Over on Vimeo, there is a new video showing renderings of FNB Tower. This video is pretty cool and I can’t wait to see work start on this project. This will make a dramatic change to City Plaza when finished.
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Wow that video is amazing. Well done and an awesome way to show off a rendering. Also very excited to have a solid update that does seem to solidify the fact that we will indeed be seeing this project started in December.
I will say though its pretty disappointing to see that we still wont be getting a tower in the 300ft+ range. The (crown?) structure appears to be only mere feet higher then One Progress Plaza’s 277ft peak. With that being said, i think it looks great and adds a ton of density.
I do Believe that Raleigh can sustain a Tall High Rise of 30+ stories tall. You have the Wells Fargo and PNC Tower why Not Two more tall towers ? I would be Happy with at least One good 40 stories tower in Downtown Raleigh. There is the Gateway site a Perfect location for a 30 to 40 story tall Tower.
Great video FNB!
Thank you for sharing Leo!
It may not be incredibly tall, but this building is going to change the look of the skyline in a great way. Think about how prominent Charter South from the south of downtown, and FNB will loom almost twice as tall just behind it. It’s going to be a great addition to the S. Saunders view: http://images.raleighskyline.com/images/2017/downtown-raleigh-for-april-and-may-2017/mid_spring_2017_raleighskyline.com_04.jpg
Or about 80ft taller. But i agree it’ll make a pretty good skyline impact. Just more so because of its location then height as it appears now the final number will indeed be shorter then the slightly over 300ft some of the early renderings showed.
If this building was built on top 6 or 8 floors of structured deck parking – like the PNC it would be almost as tall. I think I’d rather it be this way though…
Let it be stated that FNB wanted a bigger tower but it physically can not be taller due to the foundation (the underground parking lot). If it wasn’t for that they would have added several more stories to the tower.
Great video, agreed.
But would have like to seen:
– shots of the other side without the pool
– the signage (how cool will it light up?)
– street level action
I’m still trying to understand the layout. Is the residential portion on one side? Or just a set of floors (as PNC is). I think the residential uses one whole half of the tower (vertically) – which would be unique for the area.
Question: Why is it that Raleigh’s business community doesn’t appear to feel the need to support the city core in the way that say, ‘charlotte usa’ does? I know charlotte is the most insecure, napoleonic complex suffering town in America however their business community seems to get the value of concentrating businesses in the core of the city rather than suburbs. Ally financial just announced they will anchor a 26 story building and the company isn’t even headquartered in charlotte. Why don’t companies like Martin Marietta Materials, First Citizens Bank, Advance Auto Parts (all execs are based in Raleigh) not feel the need to help drive the economic value of the city core the way companies in charlotte or elsewhere do? Especially the likes of First Citizens Bank…come on, what Bank does not place their HQ downtown? First Citizens is the only bank of any size I can think of that isn’t headquartered in the downtown core of their home city.
Just put a sphere or crown on top to appease the masses and get over 300ft.
Something doesn’t add up though. Charter South is listed as 215 ft tall. Something scale wise is off between the Charter South and Progress Plaza.
@Daniel
Well ya gotta remember a lot of that tower is residential so even though its twice the floor count as Charter Square South the height doesnt come out to twice as tall. I did think the LEED certification if this building would help get as much height as possible out of those floors though.
Maybe the rendering in the video isnt exact scale?
Thanks for posting the link! It’s good to see this video. It was difficult for me to get a real sense of the building’s impact from previous renders.
Uncle Jesse, I share your disappointment with First Citizens, especially since they initially proposed a tower back in the 90s before building the bland campus off of Hammond Road, with a prison for a neighbor. I hold out slight hope that their leadership will one day see the value of making an impact downtown with their brand. Even the least flashy, most fiscally cautious bank in existence, SECU, built their own small tower.
I thought the First Citizens data center was on Hammond but the HQ on Six Forks…?
And you can’t really compare anything to the SECU because it’s not a bank. It’s a credit union which does not have most banking powers particularly the one where you create money. And sort of contradicting items…they do not have to win customers like a bank does because they don’t need large profits to pay dividends, so they don’t *need* a flashy HQ, yet because SECU has tons of money and no shareholders to pay, they are flush with cash and *can* build a pretty nice HQ just because…
Anyway, FNB looks nice. Really it’s building the physical case for that tall building y’all want by eating up land, and it being height restricted on its own and the business case, by making DTR that much more prominent overall.
