City Profile: Charlotte, NC (May 7th, 2017)

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Charlotte was the first event in the collaboration by Knight and Niantic, on May 7th of 2017.

The game was embedded within Open Streets 704, an open streets initiative of the city (see also open streets events in Philadelphia and San Jose).

The goals were to cultivate a healthier and more connected community through shared experiences of walking and bicycling. More than 24,000 people attended the overall event, with a visible showing from Pokémon GO players. Many players traveled further than typical event attendees, such as one who drove 1.5 hours from Winston-Salem.

Of the 24,000 individuals that participated in the event, Niantic estimates that 3,000 – 5,000 were playing Pokémon GO, exploring the city in search of PokéStops and gyms alongside neighbors whom they may not have otherwise met. Roughly 24,000 people came for the overall event (nearly 3% of the city residents).

Deep context: our report

>> Charlotte is one of three open-streets experiments with Pokémon GO. For a deep description of how such events work, read our detailed report on similar events in San Jose and Philadelphia. Analysis includes:

  1. Economic impact
  2. Balancing tourists versus residents
  3. Social mixing and network formation

Selected Charlotte images

Fan collage of the event, courtesy of Captainlupetina and u/dronpres on the Silph Road
City staff used Google Maps to update local content around city campaigns to be shown in the game at key PokéStops
Sidewalk stencils and lawn signs point to the hybrid experience

More on the Charlotte remix

 

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