Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT) in Waxhaw, NC

Great Wagon Road Distilling Co. is opening a new location in downtown Waxhaw, adding to the company’s flagship location in NoDa and bar in Charlotte Douglas International Airport.

“We’re excited to be part of the Waxhaw community,” owner Ollie Mulligan told CharlotteFive. “We’ve created an industrial, yet cozy feel — it’s going to be a great cocktail experience.”

The new 3,000 square foot location on Waxhaw’s North Main Street is expected to open the second week of September. The distillery takes the place of the former Bike Depot — which was owned by a friend of Mulligan’s.

“When I moved here in ‘94, he was one of the Irish guys I hung out with — and now I’ve bought this building from him,” Mulligan said, laughing about the full circle moment.

For the Great Wagon Road Distilling team, it’s been a family affair putting personal touches on the space. For instance, Great Wagon Road distiller Michelle Piechowicz made all of the light fixtures. “They’re chandeliers made out of whiskey barrels that look like they’re exploding,” Mulligan said. “You’ll never have seen them anywhere else.”

Other touches include a dropped tin ceiling and extensive soundproofing to create a relaxed ambiance. Plans call for a 60-foot long bar — where you can get, as Mulligan says — “the best old fashioned you’ll ever have.”

Perhaps the most special feature of this new location is an Irish snug, or private room. “The snug is a nice intimate addition to the space,” Mulligan said. “In Ireland, a snug is where marriages are arranged, cattle are sold, and quiet deals are done.”

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The Waxhaw location — branded as GWR WXW — will have similarities and differences compared to the NoDa location. Like NoDa customers, GWR WXW guests can also enjoy whiskey pulled straight from the barrel, yet there will not be a kitchen. There is, however, a heavy duty electric hookup outside of the building so that food trucks can plug in without noisy generators.

GWR WXW will produce some spirits that will only be available in Waxhaw. “We’re getting honey from a local beekeeper, and are working to make more local partnerships,” Mulligan said.

Also expect Great Wagon Road Distilling staples like Rúa American single malt whiskey, Quinn’s barrel aged whiskey, 704 gin and Salamander vodka. The distillery also has a tequila in the works now that they’ve secured a partner in Mexico.

GWR WXW will sell bottles to go, however the bar experience is the big draw. “We’ll make everything right in front of you from scratch,” Mulligan said in his relaxed, Irish accent. “And we have the best gin and tonic you’ve ever had.”

Location: 610 Anderson St, Charlotte, NC 28205

Location: 122 W North Main St, Waxhaw, NC 28173

Instagram: @gwrnoda

A North Carolina grocery store chain is expanding again in the Charlotte area, this time in Waxhaw.

Lowes Foods will open a store on the southwest corner of Providence Road and Prescott Glenn Parkway at The Shops at Prescot Village, according to the Winston-Salem-based grocer. Construction and opening schedules have not been determined.

It’s part of the Prescot Village 100-acre mixed-use development, according to an online sales flyer by New South Properties of the Carolinas. The site, being developed by The Widewaters Group, is near Harris Teeter at 8157 Kensington Drive.

Lowes Foods has three Charlotte-area locations in Mooresville, Harrisburg and Huntersville, and plans to open three more in Concord, Kannapolis and Indian Land, S.C. The Concord is expected to open in the fall, company spokesman Scott Carpenter said. The other sites will open over the next two years.

All this expansion comes amid steep competition with other North Carolina chains like Matthews-based Harris Teeter and Salisbury-based Food Lion, as well as Florida-based Publix, and German discount grocers Lidl and Aldi.

Lowes Foods also said Wednesday it will open a store in Lexington, S.C. Other previously announced stores are in Winterville, N.C., Aiken and Summerville in S.C., and Marble Hill, Georgia. The latter store is expected to open this summer.

“We are entering a period of growth for Lowes Foods as we move into Georgia and continue to expand within our footprint in North and South Carolina,” Tim Lowe, Lowes Foods president and head of retail for parent company Alex Lee said in a statement Wednesday.

In 2014, Lowes Foods began pulling out of Charlotte, swapping stores with Harris Teeter and closing under-performing stores as part of a reinvestment strategy in new stores and remodeling others.

The 67-year-old company has almost 9,000 employees at 80 Lowes Foods supermarkets in the Carolinas. Lowes Foods is a subsidiary of Alex Lee, based in Hickory.

