Category / Planning DT Raleigh

by Leo Suarez

Stone’s Warehouse and Affordable Housing

Stone's Warehouse

Stone’s Warehouse, photo taken December 2014

Just outside of downtown Raleigh is a site that’s getting a lot of attention lately. The block containing what is called Stone’s Warehouse at 500 East Davie Street could see a major renovation and new development in the near future.

This city-owned property could be sold soon and transformed into a destination for a mix of uses. I wanted to introduce this project as well as dive into the current topic of affordable housing, a criteria the city has listed for potential developers of the site to comply with.

Stone’s Warehouse
An old bus repair shop, the warehouse has been around since about the mid-1920s. The Carolina Coach Garage and Shop outgrew the space and moved out in 1939. After a variety of uses, it was eventually acquired by the city in 2001 and has been empty since.

View on Google Maps

In addition to the empty warehouse, the site also includes the currently open Rex Senior Health Center. The parking lot and some open land rounds out the rest of the site.

The city has slowly acquired the majority of the block, not including a few houses on the southern end. They intend to use it for community development and have put the site up for sale to developers. A long list of criteria has been put together and today we have three developers in the running for the sale of the site based on their proposals.

According to an article in the N&O, here are some of the details of each plan:

  • Transfer Company LLC plans for a grocery store, cafe, and a community hall with space for small food producers. They would build a 13,000 square foot building for additional food/drink space and a row of 16 market-rate townhomes. The proposal states that it would assist with the moving of the Rex Senior Health Center.
  • AACRE plans for a five-story, 200-unit apartment building with 300-space parking deck. The renovated warehouse would have a grocery store in it and the health center would remain although in a smaller space. 10-20 apartments would qualify as affordable housing.
  • Empire Properties plans for an “Entrepreneurs’ Village.” This would consist of the Exploris Charter School (currently looking for a home for their elementary school), a medical office, a museum, and an “intimate acoustic music hall” called The Garage. 49 apartments would be added with 15 qualifying for affordable housing.

As of this writing, Raleigh city staff and the Budget and Economic Development (BED) Committee recommend that the proposal by Transfer Company LLC be selected for the site.

For more reading see these articles:

Affordable Housing and the Scattered Site Policy
The most controversial and discussed topic with Stone’s Warehouse, and sometimes with downtown Raleigh in general, seems to be the affordable housing topic. Take note that the BED committee recommended a plan that does not include affordable housing.

I think we first have to recognize that the term “affordable housing” means different things to various people. The first place I looked for a definition is our city’s adopted 2030 Comprehensive Plan which explains it nicely.

The terms “affordable housing” and “workforce housing” mean different things to different people, and a variety of definitions have been advanced by various groups. For the purposes of this plan, housing is “affordable” if the cost of occupying it does not consume more than 30 percent of household income—the definition promulgated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). HUD defines housing costs as contract rent plus utilities for renters, and monthly payment (mortgage plus taxes and insurance) for owners. Affordable housing refers to housing affordable to households with incomes at or below 80 percent of the HUD-estimated Area Median Income (AMI) for owners, and 60 percent for renters. Workforce housing is generally thought of as housing affordable to essential public- and service-sector employees such as teachers, fire fighters and nurses. It is defined here as housing affordable to households with incomes up to 120 percent of AMI. As of February 2012, the HUD-determined AMI for a family of four in Raleigh is $79,900.

I hear a lot of commenters on this blog, people around town, in the media, all over say that affordable housing is important. But which one do they actually mean? We have:

  • Affordable Housing – Typically using government subsidies to reduce the price of the home below market rates so that individuals/familes earning 80% less of the AMI can own, 60% less can rent.
  • Housing that is affordable – Market rate homes that do “not consume more than 30 percent of household income” according to the 2030 comprehensive plan.

Both may or may not be related. The housing section of the 2030 Comprehensive Plan has a lot more on this and should be your next stop for more information.

Now that we’ve defined affordable housing, what about policies that help guide where affordable housing should be placed in the city? The City of Raleigh’s Scattered Site Policy was created to help guide this. It identifies high and low priority areas where affordable housing is needed. It is a guide in order to avoid clustering too much affordable housing in one area.

As recently as early 2014, the policy was under review. The Raleigh Public Record has a write up, including a map, about the conversations that took place.

