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Conversation - Bob Durkin of BAR Management |
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Written by Celina Mincey
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What new thing is happening in Charlotte that you are most excited about?
Well, I’m spending most of my time on it and am really excited about the EpiCentre. It will bring a lot of exciting entertainment concepts that Charlotte hasn’t seen yet and will be a retail center for the entire Southeast. I feel it will really add to the whole urban concept of Uptown, and it’s getting close. The project is only about six months away from opening!
Looking forward to peanuts and Cracker Jacks? What is the future of a baseball park in Charlotte?
It will be great for the area! It will really connect all there is to do Uptown and give people something to look forward to doing after work. Hopefully, having a minor league schedule will really take advantage of all the people who are already Uptown at 6:00 on an evening. People won’t have to drive, as they’ll be able to catch a game and go out afterwards within walking distance. Charlotte is doing a great job of planning baseball as a family event and I think it’s important to do more to promote it as this kind of activity.
There's lots of talk about attracting diversity to Charlotte, but at the same time are we developing an economically diverse range of housing options?
Diversity will be key as Charlotte grows. First Ward has developed some truly mixed-income housing and it has really worked out well. I think this serves as a model for providing a variety of housing Uptown.
Charlotte considers itself forward-thinking on many urban development issues. It seems the larger a U.S. city gets, the more it needs an expanded social services network to handle needs of a burgeoning population, but can never keep up. What is Charlotte doing to be preemptive in this area? Can we plan ahead to offer programs that effectively promote productive living? How do we avoid the pitfalls of the “build more shelters” or “reactive spending” mentality rather than provide proactive assistance for independent living?
As a small business owner, I think education is a big key. Hopefully we will put an emphasis here to help our social system in general. Businesses always team up with organizations to help provide much needed money through fundraising events. If all the new businesses moving to Charlotte would support a local charity by teaming up, it would help everyone in the long run.
From your perspective, how do you envision Charlotte's future? How would you describe it 10 years from now, 20 years from now?
The way we’ve grown in the last decades indicates Charlotte will be an even more phenomenal city 10 years from now. We’ve really learned and already overcome some of the major hurdles that cities face as they grow. There is an ongoing conversation and Charlotte’s big corporations are behind it all with a real understanding of what we need to do. We have our issues, but we are being proactive and in the conversation. With Charlotte’s climate and proximity to beaches and mountains, we have only ourselves to blame if don’t become a world-class city. I’m originally a New Yorker and thought I would go home after a few years. But now I have a personal stake in Charlotte’s future. We’ll do our part with the EpiCentre and people just need to continue to believe in Charlotte.
What are the biggest issues facing your organization? What will need to happen for you to be successful?
Retail is where we are lacking. Any vibrant city is going to need all the things (transportation, entertainment, arts, housing, diversity) but retail is the one thing we haven’t really done or focused on.
~ Celina Mincey
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