Lowes Foods isn’t the only grocery store looking to grab a piece of the Charlotte market’s $9.5 billion in supermarket sales. Consider:

▪ Last month, The West Boulevard Coalition moved another step closer to opening Charlotte’s first cooperative grocery store in an area that’s been without a traditional supermarket for over 30 years. Charlotte City Council approved the coalition’s rezoning petition for 3.5 acres at Clanton Road and West Boulevard to build Three Sisters Market. The full-service grocery store is expected to break ground this year.

▪ Also last month, Charlotte-based international grocer Compare Foods opened its ninth store, this one at 5601 South Blvd. The store includes two restaurants, a coffee and ice cream shop, and a bakery.

▪ In November, Sprouts Farmers Market opened in the former Earth Fare at 14124 Steele Creek Road in Steele Creek. The Phoenix-based specialty grocer opened its first Charlotte store six years ago at 15121 Ballancroft Parkway in Ballantyne.

▪ Last year, retail giant Walmart, the No. 1 grocer in the Charlotte region by market share, remodeled 11 area neighborhood markets and supercenters.

▪ In March, Publix opened a 48,387-square-foot store at North Creek Village in Huntersville. Publix plans to open at least six more stores in the region: 10 Tryon building on the corner of Tryon and Ninth streets in uptown; Arboretum at Providence and Pineville-Matthews roads; Clear Creek Crossings development on the corner of Albemarle and Rocky River Church roads; Harris Farms Shopping Center in Mooresville; The Colony on the corner of Sharon and Colony roads in SouthPark; and at 11525 Carmel Commons.

▪ In 2022, Super G Mart, a family-owned international supermarket, opened its third and largest North Carolina store at 10500 Centrum Parkway in Pineville

▪ Also in 2022, discount German-grocer Lidl opened its 10th Charlotte-area store at 11200 Carmel Commons Boulevard.

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January 10, 2023 5:52 AM

This story was originally published January 18, 2024, 6:05 AM.

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WAXHAW, N.C. — Waxhaw is one of the fastest-growing areas in North Carolina.

Residents said some of the reasons for moving to the western Union County town included a small-town feel, good schools and safe neighborhoods.

However, some voiced their concerns over Angelina, a proposed project for 500 homes off Providence Road, which is often congested.

Several residents of Providence Grove and Inverness on Providence attended a meeting on August 2 and heard from developer, Shea Homes Carolinas and its request to annex and rezone over 200 acres.

That would affect the existing developments by redirecting traffic from Cuthbertson Road to Providence Road (Route 16).

Dan Yanik moved to the area from another part of Union County to escape traffic.

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"We're backed up to a nice wooded, walking trail preserve area. And it's been fantastic living here," Yanik said. "But now that road looks like it may follow us down here, same problem as we had at our old home."

Like many of his neighbors, Rich Zapata, who serves on the board for Providence Road, said he has two concerns.

"By adding over 500 homes to this proposal, you're adding at least 1000 to 1200 new vehicles. You're inviting people that don't belong in these neighborhoods to freely drive through. So, that's one concern," Zapata told WCNC Charlotte.

The other concern, Zapata said, is about safety.

He said, "If you're creating these roads to alleviate the traffic flow of Providence Road or Cuthbertson, you're inviting people to take a shortcut to our neighborhoods onto Providence Road. You have children here. There's a bus stop behind us. There's a playground here all the kids come to the main road and the bikes all day long.

Resident, Caitlin Baily, agreed.

"There was never originally intent for a road to connect through Inverness on Providence, and then on to Providence Grove. Now that has completely been altered, and it's making our communities a direct bypass and that's very concerning," Bailey said. "With kids in the road and cutting into Providence Road neighborhood, it's very concerning for me as a mom, a parent, a runner."

READ MORE: Homeowners prevail in jury trial on two out of three issues against their homeowners association

Zapata added that they don't mind the growth in Waxhaw but the infrastructure is not in place for the rate the town is growing.

"The three local schools are already over capacity. You have a sewage plant that is local to the neighborhood and that's at capacity," Zapata explained. "You only have one road into Waxhaw and one road out so you don't have those elements to add all the people, all the cars, all the extra sewage concerns. You don't have the schools. Growth is great but you have to be ready."

