‘It was a ghost town’: Camp North End shop owner worries about curfew impacts – Spectrum News

‘It was a ghost town’: Camp North End shop owner worries about curfew impacts  Spectrum News

Some Charlotte business owners say they are losing customers because of a curfew at the popular Camp North End shopping center. CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A Charlotte business owner says she is losing customers because of a curfew at a popular shopping center. The curfew was enacted in April after “several unauthorized teen takeovers” at Camp North End. It bans unsupervised minors under 18 from the shopping center after 6 p.m. and adds more security officers to patrol to “re-direct unchaperoned minors,” according to Camp North End’s policy. Since the curfew took effect, Tracy Gunn said business at her candy shop has slowed significantly. “We noticed that all of a sudden, like it came into effect, it was a ghost town,” Gunn, the owner of Life is Sweet Candy Shop, said.

Gunn opened her Camp North End location last summer. She said the influx of teens visiting her store earlier this year has noticeably changed. “Retail's been hard this year,” Gunn said. “When we had that bump, it was like, yes, finally. When they all kind of disappeared, it just hurt a little bit.” While Gunn questions whether the curfew is doing more harm than good, others said it was needed. "I think it was necessary because it can only get more out of hand if there's not any structure,” Andy