Trent, I was referring to how much taller the FNB looks vs the 215 ft Charter South but roughly the same height as the supposed 60 ft taller Progress Plaza. Maybe Charter South is not actually 215ft tall?
A waste that they couldn’t have put a crown of some sort on to make it to 300. The positive impact of the building will be on City Plaza though. It will make the immediate surroundings to the convention center feel much denser.
Great video. Exciting to see for sure. The pool scene is funny with all the buildings in the back ground.. reality would be nothing there but the roofs of houses and trees.
@TheNightHawk – I got a kick out of that too. The whole thing is pretty accurate and then BAM all the sudden we’re in Brooklyn hahaha
Mark, good points. I stand corrected about the First Citizens data center; I think you’re right about that. I think their technical HQ may still be at 239 Fayetteville. Also, thanks for clarifying some of the differences between SECU and a bank. It is a bit counterintuitive that SECU built a tower and First Citizens didn’t.
The F.N.B situation reminds me of the original RBC Plaza announcement (on a smaller scale, of course), which seemed to come out of the blue. I’ll be glad to see Charter North finally go up.
I got a chuckle out of that as well, NightHawk. I figured it must be a shot projecting the year 2037. At that time they’ve developed an area called “East Hills”. Because in 2037 it’s still frustratingly slow getting big projects downtown.
Seriously though, I like the project. In fairness, we do seem to have some good movement at several downtown locations. I think what we hoped for in the early 2000’s is now coming into being.
Remember the height is limited due to a deck underground already to support Charter & Charter North sites that the City paid for. As of today no site, construction plans, or building permits have been submitted for review so they better get to work or there will be a skating rink still at the site in December.
There will be a nice wedge of focused sunlight at noon. On part of the pool in summer, on Charter Square in winter. I think some north-facing offices in the south tower will be a little brighter.
I believe the proposed height for the FNB tower is 290 feet.
Umlaut, I see what you mean. The glass these days is so advanced it reflects a large portion of solar radiation, which is great for people in the building, but maybe not so much for the pool deck that will get hit with two reflections at once. Might be a heated pool huh.
So when does construction start?
First Citizens “headquarters’ is NOT on fayetteville street or even downtown. The HQ is in North Hills. It’s the old BTI building….ugh
so they can cgi their building in, but they can’t finish the train station or Dillon for the vid?
Well… The video is for the FNB building, not downtown as a whole. Not sure it makes much sense for them to pay for CGI for non-related buildings that are owned by different entities.
One thing the video really illustrated was the opportunity at the Lincoln Theater parking lot.
@Steve, I’ll pile onto your comment. The entire block to the east of this project is one of Raleigh’s biggest opportunities, yet its parcels are currently zoned so “short” that its future impact is diminished. One more block to the east and it’s zoned for just 3 stories. Seriously? So, two blocks from Fayetteville Street (the very center of the city) and we build shorter than in Glenwood South???? It makes no sense.
DT needs the ability to expand and it’s mapped to hem it in and protect single family neighborhoods. While I appreciate that change is a struggle, we could be killing our city’s ability to grow and mature to cater to immediately adjacent single family neighborhoods as sacred cows. For homeowners there, their future displacement would likely come with a huge golden parachute that would allow them to continue to stay adjacent to DT by moving a few blocks and allowing the city center to grow.
The parking lot to the east loomed large in the video for me. Anything that goes here or further east would have a big impact on the neighborhoods in the area (positive or negative). Displacement could be significant and without protections, future development will not likely provide housing for the people that live here.
I’m very impressed with the video. It’s definitely a statement piece and I’m excited to see it get approved and begin construction.
The Lincoln theater is such a Raleigh staple, and really the best mid size venue in the triangle… I hope the future development on that block preserves it. The street level experience could really benefit from cabarus street having retail alongside Lincoln theater.
People have always been displaced when downtowns grow. It’s always happened and always will. Some of those houses just to the east are worth 170-180 per sq foot. The people living there if displaced would make out very well.
Evan, Lincoln Theater is a historic landmark and should definitely be preserved.