Areas of the city are broken up into four priorities: Priority One being areas are those that lack affordable housing; Priority Four areas have heavy concentrations of low-income and minority residents.

*Council Wants More Data for Affordable Housing Policy

*NOTE: As of this writing, the page on the city’s website for the policy has been taken down and I can’t find the policy listed.

The Scattered Site Policy is mentioned several times in the 2030 Comprehensive Plan. Updates to it should certainly be looked at but following it is a strong recommendation of the plan.

How is Raleigh Doing?
We have some figures here in order to make some generalizations. Using the 2012 data point of $79,900 AMI for a Raleigh family of four, we have:

  • 120% AMI = $95,880
  • AMI = $79,900
  • 80% AMI = $63,920
  • 60% AMI = $47,940

I see this as kind of a range here in order to give us some context with the definition of what is and isn’t affordable. At the same time though, more detail is probably needed to account for taxes and of course everyone’s situation is different. 30% of the $79,900 figure is $23,970, or $1997.50 a month. Is the message that a $1900 a month mortgage payment is affordable to a family of four pulling in $79,900? More details are definitely needed. (for a follow up post perhaps)

When it comes to the locations of affordable housing in Raleigh, there is some data available showing the mapped locations. I’ve had a list of sites in Raleigh which include Raleigh Housing Authority developments, HUD subsidized projects, and NC Housing Finance Agency projects. I went ahead and mapped them which you can see below.

NOTE: Data is dated December 2013. City-owned rentals are not included in this map. Some projects may also be paid off and are no longer considered affordable.

Another map to show is this one below, showing subsidized affordable rentals on top of the scattered site policy. This map is dated December 2013 and shows the entire city. For finer viewing, I recommend downloading the pdf.

2013 Raleigh Scattered Site Policy map

Click for larger. Download the pdf for even larger.

So with all this presented, here is the controversy. The adopted Scattered Site Policy is not being followed. The maps show a higher concentration of affordable housing projects in the low priority areas and very few units in high priority areas.

For Raleigh to be a diverse city with as much equal access across a variety of socioeconomic lines, a quality of a true 21st-century city by the way, communities of mixed-income must exist.

Adding market rate housing to an area of low-income is not something that should be avoided especially when it isn’t displacing anyone. Adding affordable housing to an area where there is little or none (priority 1) should be the bigger priority and real controversy.

How can Raleigh find the discipline to push against the trend as the city council approves again and again more affordable housing in priority 3 and 4 areas of Raleigh?

Back to Stone’s Warehouse

Let’s swing back to Stone’s Warehouse.

There’s a strong argument for the need for more housing that is affordable in our city. The comprehensive plan proves the demand and how the amount of residents burdened by housing costs has been rising over the last few decades.

However, demanding that affordable housing be included with all projects at the expense of nearby incomes is short-sighted. To create truly mixed-use, mixed-income communities Raleigh should place higher priority on delivering services, amenities that don’t exist.

Stone's Warehouse on Davie Street

That’s not a blanket statement, sure, but let me paraphrase a woman I heard at a South Central CAC meeting that stood up and kindly commented about the Stone’s Warehouse presentation.

More housing? I feel like we’ve got plenty of housing. We need retail and economic development in our neighborhood.

Stone’s Warehouse is in the middle of a sea of affordable housing projects. It’s also in the middle of a food desert. With a potential grocery store at the site, it’s possible nearby residents would benefit from access to healthy food, a close location, and possibly a nearby job.

With the warehouse being saved, the project should draw huge respect from the neighborhood for the efforts to save the history. Economic development could bring an even more impactful benefit compared to affordable housing at Stone’s Warehouse. Let’s not let a hot, politically-charged topic sway the real need in this location.

by Leo Suarez

Video: Wake Transit Plan Kick Off Meeting

Wake Transit Plan Kick Off Meeting on YouTube

I just wanted to share this real quick. Here’s the video from this week’s transit meeting that took place at the Raleigh Convention Center. It was a great presentation by Jarrett Walker and I encourage readers to watch the whole thing.

In addition, you can follow the planning process at Wake Transit and it should wrap up this summer.

by Leo Suarez

Downtown Raleigh Hotel Scene Being Looked at in Upcoming Study

The Hampton Inn in Glenwood South

The Hampton Inn in Glenwood South

During this week’s Raleigh City Council meeting, money was approved to go towards a Downtown Hotel Market Feasibility Study. The city’s press release sums it up.

