While many historic buildings have been torn down in Charlotte’s center city, Latta Arcade, an indoor shopping mall known for its grand glass ceiling and charming storefronts, remains.
Built in 1914, the arcade is nestled in uptown’s Third Ward and transports customers back in time when they walk through the door.
But last week, the building’s owners announced a change. Latta Arcade will be renamed “The Alley" at Latta Arcade and new tenants will be moving in. While current tenants are looking forward to needed renovations as part of the rebranding, they are concerned about the future of the space–and their place in it.
It’s calm at the Men’s Arcade Room inside Latta Arcade, but it won’t be for long. Owner Reagan Taylor Banik is waiting for the lunch rush of patrons in need of a quick cut.
“This is a place for people to pop in here and they forget about their next conference call and worries," Banik said. "It's just such a happy place."
Barbering is in her family’s blood. Her father Cecil Taylor took over the barbershop in 1974, but this storefront has been a barbershop for over 100 years. This is why she was worried when she saw on the news that the owners of Latta Arcade–Northpond Partners had a new vision for the building. That plan includes a facelift to the building and new tenants including The Dumpling Lady to create a “street eats” experience. Another new tenant is Gather Flower Studio.
“I think the renderings are lovely. I think it's beautiful," Banik said. "At the same time, the appeal to this arcade is that you step back in time when you walk in here. And that's what brings so many people here. Everything around us is changing and this place is just so unique and beautiful as it is.”
Banik worries about where her business will fit into this new vision, and how much rent could go up when their lease runs out later this year. Northpond paid $7.5 million for Latta Arcade in 2020, property records show. Banik says there’s been no clear communication about their future.
“So I have a lot of mixed emotions right now," she said. "There's generations of families that come in here. It's just such, it's such a vibe in this place. So it would be very sad for us to not be able to stay in their new vision.”
In a statement to WFAE Northpond wrote: Northpond is currently negotiating leases with any existing Latta Arcade tenants that are at or near the end of their terms. Men's Arcade Room recently re-signed a lease, which will be re-negotiated at the end of its term.
It’s those renegotiations that have current tenants worried — much like residents in a gentrifying neighborhood. Like Abby Rangel, a hairstylist at Technicuts, a salon at the arcade.
“Like a business gentrification right, they are cleaning it up and then you don't know where you stand in the way of things. It's a little scary," Rangel said. "Are we going to lose where we make our bread and butter to support our families?”
Rangel says the current tenants have been relying on each other for information. That has created an anxious game of telephone.
“We're all family around here. We all talk to each other," she said. "You know, and nobody knows anything. And it's just kind of like, where do we stand?”
Those are the same questions Da Nam, the manager of the Fujiymama restaurant has. He’s preparing for the lunch rush alongside his mother. His family has been in this spot for 20 years. They worry about being priced out of the space and losing regular customers.
“We're going to lose a lot of people actually, like, our business here is mostly regulars," Nam said. "We kept this building for a long time. My mom had been working there without any vacations every year, all day here just for the customers, you know? And we don't want to lose our job. We don't want us to lose our business here. We don't want to lose all the people here.”
Nam says they do look forward to needed renovations. But when leases expire, he wonders — who among the current tenants will still be in place and will Fujiymama — and others, need to find a new home?