Charlotte Future 2040 Community Area Planning

What are Community Area Plans?

Community Area Plans (CAP) are a series of policy guides that provide a framework for future growth and development across 14 sub-geographies of the city. Intended to help implement the vision and goals adopted within the citywide Charlotte Future 2040 Comprehensive Plan and the Charlotte Future 2040 Policy Map, the CAPs serve as a guide for making land use, zoning, and capital investment decisions at a more focused scale. The guidance within these plans helps ensure that future growth will increase access to daily goods and services, housing choices, and job opportunities, and reduce environmental impacts throughout Charlotte, making the city a more equitable place to live, work, and play.

The 14 CAPs are color-coded, with each document organized into five sections: Community Profile, Community Needs & Goals, Creating Complete Communities, Supporting the Vision, and Implementation.

On November 24, 2025, Charlotte City Council adopted seven Community Area Plans and the Revised Policy Map for these geographies: East Inner, Northeast Inner, South Inner, South Middle, South Outer, Southwest Middle, and Southwest Outer. City Council decided to delay action on the following Community Area Plans and the Revised Policy Map for these geographies to allow for more engagement: East Middle & Outer, North Inner, North Middle & Outer, Northeast Middle & Outer, West Inner, West Middle, and West Outer. Additional engagement opportunities are being planned for these seven plan areas. Plans for these areas will stay on the project website until Council makes a final decision.

A color-coded map of districts, showing various regions labeled as West, North, East, and South, including Inner and Outer classifications. Different colors designate each district clearly.

CAP Documents

The Community Area Plan portfolio includes three volumes: Program Guide, 14 Community Area Plans, and Appendix. Click on the tiles below to review CAP documents.

Program Guide

The Program Guide provides guidance for reading and understanding the Charlotte Future 2040 Community Area Plans (CAPs). It also provides information about other city- and- county-wide policies that support the CAPs.

Community Area Plans

Each CAP includes:

  • Greatest needs and priority goals
  • Creating complete communities through policy map implementation
  • Needs assessments for mobility, open space, environmental justice, and community character
  • Coordination for public services and facilities
  • Implementation and focus area concepts

The CAP E-Plans are a summary of the complete, adopted plans. Links to the full plan PDFs are provided within each E-Plan.

Appendices

The CAP Appendices document provides additional resources to support implementation and process details for specific assessment methodologies used to create the CAPs. This document includes four key components:

  • Neighborhood Toolkit
  • Equitable Growth Framework Methodology
  • Mobility, Open Space, Environmental Justice, and Community Character Assessment Methodologies
  • Policy Map & Place Types Summary

Community Area Planning Process

Winter 2023
Phase 1: Setting the Stage

Community needs were identified based on priorities for increased access and reduced impacts. The Comprehensive Plan goals were then prioritized for each area based on these needs. This work is summarized in the ‘Community Profile’ and ‘Community Needs & Goal’ chapters of each CAP.

Spring - Fall 2023
Phase 2: Create Great Places

Ensured future development supports each community’s needs and goals by reviewing and refining the Place Type designations within the Charlotte Future 2040 Policy Map. Drafts of the Revised Policy Map were released multiple times throughout the planning process and the outcomes are included in the ‘Creating Complete Communities’ chapter of each CAP

Spring - Fall 2024
Phase 3: Supporting the Vision

Planned projects and existing programs were identified, along with new initiatives needed to support future growth. Engagement included participation from 22 City and County agencies, and the outcomes are detailed in the ‘Supporting the Vision’ chapter of each CAP.

Fall 2024–2025
Phase 4: Plan for Action

Developed implementation strategies for putting the plans’ recommendations into action. Each plan’s ‘Implementation’ chapter outlines specific steps that can be taken by public and private entities to help realize the community’s vision.

Winter 2025–Spring 2026
Phase 5: Review & Adoption

Adoption of Community Area Plans by City Council. Once adopted, these plans will provide guidance for decision making related to land development and capital investments.