Downtown Raleigh has changed dramatically since the last hotel market study for the area was completed in 2003. The rebirth of the center city has included a return of vehicular traffic to Fayetteville Street; the openings of the Raleigh Convention Center, City Plaza and Red Hat Amphitheater; and new quality housing, office, retail and dining establishments.

The City of Raleigh considers that these new developments warrant an updated hotel market analysis for Downtown. The City Council voted unanimously today to partner with the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce, Greater Raleigh Convention and Visitors Bureau, and Downtown Raleigh Alliance on funding a new Downtown hotel market feasibility study. The City will contribute $20,000 toward the $55,000 study; the remaining $35,000 will come from the three partnering agencies.

The hotel market feasibility study for the Downtown area will include site analysis, a review of rooms and public space needed, hotel type and quality recommendation, impact on the Convention Center complex, and analysis of public/private partnerships existing in the industry.

In addition to funding the hotel study, the City of Raleigh, Chamber of Commerce, Convention and Visitors Bureau, and Downtown Raleigh Alliance will design a request-for-proposals (RFP) to recruit a study consultant and analyze the results and recommendations of the study. The City plans to work with representatives of the partnering agencies in forming a steering committee to develop the RFP and work with the selected consultant to complete the study.

The Downtown hotel market feasibility study is expected to begin in March. It will take approximately four months to complete the project.

*City Council Approves Downtown Hotel Market Feasibility Study

Outside of the actual buildings that the hotels are in, there hasn’t been much discussion yet on this topic so I thought it would be good to kickstart that a bit.

Let’s start with what we have so far:

That is a total of 1,127 currently active rooms within the generally accepted downtown Raleigh borders. An upcoming project to add to that is:

  • Residence Inn at about 600 South Salisbury Street, bringing approximately 150 rooms.

The Residence Inn is the only hotel project that I know of that has any real traction. That brings our total to about 1270 rooms.

Small, but growing, is the amount of Airbnb spaces in and around downtown Raleigh. The online space-rental service is rapidly growing across the country and a quick search for Raleigh shows some options in downtown.

I bring this up as the city is currently wrestling with how to properly regulate this service. From an N&O article:

The city won’t be punishing people who offer their homes for rent on Airbnb just yet, but some members of its governing council have dug in against the Internet-powered room-rental service.

*Raleigh City Council draws debate lines on Airbnb rentals

A debate on Airbnb in Raleigh could be its own blog post but you could argue that there are mixed messages going on here. For years, city council has said that more hotel rooms are needed in downtown Raleigh. Along comes an innovative service (we’re an innovative city right?) to offer more staying options for visitors and we’re stumbling over how to handle it?

It could just be as simple as a liability discussion really but I’m not an expert on this topic. Currently Airbnb options in downtown Raleigh make up less than 2% of the available room inventory from browsing the website.

The last hotel tidbit I want to mention is the historic Sir Walter Raleigh building at the corner of Fayetteville and Davie Streets. Opened first as a hotel in 1923, it was the premier hotel for visitors in Raleigh for decades before being converted to apartments in the 1970s.

Talk of converting it back to a hotel is not new and there is a 2008 Triangle Business Journal article that describes a failed attempt at doing this:

Hopes of returning the historic Sir Walter Hotel in downtown Raleigh back to its original splendor as a showcase inn have fizzled out.

…..

Alas, the project was contingent on HUD agreeing to transfer the rent subsidy vouchers from the Sir Walter to Saint Aug’s. Despite a letter-writing and lobbying campaign by Raleigh leaders and several members of North Carolina congressional delegation, HUD never approved the swap.

*Sir Walter Hotel revival dies as feds block shift

I imagine the Sir Walter could be a very unique boutique hotel, something entirely new in downtown Raleigh at this point. The hotel market study could shed some light if downtown has enough pull to sustain a boutique hotel compared to a national brand.

Building a new hotel is probably much easier than renovating an existing one, like the Sir Walter Raleigh, but the end product could probably not be matched by any new construction for years to come if done right.

by Leo Suarez

Downtown Raleigh Office Space Statistic

Here’s something that I just had to share. I found this graph very interesting. If you can’t see the embedded tweet click here.

It shows that 8.6% of office space in Raleigh is located downtown compared to other cities that we generally compete with. Raleigh’s downtown really is small for the city of our size and the reverse rush hour traffic pattern that we have is very unique.

