Major Plaza Midwood road closure to impact traffic, businesses for weeks

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - A key part of Central Avenue going through the heart of Plaza Midwood will be closed to traffic for weeks due to emergency repairs.

Charlotte Water closed the road yesterday after responding to the area for a wastewater overflow, before discovering there was a water leak in a pipe.

During any given day Central Avenue is packed with cars during rush hour, but things were different Wednesday and will be for the next few weeks.

The lack of cars is troubling for some businesses that rely on drivers passing by.

Ryan Grant, co-owner of Moo and Brew, shared his thoughts.

“It’s super annoying for sure, but at this point, we’re kind of used to it,” he said.

For people living and working on Central Avenue, road closures due to work on the water and sewage system seem almost normal.

“It wasn’t a surprise this time, and they told us ‘hey, we’re not cutting the water off, you’re still going to have water,’” Grant said.

Charlotte Water said crews will install a new pipe near the railroad crossing to connect the existing water mains to continue service, then the leaking pipe section will be taken offline.

Although people will continue to have water, it’s still an inconvenience for some.

“It’s been an inconvenience going to the grocery store as well because I go to the Harris Teeter right on Central Avenue,” Lily O’Donnell, a Plaza Midwood resident, said.

The lack of road traffic will hurt some businesses over the next two weeks.

“It’s definitely not traffic like it usually is, we always have cars driving by, people walking up and down the street, because of the road closure, I’m sure people are taking detours so they’re not really catching us,” Lya Rodriguez, a nail tech at Kouture Nail Bar, said. “It’s annoying and we wish that it wouldn’t happen so frequently probably, our parking lot is also in the back, so it’s not easy to access it unless you’re on Central, so yes, it definitely affects us.”

Kouture Nail Bar is running promotions on certain days of the week to get people in the door.

Charlotte Water is ensuring there’s access to businesses on Central Avenue during this time and the goal is to keep water on during the repairs.

Meanwhile, businesses want people to know that they’re still open and operating.

WBTV asked Charlotte Water about the multiple closures and water issues in this area.

The agency said the last closure in July was due to repair to the wastewater pipe, manhole and storm drains on the other side of the railroad crossing.

Related: Charlotte apartment complex goes without running water for days

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