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Last night was the launch party for The Dillon. Outside of the local beer, food, and networking this model may have been the highlight. When you stare at the current Dillon Supply warehouse in the bottom left of the photo it gives you a sense of the real size of this project.
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Municipography is a summary of current issues going through the Raleigh City Council and other municipal departments in the city. The point is to try to deliver any video, photos, and text associated with the discussions happening at City Hall or elsewhere. Since this is a downtown Raleigh blog, the focus is on the center of the city.
Downtown Hotel Parking Requirements
If the video above does not show for you, click here to watch it.
If the development of hotels in downtown Raleigh is of interest to you then you first need to jump back to this October 2015 post about the Downtown Hotel Market Study. (if you haven’t seen it already)
A point from that study that was discussed at this council meeting was the fact that the hotel parking requirements in downtown were the same as the rest of the city. One parking space was required for each hotel room built. However, with higher land prices and alternative transit options, that need was recommended to be too high and the city should explore reducing it.
From the council agenda:
At the October 20, 2015 meeting, City Council directed staff to investigate reducing parking requirements for downtown hotels in response to a recommendation presented as part of the Raleigh Downtown Hotel Market Study. The current requirement downtown is the same as the citywide standard: one parking space per room. Staff analysis finds that the parking requirement can be reduced by half or more without adverse impact, which would greatly improve the economics of downtown hotel development.
In the video above, there was some discussion among the council about sending this piece to the planning commission for a recommendation.
Councilor Mary-Ann Baldwin wanted the planning commission to explore reducing it to more than half. Councilor Bonner Gaylord even wanted to expand the reduction to other property types. Councilor Kay Crowder suggested that a trial be done first before implementing the changes.
The main takeaway from the discussion was that these reductions are a move that supports mass transit. With momentum building for the new Wake County Transit Plan and a possible referendum this year in order to finance this transit plan, the reduction in parking would further support these initiatives.
City Manager Ruffin Hall mentioned that a downtown comprehensive parking study was underway, looking at hotel parking and other uses so more data will be available in the near future.
It was decided that the request to planning commission would be only on the hotels parking piece rather than all parking due to the fact that some hotels are being planned in the immediate future. They might benefit from a quicker decision rather than wait for a complete parking strategy overhaul for downtown.
We’ll follow this next in planning commission.
GoRaleigh (formerly Moore Square) Transit Station Renovation
No video is attached to this one as this line item was in the consent agenda and approved during the council meeting without discussion. From the agenda:
Bids were opened for the GoRaleigh (formerly Moore Square) Transit Station Renovation Project December 3, 2015. The GoRaleigh Transit Station project will provide a comprehensive renovation to the Downtown Raleigh Transit Transfer Facility. Improvements will include but are not limited to new restrooms, crew quarters, northern stairwell, elevator, and ticket/information office. The facility will have enhanced passenger waiting areas and advanced technologies for customer convenience, such as Wi-Fi-access and real-time arrival and departure information. American South General Contractors Company submitted the lowest responsive bid of $9,560,000; the proposed award contains the addition of five alternates with a final proposed bid award of $9,671,000. American South General Contractors Company submitted the lowest base bid and remained the lowest bidder when factoring the alternate options. American South Contractors Company proposes to utilize 9.9 percent Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) and 15.5 percent Small Disadvantage Minority and Women Owen Business (SDMWOB) firms. The Raleigh Transit Authority unanimously recommended this bid award during the December 10,2015 meeting.
I missed the renaming of the Moore Square Transit Station to the GoRaleigh Transit Station. I’m not surprised as the new branding is being pushed pretty hard throughout the system.
The overhaul of this station will be pretty extensive and could start this year. For more, here are two links for you as well as a rendering of the completed station below:
Just like I mentioned in my 2015 wrap-up, I think transit will be a big discussion point this year. Parking, as always, is a integral part of that also.
I have a lot to look back on this year. Personally, in 2015 I saw major changes in my workplace and my family grew from a pair to a trio. On the web, the blog has been covering a good balance of currently under construction projects as well as ones in the planning phases.
I’ve found that transit and developments are my go-to topics. I enjoy following the downtown eats scene as well. I want to try and share a little more history in 2016 and not just old photos. Trends are important to point out and with Raleigh changing so fast, important facts from history as recent as a decade ago could be relevant.
Let’s recap on a few things we talked about this year and how it’ll lead into the next.
Transit
2016 could be the year that Wake County gets more serious about mass transit. With a new plan in place, created through an extensive public feedback process in 2015, we have our strongest proposal yet to ask residents of the county to tax themselves in order to pay for this new transit plan. It is expected that our county commissioners will propose a half-cent sales tax increase, dedicated to transit, to be added to the November 2016 ballot.
According to the plan, downtown Raleigh is a major hub of higher-frequency buses. New and improved routes would be set in place as well as an increase in destinations compared to our current network. The Moore Square Transit Station should be quite busy.
Speaking of Moore Square, the bus facility there should be getting a major face lift. Still in the planning stages, the upgrade of Raleigh’s busiest bus terminal will hopefully move forward in 2016.
Along with Moore Square, Raleigh Union Station should begin construction in 2016. Not only is the expansion of the train station needed for Amtrak but also for the proposed commuter rail line that may happen as part of the previously mentioned transit plan.
All of this will take place with more planning for bicycle facilities throughout the city. The 2009 Bicycle Plan is getting an update. (more on this soon)
Expect this blog to be very pro-transit in 2016.
Cranes are a-coming
2015 had a few developments in the works but there were also some new ones to follow that worked their way through the approval process. In 2016, we may see cranes in the air for these new buildings.
