New University City Regional Library Project

Located at 301 East W.T. Harris Boulevard, University City Regional Library serves northeast Charlotte and one of the fasted growing areas for business, healthcare, and academia in Mecklenburg County – University City. This library first opened its doors to the public on February 14, 1993. In 1999, to accommodate rapid community growth, the library closed for five months to expand the facility to nearly 25,000 square feet – making it 60% larger than its original size. The University City Regional Library is one of the most visited libraries in the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library system. The new facility will be located less than a mile from the current facility on Waters Edge Village Drive, in the new Waters Edge development along JW Clay Boulevard.

Fast Facts

• Will be largest regional library in Mecklenburg County except for the Uptown Library campus (comprised of Main Library and ImaginOn: the Joe and Joan Martin Center)
• Outfitted with generous spaces, including:
  • Dedicated children’s and teen program areas,
  • Large community room and flexible meeting spaces,
  • Comfortable individual and group-size reading/study spaces
• Designed to handle needs of a large regional library and programs of all types
• New and ample technology
• Less than a half-mile from the LYNX Blue Line JW Clay Station
• The anticipated completion time for this project is 2025

New Facility FAQ

• What will parking look like at the new facility?
  • There will be ample parking adjacent to the Library.
• Will there be multiple entrances to the new facility for easy accessibility?
  • There will be one primary public entrance to the Library. The entire facility will be ADA compliant, including the entrance and all emergency exits.
• Will there be access to the facility from the Greenway?
  • The new Library will be within a short walk of the entrance of the Barton Creek Greenway at JW Clay Boulevard.
• Will trees that have been removed for this project be replaced?
  • The project will be compliant with the City of Charlotte’s tree ordinance. 
• Will there be a Makerspace in the new facility?
  • There will not be a Makerspace in the new Library. The facility will, however, be designed to have more flexibility with its rooms so there is a capability to bring in Makerspace equipment when needed.
• Are shelves going to be shorter/more accessible for all?
  • Shelving in the open floor area will be no taller than 66 inches to allow for more natural light and better views throughout the facility.
• What will determine the materials the new facility receives?
  • The Library will have a large collection of materials based on the circulation history of University City Regional Library, meaning that the branch’s needs will be kept in mind when distributing materials.
  • Much of the opening day collection will be new to the system and selected specifically for the University City community.
  • CML has a floating collection where materials are not housed permanently at one specific library, but instead are shelved in the library where they were most recently returned. It also transports reserved materials to the customer’s library of choice when it becomes available.
  • CML’s Materials Management department ensures that the system has a diverse, well-balanced collection to meet the needs of customers. They analyze circulation information and monitor new material trends for each location and acquire materials to meet those needs.