Charlotte
- aloft Charlotte Uptown (704.333.1999; www.alofthotels.com) opened in January at the EpiCentre entertainment and nightlife complex. The property features 175 rooms averaging 325 square feet with nine-foot ceilings as well as 42-inch flat-screen TVs and iPod hookups. There are three meeting rooms totaling 2,600 square feet.
- Scheduled to open this fall, The Ritz-Carlton at Bank of America Corporate Center (800.542.8680; www.ritzcarlton.com) will offer 147 deluxe rooms and suites and 12,000 square feet of meeting space, including a 7,000-square-foot ballroom. The LEED-certified property will be located four blocks north of the Charlotte Convention Center and adjacent to the EpiCentre and will be connected to the North Carolina Blumenthal Performing Arts Center at Founders Hall via an over-street walkway.
- Discovery Place (704.372.6261; www.discoveryplace.org) kicked off a large-scale renovation project in January to provide new science and technology exhibits, interactive displays, better traffic flow, improved infrastructure and the ability to more regularly host larger traveling exhibitions. Completion is scheduled for June 2010, and sections of the facility will remain open while other sections are undergoing work.
- The new Afro-American Cultural Center (704.374.1565; www.aacc-charlotte.org) will open in 2010. The 50,000-square-foot attraction will offer galleries, classrooms and a gift shop focused on the art, history and heritage of African-Americans in the Piedmont South. With a grand opening of its new facilities scheduled for fall 2010, Mint Museum of Art (704.337.2000; www.mintmuseum.org) will present dramatically expanded gallery space for its craft, design and fine arts collections.
- On track for opening in early 2010, NASCAR Hall of Fame (www.nascarhall.com) will present 50,000 square feet of interactive and innovative exhibit space adjacent to the Charlotte Convention Center as well as a 250-seat theater and a 40,000-square-foot ballroom. NASCAR organizational offices will be located in the 18 stories above the new facility.
- Great Wolf Lodge (866.925.9653; www.greatwolf.com) is set to open in Concord near Lowe’s Motor Speedway this month. The property will offer 402 guest suites, an 80,000-square-foot waterpark, a spa and an 18-hole miniature golf course as well as 25,000 square feet of meeting space.
- The $60 million zMAX Dragway (704.455.3200; www.lowesmotorspeedway.com) opened at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord in fall 2008. The new facility is the only all-concrete, four-lane drag strip in the U.S. and offers state-of-the-art meeting space and outdoor venues for groups.