Category / New Construction

by Leo Suarez

Thoughts On City Plaza

I want to get some reader feedback on this one. Maybe it is just me but I do not see as much chatter on this subject. Construction has started and a year from now Fayetteville St. will be complete. City Plaza could be the heart of the street from a pedestrian perspective.

With four retail spaces and some art work, this area should be a huge draw for those passing by. I think outdoor seating is very much needed here as this area has the potential for the best people watching in downtown.

It is unfortunate that it was not completed when the convention center opened. However looking at the big picture, when finished, it will add to the “cool” factor of Fayetteville St. After the construction is over, the next priority is having businesses playing with night and weekend hours.

What kind of things do you want to be in the retail spaces in City Plaza?


Before


After

by Leo Suarez

Green Square Construction Shows Life

Almost six months after the demolition of the old NC DOT building on McDowell St., work on the Green Square project is finally getting started. It is nothing exciting yet but it is better then a pile of dirt or a huge, vacant hole in the ground (should I give examples?). Behind a long green monster wall, it looks like foundation work is taking place at the moment.

For a recap on the project and a view of the old buildings that were here, this post is a must read.

When completed Green Square will consist of:
• Headquarters for the NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources
• The Nature Research Center, an expansion of the NC Museum of Natural Sciences
• Visitor and employee parking deck
• Retail store and restaurant

Any artists in the audience want to tag up the green wall? Something like this maybe?

by Leo Suarez

City Plaza Work Beginning

The groundbreaking of city plaza will be very soon and there are signs of work happening just beyond the planters that dead end Fayetteville Street’s 400 block.

Construction fencing around the area

Temporary pedestrian walkways are being put in place

The plaza will finally finish off Fayetteville Street and car traffic will freely flow from Morgan to Lenoir. The plans on the city’s website do not show any parking on this block and that will help create a lively area with pedestrians. I’m hoping that the street is also flush with the sidewalks as that will also make the area feel like it is more for foot traffic.

I find it interesting that plans for street concerts are still being considered for city plaza. Is this really needed after it is completed? I propose that concerts on Fayetteville St. be moved up one more block to what is referred to as Sites 2 and 3; the parking lots between Lenoir and South St. in front of the Performing Arts Center. Are the couple hundred spaces here really needed when, upon completion, the 1500+ spaces underneath the Marriott and Charter Square will be available soon? Do not forget the convention center parking deck and Progress Energy parking deck too.

by Leo Suarez

Project Highlight: Charter Square

Charter Square will consist of two towers located on the southern end of Fayetteville St. across from the new Marriott Hotel. You can thank Craig Davis Properties for these beauties as they will have, from their website [Update: Broken link]:

…two towers, constructed of natural stone and glass. Building One will consist of approximately 405,000 square feet of office, retail and residential space on 21 floors. Building Two will consist of 30,000 square feet of retail space with 120 residential units above the retail. The buildings will sit atop a 690 space underground, city operated parking deck and approximately 600 spaces will be reserved for the building’s office tenants. The towers will be adjacent to Raleigh’s new convention center, as well as numerous restaurants, retail and cultural venues.

The underground parking deck is currently under construction so until then we can enjoy these renderings of Raleigh’s front row.


North tower


South tower

by Leo Suarez

Shimmer Wall Video

The shimmer wall was officially turned on last night and there was a party held on Cabarrus St. to see the lighting. I’m, for the most part, always pretty positive about things in downtown Raleigh but I was disappointed in what I saw.

I later found out that the shimmer wall looks great if you are close up. Walking down McDowell St. you can really see the lights pop. However, if you walk one block west, for example, the colors are faded and it also looks like there is a dead zone near the top.

We still love Cree for the donation but from talking to people out at the event last night, the consensus was disappointment.

Thanks to Proactive Busybody and The Kitch for contributing.

by Leo Suarez

Lots of RTN Video For Your Labor Day Staycation

For those of you leaving town this weekend, you are excused from this exercise. For the rest of the DT Raleigh staycationers that want more online Raleigh material, there are lots of videos on the Raleigh city website for your viewing pleasure. The video of the month contains lots of videos for the month of August. You can get some information about the convention center, Raleigh Wide Open, and the shimmer wall to name a few topics. This will prepare you for the week ahead. I’m sure you can guess what we will be talking about in the coming days right?

Video of the month page – RaleighNC.gov

Note: Videos work much better in Internet Explorer.