Community Profile

Summary

The Town of Matthews is the largest of metropolitan Charlotte’s suburban communities. The Town’s growth policies have reduced the dependency on automobiles, making the community very pedestrian and bicycle-friendly. Policies on tree preservation, landscaped parking areas and vegetated buffer strips adjoining stream channels and roadsides have help to reduce run-off. A 2008 Tree Ordinance prevents developers from clear-cutting construction sites and calls for the use of native plants in landscaping. The “Matthews Naturally” project is a partnership with the Community Wildlife Habitat team, North Carolina Wildlife Federation’s HAWK chapter and the Mecklenburg County Audubon.