Six vehicle break-ins were reported Jan. 4 and 5, near Virginia Road and Winged Oak Way. Windows were busted out of vehicles in at least four of the incidents, but the only items reported stolen were $90 worth of clothing and electronics in one case, and $3 cash in another. Meanwhile, $100 worth of athletic clothing was stolen from the Lake Norman Christian School on South Street in a break-in the first Tuesday of the year. Police also are investigating an embezzlement at The Brickhouse Tavern in which an employee reportedly stole $271 from the restaurant. Details on these stories and a tally of the week’s citations may be found below. Read the full story

By DAVID BORAKS
DavidsonNews.net

Davidson’s Town Board has scheduled a public hearing Jan. 24 on the proposed Red Line Regional Rail Project, including financing plans that would help pay for construction and operation of the line. At its monthly meeting Tuesday, the board also passed a second resolution authorizing the town staff to work with other area governments on developing the “value-capture options and other policies” proposed by the Metropolitan Transit Commission’s Red Line Task Force. Read the full story

Updated 1:11 p.m.
Davidson’s Town Board will hold a closed session at the end of its meeting Tuesday night to hear an update from the town attorney about Community One Bank’s lawsuit over rezoning of the former Davidson East site off N.C. 73. In its first meeting of the new year, the board also will hear about Mecklenburg County’s proposal for new fire tax districts in unincorporated areas. And commissioners are expected to adopt a resolution authorizing the town staff to work on the Red Line Regional Rail Project and to to clarify the town procedure for groups to request permits to serve alcohol on public property. Read the full story

Lauren Blackburn looks at a map with citizens during Thursday's meeting at Town Hall (David Boraks/DavidsonNews.net)

Participants in Thursday's session marked up a map of the West Side of Davidson. (David Boraks/DavidsonNews.net)

By DAVID BORAKS
DavidsonNews.net

If historical growth trends continue, Davidson’s population could more than double from its current 11,000 over the next few decades. That’s expected whether the proposed commuter rail line to Charlotte gets built or not, according to town planning manager Lauren Blackburn.

The rail line would only speed that growth, Ms. Blackburn said Thursday night at Town Hall, at the latest in a series of meetings to gather citizen input on development along the rail corridor.

The question is, how will Davidson develop in response to that growth? Read the full story

To the Editor:

When we moved to Davidson a year ago after a four year exhaustive search of ideal small towns nationwide, we thought the place couldn’t get any better. Well we were wrong. Even during the past year, so many wonderful refinements have taken place. This special little haven just keeps evolving, year after year.

Now, we have another opportunity to make a great place even greater. In my mind, the downtown Davidson rail yard project offers a win-win for all involved: citizens, visitors, seniors, children, teens, merchants and more. In addition to train travelers, cyclists and walkers will benefit, too. (See Real Estate & Home, Dec. 14, 2011, “Meetings seek input on updated rail station area plan.”)

The first place that immediately came to mind when reading about various plans for the property is the fairly new Railyard project in Santa Fe, NM. For those who haven’t been there, I have enclosed a plan and two links describing its make up and the acclaim it has received. And it has done all this while weathering a recession, with much growth still to come.

The best part of the Railyard is its integration of diverse uses: children’s park, picnic areas, amphitheater, restaurants and shops, farmers market, art and wellness facilities, teen centers and more. Given the available, largely undeveloped land available for this same type of project in Davidson, I believe we have an ideal chance to carve out our own community gathering space (supplementing the Green, of course) before other inevitable and perhaps less focused redevelopment takes place someday.

Andrea Nordstrom Caughey, River Run

RELATED LINKS

Dec. 14, 2011, DavidsonNews.net, “Meetings seek public input on updated rail station area plan.”

July 11, 2011, SustainableCitiesCollective.com, “Santa Fe Railyard Redevelopment Creates Rich Urban Experience”

Sept. 19, 2011, “How Art, Culture, and Community Drove Transit Oriented Development in Santa Fe”

Map and tenant list of The Railyard, in Santa Fe, (PDF) via RailyardSantaFe.com

Town planners will hold another meeting at Town Hall Thursday night as they update planning for the area around a future commuter rail station in downtown Davidson. Meanwhile, Davidson’s Town Board will meet four days next week, including the first regular meeting of the new year Tuesday and its annual retreat Wednesday to Friday. And two other regional groups meet next week: the Lake Norman Marine Commission on Monday, Jan. 9, and the Lake Norman Transportation Commission on Wednesday, Jan. 11. Read the full story

Neighborhood pals (from left) Evan Foley, Russell Jacobson, Dina Jacobson, Jesse Jacobson, Emory Foley and Ginger Jacobson were selling lemonade from their driveway stand on Lorimer Road on New Year’s Day. (Bill Giduz/DavidsonNews.net)

We’re always looking for good photos of Davidson, people and events. Send us your photos for consideration at editor@davidsonnews.net. Read the full story

New Year’s Day was a beautiful morning for a run, and about 40 people showed up at the Davidson Village Green for the first Tightwad 5K, a free road race through the streets of Davidson to celebrate the holiday. The race also was a trial run for Davidson Timing LLC, a new Davidson company that provides race timing services. Bobby Aswell Jr. of Cornelius and Julie Alsop of Mooresville were the top male and female finishers. Complete results in SPORTS»