On the flip-side, perhaps this lack of office space has allowed the residential and arts communities to grow in downtown. Something to think about.

by Leo Suarez

Downtown Raleigh Plan Presentation Rundown

2014 Raleigh Downtown Experience Plan

I’m throwing this post up to kind of go over what was presented a few weeks ago at the 2014 Downtown Plan Presentation. I highly recommend watching the video but going over the high-level concepts here works too. There’s no new content in this post if you have already seen the video.

Introduction

At the start of the presentation, the presenters make it clear that at this point, the big ideas are out there but the details and the action items have not yet been finalized. We’ll have to wait for the final report to get into those.

An important keyword to remember is “Abundance” and the presenters use this often in describing what has been put together so far. By abundance, they mean that creating many experiences within close proximity only brings more value to the downtown.

A thriving city is worth more and has more value than the sum of its individual parts.

Some of the main concepts that we’ll see in the upcoming plan are:

  • Ecosystem of startups and new business types
  • Open spaces, parklets, etc.
  • Variety of housing options
  • Abundance of experiences

Importance was placed on making Raleigh unique rather than playing “catch up” with other cities. We’re at a good point in our growth period as we’re not overbuilt and don’t have old, obsolete systems in place that may hinder bringing in the new.

Accessibility was also emphasized. Downtown is great but there is more to the city than just that. Connections to and from downtown Raleigh are important so that all Raleigh denizens can take in the planned experiences.

The vision from the downtown plan’s advisory committee is to celebrate Raleigh as a hub of innovation, creativity, and entrepreneurship while maintaining authenticity and inclusiveness unlike any other city in the world.

Breathe, Move, Stay, Link


“Breathe” is the theme for creating 21st century parks, open spaces, and trails, just to name a few, that allow people to relax and enjoy the city. Focus on Nash and Moore Square as well as greenway trails through Chavis and Oakwood to the east and Devereux Meadow and Dorothea Dix to the west are proposed.


“Move” describes making over downtown Raleigh to be a model for walking, biking, and transit. Martin and Hargett Streets are identified as key pedestrian corridors and a downtown bike circuit is proposed as well.


“Stay” refers to downtown’s culture and being the tourism anchor of the city. This theme will be paired with the future growth opportunities covered below.

And finally “Link” talks about partnering with neighbors in our city. Universities, private business, non-profits, and many others also have a stake in our growing downtown. They should be at the table if not already.

Four Catalytic Priorities


Nash-Union Square is the term for the area around Nash Square and the upcoming Raleigh Union Station. Transit-oriented development and pedestrian streets will be key to bringing new growth to this area. Ground-floor retail and improved streetscapes are tools to help make it happen.

Nash Square is seen as an urban park oasis rather than the underutilized space that it is today. Activating the edges of the square will be important especially along Martin and Hargett Streets.


Glenwood Green is described, almost exactly, as new development for what used to be the old Smoky Hollow neighborhood before the “Urban Renewal” wave of the 1950s and 1960s cleared out this neighborhood. The area to the east of Glenwood South to Capital Boulevard could see new development around an urban greenway, parks, and urban residential buildings.

The plan suggests creating a park at Devereux Meadow as well as making new connections to the east and the south. With a possible light-rail connection nearby, this area could really be the residential epicenter of downtown.


Market Square is a fusion of City Market and Moore Square. Rather than make these two landmarks individual locations, the plan suggests to create a single area that encompasses both assets.

The plan suggests to turn the area into the premier, destination-oriented market with links to the nearby neighborhoods. The plan does tell a little of what we already know and should work on. The City Market building is underutilized, implementation of the Moore Square redesign should take place, as well as the improvements to the Moore Square Transit Center.


Gateway Center may be the grandest proposal in the plan. This involves the very suburban-like area to the south of the convention center adjacent to Martin Luther King Boulevard and South Saunders Street. The plan calls for pure development in this spot for a mix of uses including tourism, cultural, entertainment, and commercial.

Two big ideas are the one shown above, a campus-like setting with offices, educational institutions, and other innovation supporting entities. A second proposal in the plan shows a sporting venue wrapped with supportive retail and mixed-use development.

