McAdenville is a thriving community, just over 10 miles to the Charlotte Douglas International Airport and just over 15 miles to Charlotte’s downtown center. With generations making McAdenville what it is today, its true charm is in its eclectic blend of traditional and modern living.
Residential CommunitiesCommunity InvolvementLocal Service ProvidersLocal SchoolsHealthcareReal Estate DevelopmentTown History
Residential Communities
Offering a small-town atmosphere with the accessibility of metropolitan Charlotte attractions, McAdenville has become an extremely attractive real estate market. Whether it’s the Town’s historic duplexes and single-family homes or recently constructed neo-traditional, craftsman style, the historic homes of McAdenville (as well as the recently built and future communities) offer McAdenville residents great neighbors and amazing amenities just a short walk away.
The new craftsman-style neighborhood seamlessly blends history with present-day living. Its charming neotraditional architecture honors the history of the Town while incorporating features ideal for growing families and active seniors.
Several recently renovated historic homes along Main Street, some dating back to the 1880s, offer a reflection back to R.Y. McAden’s arrival where he built his mills on the bank of the South Fork. Inspired by mill villages in Rhode Island, brick mill houses were unique in the South at the time, which helped Mr. McAden attract a workforce to his new Town.
Community Involvement
With its indelible charm, walkability, beauty and family-friendly nature, McAdenville is a great place to live or visit. And with extensive recreational and experiential opportunities everywhere you look, you’ll never want to leave. In addition, community groups, such as the McAdenville Women’s Club, local YMCA, local elementary school and local churches provide great avenues to gather, enjoy fellowship and engage to the benefit of the Town and one another.
McAdenville Greenway provides a two-mile ribbon of trail along the South Fork River and through the town by Pharr Mill Lake
The Run Club at Dynamo 31
Catawba Riverkeeper recreation
Local Service Providers
With so many new businesses investing in McAdenville, convenience is walkable.
Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation
Chitwood & Skidmore, CPA PA
Cloninger Bell Surveyor
Edward D. Jones & Co.
Mane Styl’n
MECA Commercial Real Estate
U.S. Post Office
William Henry Signature Salon
Local Schools
McAdenville residents have access to excellent public and private primary schools and secondary education opportunities in the local area, all within less than a 10-mile radius.
Healthcare
Gaston County and the Charlotte region offer the finest in healthcare services, including the following local providers:
CaroMont Health Care
CaroMont Family Medicine
Atrium Health
Christmas Town Dentistry
Custom Physical Therapy & Fitness
Arches Bodywork
Dr. Christopher Mauney, OD
Real Estate Development
Belmont Land and Investment Company, Pharr’s real estate business, has announced new developments in McAdenville, including:
Dynamo 31 Building Opens
Charlotte Business Journal 2022 award finalist for adaptive reuse – class A office space, adding six new tenants since October 2022.
McAdenville Lake Restoration
Lake dredging and new landscaping
Extension of the Carolina Thread Trail
12’ wide hard surface riverside trail with views of historic Main Street and the falls at the historic dam
New Main Street Tenant Spaces
The addition of six new tenants since early 2022, including a coffee shop, ice cream shop, florist, record store, fashion clothing boutique and a bottleshop/taproom
McAden Mill #3 Adaptive Reuse of a 1907 Downtown Mill Building
Restored exterior, new windows and new flooring are complete as the building awaits final determination of its future use, currently contemplated to be an open-air mix of food & beverage, retail, events, and/or entertainment, embracing the riverfront with outdoor seating
Future Development Future
Future development on nearly 40 undeveloped acres along the riverfront park includes plans for new residential, commercial and potential office properties; master planning still in process; public announcements to be made as construction gets underway
Town History
Nestled along the banks of the South Fork River, McAdenville has a long and storied history. Starting in the early 1880s, Colonel R.Y. McAden harnessed the power of the river, built his textile mills and established the Town of McAdenville. Nearly 50 years later, William J. Pharr and his family arrived in McAdenville in 1939, having acquired the assets of McAden Mills.
Mr. Pharr brought not only much-needed jobs lost during the Great Depression to the mill village but an invigorated community spirit, by paving streets, adding front porches to mill homes, building churches, a school and a community recreation center. The Company prospered, and, as it did, so did the Town. Mr. and Mrs. Pharr helped initiate and lead the McAdenville Christmas traditions, bringing Christmas joy to the surrounding communities.
The family legacy was passed on through Mr. and Mrs. Pharr’s daughter Catherine Ann and her husband J.M. “Bip” Carstarphen. In the early 2000s, Mr. Carstarphen began the process of transitioning one of the last remaining “mill villages” in America, whereby the Company provided the Town’s oversight and owned the Town’s utilities, turning over those responsibilities and the infrastructure to the Town and its Mayor, Council and Staff. In 2005, the Town began to visibly transform, as construction began on new housing that replaced former mill housing.
As the Company evolved over the years under Mr. Carstarphen’s and his son Bill’s leadership, the Town did likewise. The Company continues to support and fund all the treasured McAdenville traditions while continually building a family atmosphere and a vibrant community spirit.
The Pharr/Carstarphen family’s intent to carefully invest and tastefully repurpose the Town’s historical structures and features, and preserve and protect the area’s incredible natural resources, has had a magnificent impact, creating a one-of-a-kind riverfront Town now enjoyed by many throughout the Charlotte region. Additionally, the Town government has developed into a well-rounded mixture of more recent residents with those having experienced McAdenville over many years, providing astute and visionary leadership.