Why do so many people (including BC above) bring up the skating rink going away when every plan I’ve seen still shows the astroturf, even THIS VERY video. I’m not saying I’m sure it won’t, but I haven’t seen evidence of it going away. And when you walk by, it’s obvious that it isn’t part of that building’s footprint.
Evan-I agree. I think it’s possible to preserve the Lincoln and develop the block. There is enough room on the west side of that block for a PNC-scale project (not that we’ll get that, but one can dream/hope. John532 already described the zoning issues).
On the topic of FNB, during the cooler times of the year that deck could at times be the best outdoor spot in the city.
I think it would be a shame for the Lincoln Theatre and Pope House to prevent something fantastic to develop on that block.
@BC @Paul @Andy, Construction is set to begin the first week in February. Even though construction won’t have started, the skating rink will not be there this winter. It may not be there from here on out as well..
There’s plenty of land to develop something fantastic in DTR including the surface space of this lot. For many, Lincoln theater is something fantastic, and destroying it would be a huge blunder. If Lundy can preserve the flying saucer, the Lincoln can be preserved as well.
The Pope House almost certainly could be moved. Many similar structures have been moved. The Lincoln should be protected though, definitely. 3/4ths of the block can be highrises without touching it. More than plenty.
Daniel,
I suspect that many of those people living in that area of East Raleigh are renters, so they will not make out well. The landlords will.
As someone who has been to Lincoln 20 or more times, I’ve never understood the love for that place. Other than nostalgia, its not that great of a venue. In fact, it’s kind Of a dump. Much prefer the Ritz for a intimate indoor venue.
Daniel, not to speak poorly of your ears or sonic preferences, but the Ritz is a terrible sounding venue, especially compared to Lincoln. I’ve heard this from many people, not just my opinion.
I’ll qualify this by saying Lincoln was built in the 30’s as a theater and was designed to project sound whereas the Ritz is a 60’s warehouse converted into venue. I’ve never looked up the history of Lincoln theater until now, and it’s pretty interesting.
https://www.theclio.com/web/entry?id=22234
Evan, I’ve been to both many many times and there’s not a noticeable difference in the acoustics. I’ve never left The Ritz thinking it sounded poor. If I blindfolded you and put you in a concert I’m not sure you could tell me which you were in. I get a lot of people like Lincoln but as far as acoustics…..not buying that.
I’d just move the Pope House to a spot adjacent to Lincoln. It’d be similar to how City Market had that house moved next to where Subway now is. It still be almost in it’s historical context, Cabarrus St would have a nice historic scale and feel along a good little stretch there and the rest of the lot is primed for something bigger. Lincoln is great and should be kept (that link, Evan, has a terrible error though…it has a picture of the Royal Theater on Hargett St where it says Lincoln in the 1940’s…just saying)
Louis, where did the first week of February come from? I thought it was slated for December groundbreaking. Also, couldn’t care less about the skating rink since I can’t ice skate ;-)
Yea, the Lincoln is kind of a dump aesthetically speaking but the sound and sightlines are still much better than the Ritz. The Ritz is also ~double the capacity of the Lincoln, so I feel like the Lincoln is much more intimate. There’s a time and place for each, though, and happy that we have both of these venues.
Has anyone seen the article about wood construction skyscrapers? Its pretty intresting to read, especially since everyone was talking about what the future of wooden structures in urban areas would be after the fire of the metropolitan. Below is the link. Thoughts?
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/apos-timberscrapers-apos-could-soon-180000098.html
I think the critical failures will be the fault of the resins. Their toxicity aside, what happens if the resin on your building core starts to fail. The twin towers were designed to last 1000 years. No set of glued together yellow pine 2X4s will stay standing even 10 stories for that long…the material fatigue rate seems like it’d be much higher than steel or reinforced concrete. Maybe someone can lay their hands on some research and clarify a little…but beyond fire concerns, that is my knee jerk concern….long term strength.
One of the most sustainable buildings in the world, The Bullitt center in Seattle, was framed with FSC certified heavy timber. They had to make a case and prove to the local code enforcement that these douglas fir beams are structurally equivalent to EWP/steel counterparts and that they are less fire prone than general perception. It’s only a 6 story building, but interesting anecdote.
http://www.bullittcenter.org