Rebirth Of Downtown Raleigh

Approximately $1.8 billion in public and private investments is earmarked for the area over a five-year period ending in 2010. Besides a redesigned Fayetteville Street, these new downtown projects include a convention center and four-star headquarters hotel, quality housing, and office, retail, dining and eating establishments.

Laying the groundwork for this revitalization is the City of Raleigh’s “Livable Streets” Downtown Plan. The plan, approved by the City Council in 2003, has five objectives: reinvigorate Fayetteville Street as the heart of downtown, fund and build a new convention center and headquarters hotel to attract conventions and trade shows, improve the pedestrian environment of the center city, remove regulatory impediments and make it easier to do business downtown, and expand management and marketing of downtown.     

Having a strong housing market downtown for residents of all income levels is a key component of the City’s efforts to revitalize the area. Approximately, 400 new housing units have been constructed downtown in the past five years. Another 800 units are currently under construction and building is set to begin on an additional 600 units in the near future.  All told, the City expects approximately 2,900 new housing units in the downtown area by 2010. These new units are expected to boost the number of residents living downtown to approximately 8,000. The housing stock will continue to grow downtown as about 1,500 additional units are in the planning stages.

With four blocks of Fayetteville Street now open to vehicular traffic, the following is a status report on other major public and private downtown area projects:

