Pic of the Week

The Willard hotel, or the AC Hotel, on Glenwood is nearing completion. Sidewalk pavers were being installed this past weekend and the place is nicely lit up at night. You can even make reservations on the Marriott website.

The 146-room hotel is missing it’s name though. “The Willard” must have been a local name for the construction project but Marriott seems to prefer “AC Hotel Raleigh Downtown” going forward. It’s a great location though and I’m sure visitors staying here will have a fun time.

Pic of the Week

Hotel building is still taking place in downtown Raleigh. I feel like The Willard, being built along Glenwood Avenue at the corner with Willard Place, was funded right before the pandemic really hit. This project has been moving throughout the year and is starting to show some height.

The rooms overlooking the street will have a great view of downtown. I’m pretty excited about this one to be honest.

Checking out the Recent Demolition work Near Nash Square

The block to the south of Nash Square, think Whiskey Kitchen, The Berkeley Cafe, and the former Firestone Auto, is looking a bit more airy these days. Bloc 122 (for the history buffs out there) has had plans for a pair of hotels in the works for awhile and demolition of the existing buildings look nearly complete.

Shown above is the southeast corner of Martin and Dawson Streets. The former buildings have been leveled and are now being shoveled away.

Past submitted plans suggest a nine-story hotel with outdoor terrace on the fourth floor. There haven’t been any announcements as to which hotel brand the building may be.

On the opposite corner of the block, the northwest corner of Davie and McDowell Streets has also been cleared out. Here, we’ve seen multiple renderings for a hotel and maybe that project will finally start in the near future.

You can jump back here to review the latest on this but the latest plans were for a 14-story hotel. This project has been around for over five years so maybe, just maybe it’ll start soon. The brands for this hotel were to be a Hilton Garden Inn & Homewood Suites.

And while not quite demolition related, I wanted to throw up more photos of this block. As the former Firestone Auto has closed up, it’s left a little bit of a hole here especially with the removal of that classic sign.

We’re tracking these developments on the Community so follow along if you want to join in on the discussion.

Long Live Longleaf. Longleaf Hotel Now Open

The travelodge at Dawson and Lane is now in it’s next concept. The Longleaf Hotel is now open and taking reservations. Locals can also hang at the Longleaf Lounge for beers and cocktails either inside or outside on the patio.

The 57-room hotel building was formerly a Days Inn. Now, the hotel has come under Raleigh-based Loden Properties.

The second thing to look forward to here is Ish Delicatessen, the restaurant that will go right next door. At first, a renovation of the former deli space was planned but later it was decided to demolish the building and make more space for it.

Follow Ish Delicatessen on Instagram.

It’ll definitely be something to look forward to. Encourage visitors to consider a stay at the Longleaf!

Rendering for Downtown’s Home 2 & Tru Hotel

This month, the appearance commission will be discussing a proposed hotel for the corner of Lenoir and Wilmington Streets. Spying the agenda, we see some renderings and floorplans of the new 12-story building. It looks like a combined Hilton-branded Home2 & Tru hotel.

The bottom “half” is basically parking space with the hotel rooms above an amenity floor. The amenity floor is making space for things like an outdoor terrace, pool, fitness area, and conference rooms.

Duda Paine, also known for The Dillon, are the architects on this project. You may have heard of Narsi Properties, the owner and developer, as they have multiple hotel projects around the triangle.

It’s been years in the works on this one it seems so let’s hope for construction soon as downtown has a big need for more hotel rooms.

Pic of the Week

It’s time to check in on the Origin Hotel that was going up at the end of Glenwood Avenue, at Morgan Street. The exterior looks almost finished and the sidewalks are pretty much open now. Seems the hotel is close to hosting visitors.

While their website is up, the reservations button doesn’t work just yet. It’s been nice to see the upgraded streetlights here at Glenwood and Morgan and with One Glenwood across the street finished, there’s a whole new feel to the southern end of Glenwood Avenue.

Pic of the Week

Origin Hotel construction along Morgan Street. March 2019

The Origin hotel on Morgan Street is close to topping out. Blocking a substantially large parking deck, the hotel creates a nice bookend to Glenwood Avenue.

Once Dram and Draught gets going at the corner of Morgan and Glenwood here and other active retail opens up nearby, this intersection may be a good southern starting point to a Glenwood South nightlife walk.