Recognizing great urban design in Charlotte: How the Urbies began

Recognizing outstanding metropolitan developments and projects is the impetus for the annual Urban Design Awards, presented by the city of Charlotte in partnership with UNC Charlotte’s School of Architecture.

“Cities are like quilts. Every square is a new opportunity for something good to happen,” said Deb Ryan, professor of architecture and urban design and one of three women who helped conceive the recognition, called the Urbies.

The most recent awards presentation recognized 12 Queen City projects from walkable neighborhoods and public spaces to urban architecture and streets.

The Urbies, the brainchild of Ryan, Monica Carney Holmes, deputy planning director for the city of Charlotte, and Mary Newsom, a longtime urban and suburban issues journalist for the Charlotte Observer who later served as director of urban policy initiatives for the UNC Charlotte Urban Institute.

During a three-decade career, Newsom authored a column in which she recognized the best in urban design and growth in Charlotte with “the Urbie.” Conversely, she dubbed lesser projects “roadkill,” illustrated by a dead possum. In 2020, Newsom gave her blessing to Holmes and Ryan to create the current iteration of the Urbies, co-sponsored by the city’s Urban Design Center and the Urban Design Program at UNC Charlotte.

As a Charlotte resident for 40 years, Ryan has witnessed the city’s growth and development. Through service on the Charlotte Mecklenburg Planning Commission, she weighed in on rezoning projects for dense and multiuse projects. She learned citizens had three main concerns: overcrowding in schools, traffic and impact on property values. The Urbies were a vehicle to balance these concerns with new opportunities.

“By highlighting award-winning projects, we could say, ‘Look there’s nothing to be afraid of,” Ryan said. “In fact, when it’s built, you’re going to love it. We want to shine a positive light on a different, more urban type of development and do it in a celebratory way without detracting from other forms of property development.”

For Ryan, cities should always be growing, otherwise urban planners would be out of a job.

“I think Charlotte is doing a lot right with the help of some really thoughtful developers,” she said. “It’s not perfect, there’s still room for improvement. But I’ve seen a lot of good things happen over the past few decades.”

A jury of urban designers, developers, administrators and park planners within Charlotte vote for the Urbie Award recipients. Ryan said up to two-thirds of the jury changes annually to keep perspectives fresh and varied. Jury members engage in spirited debate to achieve consensus about what makes “great” urban design.

Nominations are determined by the jury, but people can bring projects to its attention. Nominations have increased in recent years thanks to Will Linville ‘09, ’21 MUD, the current head of urban design for the city, who has focused on strengthening ties with the professional community in Charlotte.