildings … I think we can describe the vision in terms of being magnetic,” Bessant said.