• Convention center/headquarters hotel.  A 500,000-square-foot convention center is being constructed on Salisbury Street between Cabarrus and Lenoir streets, just west of the old Raleigh Convention and Conference Center (RCCC). The RCCC was demolished in February after serving Raleigh since 1977. The new convention center will feature a 150,000-square-foot exhibit hall, 16 meeting rooms, and a grand ballroom with a seating capacity of 2,400. The convention center will front onto Salisbury Street with a grand public plaza. Adjacent to the convention center on the northeast corner of Lenoir and Salisbury streets will be a four-star, 400-room Marriott hotel. The 17-floor headquarters hotel will include meeting rooms, a restaurant with outdoor dining, a coffee shop and a pedestrian connector to allow patrons to move back and forth between the hotel and the convention center. The hotel also will have a 9,000-square-foot grand ballroom, junior ballroom, indoor pool and fitness spa. Both the convention center and the hotel are scheduled to be complete in the spring 2008;
• Cultural/Convention District Master Plan (south end of downtown). The City of Raleigh has developed a strategic development plan for the convention center area on the south end of downtown. The focus of the plan is the redevelopment of six City-owned parcels that would meet the objectives of the City’s “Livable Streets” Downtown Plan and support the Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts and the new convention center. One of the goals is to add significant new housing, up to 400 units, to the area. The City Council has approved memorandums of understanding (MOU) with developers to develop two of the six sites. TMC Development is proposing an approximately $130 million office, retail and residential complex on a 1.8-acre tract for what would be downtown’s largest mixed-use project. The complex would consist of a 20-story tower and a 14-story tower with 154 condominiums, 284,000 square feet of office space, 50,000 square feet of restaurant space, ground-floor retail fronting Fayetteville and Wilmington streets and possibly a movie theater. There also would be an underground parking garage with approximately 696 parking spaces. On the other City-owned for which the City Council has approved an MOU, Empire Properties is proposing a mixed-use project on a half-acre site just northwest of the Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts. The company’s mixed-use project, to be called The Lafayette, would be a single tower structure from 16 to 21 stories high. It would include between 100 and 125 guest rooms for a luxury full-service boutique hotel, between 40 and 80 condominiums on the tower’s upper floors, approximately 15,000 square feet of retail space (including a signature restaurant with outdoor plaza seating), and a fitness center and rooftop pool and bar with views of the downtown skyline;
• Underground parking deck. To support current and future development and parking needs on the south end of downtown, the City of Raleigh is constructing an underground parking garage in the 500 block of Fayetteville Street on land previously occupied by the RCCC. The deck will have 906 parking spaces when the first phase is complete in 2007.  The second and final phase would be the additional 696 spaces built by TMC Development as part of its mixed-use project. TMC Development plans to connect its underground parking deck to the City’s garage. This would give the deck a total of 1,602 spaces when it is complete in 2008. Of those spaces, there would be 1,344 spaces for the public. The remainder would be reserved for TMC Development and the Marriott convention center hotel. The City also has put up new parking banners to help downtown visitors find existing available parking spaces. Furthermore, the City now allows free on-street parking downtown after 5 p.m. on weekdays and all day on weekends. Downtown City-owned parking decks that are not used as part of a special event are now open to visitors for free after 7 p.m. on weekdays and throughout the weekend;
• Blount Street redevelopment (north end of downtown). The State of North Carolina is seeking to sell 21 acres on Blount Street to LNR Property of Miami Beach, Fla. for redevelopment. The 26 historic homes currently on the site will be restored and saved as the area is redeveloped to residential use with limited office and retail space. The homes had been used for State offices;
• Moore Square South development strategy (east end of downtown).  The City Council has endorsed implementing a strategy that envisions quality development of residences and neighborhood-oriented retail shops and offices for the downtown area just southeast of Moore Square and the Moore Square Museums Magnet Middle School. Specifically, the strategy calls for up to 300 new housing units in a variety of types and prices. The development strategy includes input from property owners, developers, residents and others who have an interest in Moore Square South. In recent years, the City’s Community Development Department has used City housing funds and federal Community Block Grants to acquire property in the area to eliminate or prevent deteriorating housing;
• Gateway West Master Plan (west end of downtown). The City Council has approved the Gateway West Master Plan for an area on the west side of downtown generally south of Morgan Street between Dawson Street and the Boylan Heights neighborhood. The master plan provides a series of planning goals and concepts offering a general direction and guide for the area prior to the openings of the downtown regional rail station and the new convention center. This includes new greenway, pedestrian, streetscape and traffic circulation improvements to strengthen pedestrian and transportation connections to the Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts, the new convention center and the downtown regional rail station. The master plan also calls for up to 250 new housing units and up to 100,000 square feet of new retail and office space;
• RBC Centura. The bank is planning to build its new headquarters in a 32-story skyscraper at the intersection of Martin and Fayetteville streets, making it the tallest building in Downtown Raleigh. The mixed-use project would contain retail, parking, offices and condominiums. Proposed are 17,715 square feet of shops and restaurants on the ground floor and eight floors of parking -- 572 total spaces – that would be above the retail area. There would be 10 or 11 stories of office space -- a total of 271,926 square feet -- above the parking area. There also would be 150 condominiums. On top of the building would be an approximately 150-foot-high decorative tower that will be lit at night. Construction is planned to begin by early next year, with completion by 2009;
• Wake County Courthouse expansion. Wake County is planning a $250 million expansion that would include 20 new courtrooms. The new courthouse complex would be built on part of a block bounded by Davie, Salisbury, Martin and McDowell streets, replacing a County building and a parking deck. To replace the parking deck that would be demolished, Wake County has acquired land at the intersection of Davie and McDowell streets for a new 830-space deck that would also include up to 60 residential units and retail space. The County expects to select an architect for the courthouse expansion by the end of this summer;   
