TRAFFIC ALERT: Parts of East 7th Street to close for nearly 1 month

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Crews will close East Seventh Street near uptown Charlotte from 9 a.m. Wednesday through 6 a.m. June 19, Charlotte Department of Transportation officials said.

Local residents and businesses will still have access to the area.

The entire intersection of Hawthorne and Seventh will close completely, and nearly three-quarters of a mile on Seventh Street, between Pecan and Charlottetown Avenue, will be available to residents living in the neighborhood.

between East Fifth Street and East Seventh Street until June 30.

Drivers should use North Caswell Road, East Fourth Street and Charlottetowne Avenue as alternate routes.

Drivers and local businesses bracing for the worst.

Local business owners said when the area shuts down, they will see a loss.

Charlie Chang, who runs the Seventh Street Market at Hawthorne Lane and Seventh Street, has been there for 10 years, but his deli is facing challenges as yet another construction road closure looms.

"I'm so worried about that," Chang said.

Chang is worried his customers will avoid the hassle and go elsewhere else.

"It's almost three or four weeks. It's too hard,” Chang said. “It's a main road to uptown. There's a lot of traffic here."

Drivers are preparing for traffic jams and trying to get around the closure in an area that's already congested.

"Traffic is like a stand still. It's like you're moving a couple inches,” said Theo Gordon, a student at Central Piedmont Community College.

CATS officials said businesses and residents were notified, but Chang said they should have been given more notice.

Officials said Seventh Street is closing for underground work related to phase two of the Lynx Gold Line, a project that won't be completed for another three years.

When all the construction is done, the Gold Line will come through Elizabeth and businesses hope it will bring more customers to the area.

CATS officials said work on underground utilities must be done during the day because crews dig so deep, it would dangerous to reopen roads during the day because it would allow traffic to drive over holes.

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