The Lincoln, Skyhouse Raleigh, Elan City Center, and The L were all completed in 2015. These buildings add several hundred new apartment units to the downtown supply. That’s not all though as we have plenty coming down the pipe.
That’s several hundred more apartments being built and ready to be opened next year. In the planning phases are apartments as part of The Dillon, Greyhound Apartments, and the north tower of Charter Square.
Outside of residential developments, some taller structures containing offices or hotels may be breaking ground in 2016. Those to look out for is the main structure of The Dillon, a 17-story tower in the warehouse district. Charter Square North is planned to be a 22-story mixed-use building with offices and residential. Maybe it will break ground in 2016?
Other notable projects are The Edison Office tower and Narsi Hotel, a 12-story building for the corner of Lenoir and Wilmington Streets. In 2015, these projects worked their way through the planning process so we’ll continue to follow them into 2016.
As mentioned recently, construction on the Residence Inn hotel near the convention center has started.
Personally, I’ll be interested to see what comes out of the work being put into the 301 Hillsborough site and the N&O block. I expect to see lots of planning take place in 2016 for these sites.
One last mention, kind of long shot but perhaps something interesting could happen, is Project Phoenix, the North Carolina governor’s plans for bringing development to the state government complex. Nothing sounds concrete yet from what I’ve read but the idea of turning the expansive complex into a more mixed-use environment would be a fantastic benefit to downtown Raleigh, essentially growing the footprint of interactive space.
Reader Favorites
They may not be favorites but they at least got the most web traffic. Here are the top five posts of 2015.
Readers shattered my single day page view record this year. It was on the topic of the sidewalk seating ordinance, an emotionally charged and even political topic of the year.
The elections of 2015 can only be described as DrunkTown. I hope to look back on this debate years from now and just laugh.
To close, I end with one bold prediction for 2016: The R-Line makes it’s last loop around downtown Raleigh.
Happy New Year! ;)
I apologize for the bad quality photo but this was more a drive-by snap. Foundation work is starting on the Residence Inn on Salisbury Street and I wanted to throw up this quick post to show that this project is now underway.
First Night Raleigh
The Raleigh Connoisseur is a media sponsor for First Night Raleigh 2016
This year’s First Night Raleigh is set up to be a good one. The theme is “Celebrating North Carolina Firsts” which will include popular and lesser known facts about our state.
Organized by Artsplosure all throughout the year, the event will have something for everyone. Typically drawing over 40,000 people, with a record of 80,000 in 2012, First Night is built on a foundation of Celebration, Community, the New Year, and the Arts.
Everything starts at 2pm at the N.C. Museum of History, N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences and on the Bicentennial Plaza with the Children’s Celebration. Things really get going with the main stage performances at 5pm and tons of other activities all over downtown Raleigh up until the countdown to midnight.
As always, you can’t miss out on seeing the giant acorn get dropped. It’s kind of our city’s thing, along with a spectacular fireworks display. There will be a drop at both 7pm, to accommodate families with young children, and then the finale at midnight.
What isn’t different about First Night Raleigh year-to-year is that we always make sure that everything that we do is something that our whole community can have access to and enjoy. That’s our mission each year and our ultimate goal is that this event is as inclusive of all members of our community as possible.
Raleigh’s biggest New Year’s Eve celebration will bring back some favorites as well as mix in some new experiences. The 90-foot Ferris wheel is always a big draw as well as ballroom dancing in the Sir Walter Ballroom and the People’s Procession. If you want more of a thrill, The Sizzler may be more your speed.
I’m looking forward to Art Putt, a nine-hole miniature golf course created by local artists in the City Market Building. Appropriate as North Carolina is the home to the first putt-putt course. Each course will also highlight another North Carolina first including our #1 in the world salamander diversity and the state’s first gold rush.
Performances during the evening portion of the night include:
Click here to see the entire list of performances planned for First Night 2016.
If you have a smartphone, you can get the free First Night Raleigh app for iOS and Android. It’s a great way to plan your night, showing you a list of events and an interactive map that you can add to an itinerary so you won’t miss anything.
Tickets are $10 in advance and you can purchase them now. VIP passes are also available.
When planning your trip into downtown Raleigh, make sure to consider the free park-and-ride locations. One at the NCSU Park and Ride Lot and another at the Wake County Government Office Park, GoRaleigh will be running buses back and forth between 6pm and 1am during First Night. Parking in downtown Raleigh will cost $5 in most parking decks, hourly rates in others.
Date/Time: Thurs., Dec. 31 from 2 p.m. to 12 a.m.
Downtown Raleigh
www.FirstNightRaleigh.com
In case you haven’t seen it, the facade upgrade on One Hanover Square is finished. The columns from the previous build were removed and the outdoor space feels much larger. It gives City Plaza a modern feel as it more matches the renovations that took place to the plaza, especially the light towers.
600 Block of South Salisbury Street
A construction trailer is set up across the street from the future Residence Inn site at approximately 600 South Salisbury Street. Could we start seeing site clearing soon to make way for the new hotel?
Hat tip to the RalCon commenters for pointing this out.
Exchange Plaza, December 2015
The overhaul of Market and Exchange plazas started in the Spring of 2015 and this project is hopefully nearing completion. Taking a looksee recently though, the plazas might not be ready for New Year’s. It would have been a nice bonus to be done before First Night but I’m sure plenty of events will take advantage of the new plazas next year.
Exchange Plaza (shown above) still has crew workers digging and most of the sitting wall hasn’t been installed yet. There’s better news for Market Plaza (shown below) as it really is starting to look like its renderings.
Market Plaza, December 2015
I’m really looking forward to these spaces being activated and creating new uses that weren’t taking place before.