Myles Spatz, who moved his family to the neighborhood 10 years ago, said the road running through their neighborhood is already busy just for the families who already live there.

"If we were to connect a proposed development to our neighborhood, we would add from what I have heard, an estimated 2000 cars a day from the Cuthbertson Road area, the new development, all bypassing Providence Road by coming through our backyards and turning out to Route 16," Spatz said. "That's further compounded by the fact that there are no plans, as of yet, to improve the existing exit from our neighborhood onto Route 16."

Joe Luminoso, President of Inverness on Providence's Homeowners Association, said the builder has talked to them.

"Developer says they're looking into it but the town is forcing them," Luminoso said. "The town is forcing them to do the connection. So, the builder is kind of marching to the town's side."

When asked if he thought there was a solution, Luminoso suggested, "Don't build, but we know that's not gonna happen right. Progress is progress. For our immediate concerns, the best solution is going to be if you must connect the street, put a security barrier between it, so only emergency vehicles can come through. Not a cut-through for traffic from Cuthertson up to 16."

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A spokesperson for the town of Waxhaw sent WCNC Charlotte the following statement:

"The applicant for the development on Providence Rd is in the early phase of a comprehensive planning review process. Nothing has been approved. Inverness residents reached out to the Town of Waxhaw and Staff will be meeting with their HOA next week."

Luminoso also said the residents of Waxhaw who are complaining need to get involved.

"People complain. People push," he said. "Don't expect your neighborhood to be pushy. If you don't like something, you got to be vocal. In a unified voice is what the town, what the state will listen to."

A town hall forum is scheduled for Monday night from 6:30 to 8:00 at Five Stones Church in Waxhaw. All of the area's development will be up for discussion.

A popular brewery in Waxhaw officially closed this month — but it won’t be long before another one takes over.

Middle James Brewing Company announced it will be opening a second location in the space formerly known as The Dreamchaser’s Brewery.

“Neil and the folks at The Dreamchasers Brewery created a wonderful spot, one that many of us created lifelong memories in, and one that gave many a feeling of hometown comfort. This is exactly the type of place and feeling that we plan to carry on at Middle James Brewing – WXW. We look forward to what’s to come and hope that you do too,” the team announced on social media.

The Dreamchaser’s Brewery, which opened in May 2016, closed its doors a few weeks ago.

“This is not something we wanted and we had hoped to keep our legacy going but unfortunately due to forces out of our control our journey has come to an end,” the brewery posted on Instagram. “We have been a staple in Waxhaw for the past 7 and 1/2 years and we will treasure all of our memories we have created with every person who has walked through our door.”

Now plans are underway for Middle James Brewing Company, Pineville’s first brewery, to take over.

“We have said many times that the cities we plant seeds in with our brewery locations are more than just an address. We love that we get to become a part of the community and have the opportunity to be a spot that the locals consider their own,” Middle James Brewing Company stated in its announcement.

“We hope that the town of Waxhaw will be just as thrilled as we are to be joining many other incredible businesses with solid roots.”

The team didn’t share when their new location will officially open, but CharlotteFive has reached out to get more details. This story will be updated as we learn more.

Location: 400 N Polk St B, Pineville, NC 28134

Location: 115 E North Main St, Waxhaw, NC 28173 (opening soon)

Instagram: @middlejamesbrewing

A power outage in the Waxhaw and Marvin areas forced Union County Public Schools to cancel class at four campuses Wednesday.

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UNION COUNTY, N.C. — Multiple schools in Union County are closed Wednesday due to a power outage in the Marvin and Waxhaw areas, district leaders said.

Marvin Ridge Middle School, Marvin Ridge High School, Sandy Ridge Elementary School and Kensington Elementary School are closed Wednesday as a precaution. Union County Public Schools said the campuses were closed due to the frigid temperatures Wednesday morning. The district made the decision to close schools just before 6:30 a.m. with temperatures across the Charlotte area in the upper 20s.

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"Union Power is aware of the outage, but at this time, we do not have an estimated time of restoration," UCPS said in a message to parents. "As a safety precaution and due to below-freezing temperatures, a decision has been made to cancel school at these campuses. There will be no school for staff and students."

WCNC Charlotte has asked Union Power for more details about the outage, including the cause.

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