• Green Square. This State of North Carolina project on Jones Street would be a $115 million expansion of the Museum of Natural Sciences, coupled with a new headquarters for the Department of Environment and Natural Sciences and new main office for the State Employees Credit Union. Five hundred (500) new parking spaces would be provided with this project, with an additional 350 behind Edenton Street Methodist Church;
• News & Observer expansion. The newspaper plans to build a new headquarters at its existing location on the block bounded by McDowell, Martin, Hargett and Salisbury streets. The company would demolish the existing headquarters and build 135,000 square feet of offices and a parking deck with between 400 and 700 spaces for its downtown employees. Plans also call for the remaining property on the block to be developed into a mix of shops, condominiums or offices. The News & Observer Publishing Co. currently is reviewing development proposals for the project, with a final selection expected in August. Construction would be complete by 2010;
• The Hudson. The former Hudson Belk building on Fayetteville Street has been converted to a mixed-use development that includes 66 condominiums and a street-level television studio for WTVD. The Hudson also is the new home of a restaurant, delicatessen and a UPS Store;
• The Dawson. This mixed-use project on Dawson and Morgan streets contains 66 housing units and a new bar and grill;
• The Paramount. Opened in January, this single building at Boylan Avenue and Johnson Street has 82 housing units and 1,000 feet of retail space. All the units are sold out;
• Boylan Flats. Located directly across the street from The Paramount, this 14-unit development is planned to be downtown’s first residential project that has an environmentally friendly design. The project’s developers plan to seek Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for Boylan Flats from the U.S. Green Building Council. Boylan Flats also has 800 square feet of retail space;
• The Glen on Peace. Just north of The Paramount at the intersection of Peace and Boylan streets, this single-building project is planned to have 18 residential units and 2,500 square feet of ground level retail space;
• The Quorum. This will be Raleigh’s first vertically-structured, mixed-use transit-oriented development. Located at Jones and Harrington streets, The Quorum will have 44 housing units, office and retail space, and 373 parking spaces. Construction is expected to be complete in six months;
• The Palladium.  Located next to Progress Energy’s headquarters on Blount Street, The Palladium will have 66 housing units and 3,000 square feet of retail when construction is complete in mid-2007;
• The Bloomsbury. One hundred and ten (110) residential units are planned for this development located at the intersection of West Hargett Street and Boylan Avenue near a future rail station;
• Gateway Park. This 84-unit housing project is on South Sanders Street near the Dix Hospital campus. It includes a community center, garden plots and some covered garages;
• Carlton Place. An 80-unit mixed-use project under construction on Bloodworth Street behind Moore Square Magnet Middle School. Also included in the project will be a community center and 6,000 square feet of retail on Davie Street. Completion is scheduled for 2007;
• Capitol Park. A Raleigh Housing Authority (RHA) Hope VI grant project near Peace College that has 209 affordable- and market-rate housing units,  including villas, townhouses, single-family homes, and apartments for senior citizens. Capitol Park was completed on time and within its $30 million budget. It is fully occupied;
• Village at Pilot Mill. An upscale single-family subdivision next to Capitol Park. The subdivision has 104 lots, with houses selling for up to $400,000;
• Chavis Heights. Another Hope VI grant project in which RHA hopes to duplicate the success of Capitol Park. The project is under construction  on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and will consist of 165 affordable- and market-rate housing units, including villas, townhouses and triplexes, and apartments for senior citizens. Completion is scheduled in 2008;
• Seaboard Station.  The old Seaboard Rail Warehouses north of Peace Street next to Peace College and Capitol Park are being converted into shops and restaurants covering a total of 113,700 square feet. The first two buildings are complete and house a new restaurant and dance hall. The Capital City Market, an 18,000-square-foot full-service grocery store, is set to open in August. The grocery story will support the growing residential development in the downtown area;
• 301/309 Hillsborough St. Reynolds Company, LLC is planning a mixed-use development on the combined site of 301 and 309 Hillsborough Street. The project would include residential units, office and retail space, a hotel and a parking deck. The Raleigh City Council voted June 20 to approve an offer to sell the City-owned office building at 301 Hillsborough St. to Reynolds for $2.8 million. The sale of the land is contingent upon the completion of an updated appraisal within six months of closing. In 2001, the City sold the company the parking lot at 309 Hillsborough St. The building at 301 Hillsborough St. houses some City government offices. Under terms of the sales agreement, Reynolds Company must meet certain deadlines regarding development of the mixed-use project or the City could exercise its option to repurchase the property at 301 and 309 Hillsborough St.;
• Contemporary Art Museum. The museum and Grubb Properties are exploring development options for the museum’s site at Harrington and Martin streets. This would be a mixed-use project that includes space for the museum and possibly office or retail space and up to 50 residential units;
• The West at North. This planned mixed-use project at West and North streets would include up to 155 residential units and 16,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space in a 12-story building;
• 222 Glenwood. Currently under construction, this project will include 117 residential units and 22,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space. Completion is scheduled for early 2008;
• Tucker Street. Construction is set to begin soon on 176 residential units, a mix of apartments and condominiums, on the old Raleigh Office Supply site at the intersection of Tucker and Boylan streets; and,
• Façade renovation. The City of Raleigh has a program that provides matching grants for façade renovation projects. Businesses and property owners in downtown and other eligible areas in Raleigh can apply for the grants. The City also has a façade grant program specifically for businesses on Fayetteville Street and some surrounding streets downtown. The façade grant program complements other City revitalization efforts and helps promote an attractive environment for new investment and business activity.

Prepared by:
John Boyette
Public Affairs Specialist
Public Affairs Department

For More Information Contact:
Mitchell Silver
Director
Planning Department
One Exchange Plaza, Suite 304
Raleigh, NC 27601
919-516-2626

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