This Moment in CLT250 History: NBA All-Star Comes To The Queen City
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — On February 9-10, 1991, the 41st NBA All-Star Game was played for the first time in the Queen City, at the Charlotte Coliseum, “The Hive”. The city of 437,000 was chosen in recognition for becoming the home for the NBA expansion team, Charlotte Hornets, in 1988. Michael Jordan, North Carolina native and current owner of the Hornets, played in his seventh All-Star Game.
In 2019, Charlotte has grown to more than 860,000. With half of the city’s population being millennials, it will be the first time many have experienced the NBA All-Star Game in Charlotte. Not only has the population grown, the city of Charlotte now celebrates 365 days of entertainment, sports, arts and cultural events that bring more than eighteen million visitors annually.
Uptown, Charlotte’s center city, has grown and evolved tremendously, from strictly a business-centered area with 4,000 residents, to an entertainment and residential district filled with shops, restaurants and over 30,000 who call Uptown their home. Charlotte has become a leading city for attracting millennials, quality of life, entertainment and culture, as well as business growth.
The Kings of the NBA return to Charlotte Feb. 15-17, with events at Bojangles Coliseum, Spectrum Center, Epicentre, and more. More than 150,000 people are expected to transcend on Charlotte for the 2019 NBA All-Star events. Local favorites, Hornets players Kemba Walker and Miles Bridges, and native Charlotteans Steph and Seth Curry are participating in the festivities.
Share your All-Star experience by using the official hashtag, #NBAAllStar. To stay up-to-date on information and the latest news, visit any of the below websites.
Charlottesgotalot.com/2019nbaallstar
Looking for more ways to experience CLT250?
Explore these CLT250 themed events and activities in February.
- 2019 NBA All-Star Weekend: Feel the energy as the kings of the NBA return to the Queen City for the 2019 NBA All-Star Weekend Feb. 15-17. The NBA All-Star game was first held in Charlotte in 1991. The 68th annual game will take place at Spectrum Center, home of Michael Jordan’s Charlotte Hornets, on Sunday, Feb. 17. More than 150 events are expected during the weekend, including several ticketed and non-ticketed public events at historic Bojangles’ Coliseum and the Charlotte Convention Center. Visit nba.com/allstar to learn more.
- Save the Date for Charlotte SHOUT!: The yearlong CLT250 celebration will crescendo with Charlotte SHOUT!, a creative convergence of art, music, food and ideas throughout Uptown Charlotte from May 9-11. This exciting festival promises to become a unique, defining and celebratory event for the city that we all love.
- Levine Museum of the New South: StoryMining 250: This “StoryCorps” inspired series seeks to document and share the lives of Charlotteans at this moment in time, through oral histories, exhibits, and special programs, 250 years since the city was founded. Submit your story or nominate a storyteller to share your piece of Charlotte history.
- Call for Legacy Projects: Join organizations, neighborhoods and resident groups across the community who are looking to leave their CLT250 mark through legacy projects. Whether it’s planting 250 trees with TreesCharlotte, cleaning 250 miles of city streets with the City’s Adopt-a-Street program or creating something uniquely your own, CLT250 and SHARE Charlotte are on hand to help support community-building initiatives that will create hope and promise for the next 250 years. Interested groups can contact SHARE Charlotte for more information. Interested individuals can connect to volunteer opportunities through SHARE Charlotte.
HOW TO GET INVOLVED
Throughout the year, you can get involved in CLT250 by volunteering sponsoring or creating an event. Visit CLT250.com to explore how you can mark the 250th anniversary of the city’s founding in your own unique ways. Together, these events will add to Charlotte’s commitment to become a friendlier, healthier, more equitable and more accessible city.
CLT250 is a community-led engagement, presented by Atrium Health, in partnership with the City of Charlotte, the Arts & Science Council, Charlotte Center City Partners, Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, CMS Foundation, Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority, Foundation for the Carolinas and other corporate partners including Albemarle, Ally Bank, Bank of America, Barings, Compass Group, Duke Energy-Piedmont Natural Gas, Lowe’s, Moore & Van Allen, Novant Health, Townsquare Interactive, Wells Fargo and Wray Ward.
For more information about the yearlong celebration of Charlotte’s 250th anniversary, visit CLT250.com.