The R-Line

The plan presentation goes over the current state of the R-Line and possible changes to it that could address concerns. In the plan, we have:

  • Develop an optimized R-Line route to better serve existing and future Downtown riders
  • coordination with ongoing CAT system evaluation
  • Rider concentration is heavy at the Convention Center, Moore Square, and Glenwood South
  • Low ridership in the Warehouse District, New Bern, State Government, Seaboard, and Performing Arts Center

It looks like the plan wants to see the R-Line as part of a whole system, that being Capital Area Transit (CAT), rather than it’s own transit service. The new route proposals are for a shorter loop resulting in higher frequency and being complimentary to CAT bus routes.

by Leo Suarez

East Cabarrus Green Street Project Brings More Sidewalks, Pavers, Peacefulness

East Cabarrus Street

East Cabarrus Street

Recently, I had the opportunity to dig into the details of the East Cabarrus Green Street Project. The city’s 2030 Comprehensive Plan includes a number of streets that have been identified as potential Green Streets and a section of Cabarrus may soon get some green upgrades.

A green street, according to the comprehensive plan, is described as one that has:

  • Pedestrian amenities
  • Landscaped planting strips where space permits
  • Wider sidewalks, bicycle lanes, and midblock crossings
  • Recommended speed limit maximums of 25 mph
  • LED street lighting
  • Innovative stormwater management facilities such as porous pavers, tree boxes, and rain gardens

All of Cabarrus has been identified as a green street in the comprehensive plan and today, there are plans for adding some of these green street items to a majority of East Cabarrus.

Starting at Wilmington Street and Cabarrus and moving east, the first plan will be to add bump outs to the intersection of Cabarrus and Blount as well as Cabarrus and Person Streets. A sketch of what that might look like is below:

East Cabarrus Street - Proposed bump outs at Blount Street.

East Cabarrus Street – Proposed bump outs at Blount Street.

The bump outs create a shorter crossing of the street for pedestrians as well as a safe place for seeing approaching cars. It also limits parked cars from being too close to the intersection, creating blind spots and potential close encounters.

This block, between Blount and Person, will also get permeable pavers where the on-street parking lanes are today. The permeable materials will filter rain water of any pollutants before reaching the ground water and therefore the nearby creeks. This is a pilot project that the city is working on and hasn’t installed something like this anywhere else so the results will be watched closely. Something similar are the sidewalks in front of the Nature Research Center or the parking lot for the AIANC building.

Continuing east, the stoplight at Cabarrus and Bloodworth will be removed and the intersection will be converted to a 4-way stop. With all cars stopping in any travel direction it makes for a more pedestrian friendly experience.

More sidewalks will be added also. The northern side of Cabarrus from East to Swain Street will get sidewalks in the public right-of-way. This is a nice addition for the Thompson-Hunter neighborhood as walking is increasing on the east side.

East Cabarrus Street - Sidewalks proposed for the northern side.

East Cabarrus Street – Sidewalks proposed for the northern side.

Finally, LED street lighting is planned for this section of Cabarrus. The hopes is that the brighter lighting will increase safety while saving costs on energy.

One final note to make is that this project spans both the Prince Hall Historic District and the Thompson-Hunter neighborhood. With the sections in Prince Hall, between Blount and Bloodworth, the Raleigh Historic District Commission (RHDC) will have to review the plans and issue a Certificate of Appropriateness for these changes. The items outside of those blocks can move forward without it.

Loose plans are to install these amenities throughout 2015.

by Leo Suarez

Draft Downtown Plan Presentation on September 11

Raleigh City Plaza

Raleigh’s latest Downtown Plan has been in the works for most of the year. Public input has been collected throughout the Spring and we now have an upcoming draft that will be presented on September 11.

From my inbox to yours:

The draft Downtown Plan presentation will highlight Raleigh’s reputation and identity as a creative, innovative, and family-friendly city. Specific attention will be given to actionable catalytic projects that can accelerate economic progress in Downtown and help link the different districts of Downtown together. Visualizations of the catalytic projects will be created by using 3D models. The presentation will be conducted by the consultant team lead by Sasaki Associates.

*Draft Downtown Plan to be Presented Sept. 11

Draft Downtown Plan – Presentation

Date/Time: Thurs., Sept. 11 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Marbles Kids Museum
201 East Hargett Street
Raleigh, NC 27601
919.834.4040

Draft Downtown Plan – Open House

Date/Time: Fri., Sept. 12 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
City of Raleigh Museum
220 Fayetteville Street
Raleigh, NC 27601
919.996.2220