Hidden Valley/Sugar Creek Wellness Anchor
Advancing Health And Enhancing Quality Of Life
Charlotte’s Hidden Valley Community presents a fascinating case study of racial and cultural transformation. It is one of several historic neighborhoods nestled along an area that the City of Charlotte, NC, calls the Sugar Creek/Interstate 85 corridor. Constructed as a residential subdivision in the late 1950s and early 1960s, it was envisioned as a middle-class, suburban enclave for White residents.1 However, over the decades, the neighborhood’s demographic makeup has undergone significant change, reflecting broader regional and national trends of suburbanization, urban renewal and residential migration, and regional patterns of population growth.
This report provides a blueprint for developing a Wellness Anchor in the Hidden Valley/Sugar Creek area as an innovative space that will foster a renewed sense of community connection and wellbeing among long-time, newer and future residents who find themselves as neighbors amid rapid change. The Wellness Anchor will be a trusted, neutral, “third place” that is vibrant and fosters social equity, grassroots engagement, and interaction. It will draw upon a network of community-based providers to host activities in the areas of physical and mental health, education and workforce development while providing opportunities for community residents to generate and engage in creative, community-driven activities.
Facilitated by UNC Charlotte urbanCORE, a Project Team comprising community residents, local leaders, and UNC Charlotte faculty researchers (including CHARP Faculty Affiliate member Dr. Katherine Idziorek) envisioned the Wellness Anchor innovation after a deep exploration of the community and review of evidence-based research. Other community reports, including the City of Charlotte’s West Sugar Creek Playbook, offer specific recommendations to address critical issues related to housing, economic development, safety and transit. However, the Project Team believes the Wellness Anchor to be an essential space for healing, connection and collective action that will undergird these efforts and better ensure their success and sustainability.
1 Bruning, S. D. (2008). The suburbs of Charlotte: A history. The History Press.