Asbestos Testing and Removal in Matthews, NC

A Small Old Core in a Young Town

Matthews had 589 residents in 1950 and 29,435 in 2020. Almost all of that growth came late, which is why the median Matthews home dates from 1994 and only about 3 percent of its housing was built before 1960. About 18 percent was built before 1980, mostly ranch houses from the 1960s and 70s on the streets that grew out from the railroad and US-74.

Downtown Along Trade and John Streets

The oldest buildings in town are concentrated in a few blocks. The Matthews Commercial Historic District, listed on the National Register in 1996, takes in the 1888 Heath and Reid General Store, Renfrow Hardware from about 1900 and the 1939 post office. Nearby stand the 1879 Massey-Clark House at 232 North Trade Street, now the Matthews Heritage Museum, the 1890 Nancy Reid House on West John Street and a Craftsman bungalow from about 1924 at 344 West John. Buildings of that age have usually been updated several times, and each round of flooring, heating or siding can add materials the original builders never used.

Who Handles the Paperwork

Matthews has no asbestos program of its own. It is inside Mecklenburg County, so Mecklenburg County Air Quality covers it exactly as it covers Charlotte: a notice 10 working days before a regulated demolition or renovation, and an asbestos inspection report with any demolition notice. Building and demolition permits are a separate filing.

Ranch Houses From the 1960s and 70s

For most Matthews homeowners the realistic question is a ranch from those two decades. That era used vinyl floor tile with black adhesive, textured ceilings and cement-board siding, all of which can contain asbestos. A lab sample before the remodel answers it.

Matthews Asbestos Questions