View the Request for Services  published Dec. 9, 2003 by the State Property Office

Click here for a look at the Site Plan for the Blount Street Project

For more information contact:

Doug Redford
LNR Property Corporation
220 Fayetteville St, 4th Floor
Raleigh, NC 27601
Phone: 919.653.5855
Fax: 919.653.5859

Overview

The NC General Assembly voted in 2003 to move ahead with a plan to return 25 acres of State property in the northeast corner of the downtown Raleigh State Government Complex to private development. The 25-acre property includes several historic homes that are part of the Blount Street Local Historic District. These homes have been used for many years as state offices. Also included in this tract are parking lots and other underutilized properties that form a prime opportunity for development. The State Property Office hired OBrien Atkins Associates of Research Triangle Park to revise the State's downtown Master Plan and to engage a Redevelopment Consultant and a Master Developer who will develop the most appropriate land use plan for the tract.  LNR Property Corporation was chosen as developer and is beginning construction of the project.

Some of Raleigh's finest historic homes are located in this Historic District, including the Hawkins-Hartness House, currently in use as offices of the Lieutenant Governor.

• See further news on the Blount Street web site.

• LNR Development is chosen as the Master Developer for the Blount Street Project in 2006.  Development is expected to begin in 2007.

• In August, 2004, the North Carolina State Property Office (NCSPO) issued a “Request for Qualifications” (RFQ) related to the mixed-use restoration and redevelopment of state-owned land in the Blount Street area adjacent to the State Capitol complex in downtown Raleigh, NC. 

• July, 2004 -  SPO (State Property Office)  sponsored a series of Placemaking Workshops June 28 and 29, 2004, at the Daniel Auditorium in the NC Museum of History in downtown Raleigh. And as final formal step, SPO conducted a series of in-depth interviews with many developers to obtain their thoughts and input on the potential market demand for a variety of uses at Blount Street, as well as their general thoughts on the overall concepts and any development hurdles or limitations they might foresee. SPO will utilize a two step procurement process to determine the best-value Developer to be associated with the Project.  This Request for Qualifications (RFQ) is the first step in the process which will be followed by a Request for Proposals (RFP) issued to the shortlisted Developers in late October 2004.  SPO expects to select the Developer in early 2005 with final contract negotiations to begin in March of 2005. 

• May 20, 2004- On or about Tuesday, May 25th, 2004, the North Carolina State Property Office (NCSPO) will issue a “Call for Ideas” related to the mixed-use restoration and redevelopment of state-owned land in the Blount Street area adjacent to the State Capitol complex in downtown Raleigh, NC. NCSPO is seeking input concerning conceptual restoration and redevelopment thoughts from any perspective – urban design, economics, historic preservation, livability, social relationships, the arts, etc. for a mixed-use smart-growth community. The objective is to provide a public outlet for ideas to insure that government planning efforts are not constrained by conventional thinking.  In a sense, the “Call for Ideas” is like a large-scale suggestion box for creative and compelling ideas. This Call for Ideas is the first opportunity open to public participation, and the State invites all state residents, critical thinkers, interested citizen groups, artists, developers, historians, civil engineers, economists, university experts, designers, activists, urban planners, architects to participate.  The Call for Ideas will be followed by Placemaking Workshops where compelling ideas will be presented and discussed.  These workshops will be held Monday and Tuesday, June 28^th and 29^th at the Daniel Auditorium in the North Carolina Museum of History; the workshops will begin at 5:00 p.m. and conclude at 9:00 p.m.
  When available, the call for Ideas will be posted for downloading at http://spo.doa.state.nc.us/spohome/, or if you would like to receive a copy of either document (or both) via email, please send your request to addmetoBlountemaildirectory@hdrinc.com.

• April 9, 2004 - On or about Friday April 16, 2004, the North Carolina State Property Office (NCSPO) will issue a “Request for Expression of Interest (RFEOI)” related to the mixed-use restoration and redevelopment of state-owned land in the Blount Street area adjacent to the State Capitol complex in downtown Raleigh, NC. NCSPO is seeking to identify potentially qualified and experienced developers who are interested in purchasing and subsequently financing, designing and constructing the redevelopment.  The RFEOI will openly invite real estate developers to submit a written expression of interest (EOI) communicating their interest in participating in the project, and preliminarily demonstrating their capability and commitment to redevelop the Blount Street area.  When available, the RFEOI will be posted for downloading at http://spo.doa.state.nc.us/spohome/, or if you would like to receive a copy of either document (or both) via email, please send your request to addmetoBlountemaildirectory@hdrinc.com.
• February 10, 2004 - The North Carolina State Building Commission approved the pre-selection committee's unanimous recommendation of HDR Architecture, Inc. to be the State's lead consultant relating to planning for the sale, restoration and redevelopment of the Blount Street area. HDR and its associate team members, John Milner Architects, Inc. and the project for Public Spaces, Inc. will provide vision, land use planning and real estate advisory services to the State relating to this project. During the next few weeks The State of NC hopes to have HDR under contract so the team will be able to meet with and obtain valuable input from the Oversight Committee at the next meeting scheduled for February 25th. In the interim, information concerning HDR Architecture, Inc., John Milner Architects, Inc. and the Project for Public Spaces, Inc. can be reviewed at their respective web sites as follows: http://www.hdrinc.com , http://www.johnmilnerarchitects.com and http://www.pps.org.