Author / Leo Suarez

by Leo Suarez

The Omni Hotel, Street-Level Deep Dive

Rendering of the Omni Hotel Raleigh

The Omni Hotel, planned for the southern end of Fayetteville Street, is going through the Design Review process. With that, we can peep some early plans to get an idea of what we’re getting at the street-level. There’s plenty here if you’re into proposed architectural plans of a building but I’m going to focus on the street-level elements and spaces. It’s a mixed bag from what I see but it’s probably what we should expect from a single-use tower focused mainly on visitors. Let’s take a look at each side and what the plans tell us at this point in time.

Continue reading →
by Leo Suarez

Construction For New Bern BRT Imminent as Project Phases are Bid Out

The long wait for construction to begin on the New Bern Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor may finally be over. The “groundbreaking” ceremony happened back in November 2023, and now, almost two years later, transit fans like you and me are still waiting for something to happen. There’s plenty written about the challenges of finding contractors who could do the work within budget, but the city has finally found a path forward. This fall, construction should kick off on the first package of project deliverables. Let’s go through what we might expect over the next few years.

Continue reading →
by Leo Suarez

NC History Museum Renovation is in Full Swing

The North Carolina History Museum is all fenced up and renovations are underway for what will be a pretty major facelift to the inside and exterior of the building. The state is pumping around $180 million into the project and outdoor plaza and will really look modern when it’s done. Just take a look at this rendering to see the new museum.

Continue reading →
by Leo Suarez

Pic of the Week

The reno over at 15 North West Street looks complete and we have an empty shell of building ready for someone to transform. The project being called Garden West has about 10,000 square feet of space for offices, shops, or restaurant uses. It’s a pretty unique location with a central location yet tucked in a “nook” where you get trees on two sides. The future uses could range quite a bit.

Continue reading →
by Leo Suarez

Pic of the Week

The city’s new City Hall is getting some layers. The precast outer pieces are being put in place and glass windows are going in too. It looks like, in this photo, that crews are up to the 13th floor. Just a few more to go I think until this one tops out. Could it happen before the end of the year? We’ll see.

Make sure to follow the progress on the city’s website and then join the banter on The Community.

by Leo Suarez

Raleigh Union Station Bus Facility Is Now Complete

In July 2025, the ribbon was cut on the new bus station at Raleigh Union Station. There’s a rumor, or hope, that it gets a better name in the future but at least the IRL stuff is very nice. In August, bus service started running out of the station and just this week, the signature piece of art was installed. All that’s left is for a blog post on this website to cap off this project (kidding) so let’s get into it with some photos to compliment the video from GoTriangle, embedded above. (YouTube link)

Continue reading →
by Leo Suarez

Pic of the Week

Are you sad that Cardinal Bikeshare is no more? Of course, you’re not. Like me, I’m not sure anyone is sad to see it go as it was more trouble than it was worth and those bikes were just falling apart. The former docked bikeshare system has already been removed and we now have dockless bicycles from Lime and Spin. It’s a shame as I was super excited when the system rolled out back in 2018 but I’ve since moved on.

Continue reading →
by Leo Suarez

The Depot Lives On with New Mixed-Use Development

Rendering of the development announced by LODEN properties.

This is an exciting one and all of us (well, one of us) at DTRaleigh HQ are crossing all our fingers and praying that this Summer’s announcement for The Depot takes place. LODEN Properties have announced plans for a mixed-use development alongside the historic Depot site, flipping that surface parking lot into places for people instead of cars. (minus the parking deck of course) It’s sure to bring new life and vibrancy to the area and the renderings show real promise.

Continue reading →