What was once planned to be a condo building here at 111 Seaboard Avenue in the Seaboard Station area, will now be renovated for shops. This one-story building will be converted sometime this year, according to David Bracken at the N&O.
What would you like to see in the new spaces?
And can we make it easier to cross Peace Street at Vaughn Street?
The post office on Fayetteville Street will close this July according to the N&O.
Citing drastic declines in mail volume, the U.S. Postal Service will close its downtown post office in July, shuttering an institution that has stood on Fayetteville Street for 134 years.
…….
There was no word about a possible future use for the ground floor space that will be vacated. Post office officials did not return calls seeking comment, but a note taped to a mail slot attributed the closing to recession-related declines and changing consumer habits.
No one should be surprised by this news as multiple offices have been closing around Raleigh and around the country. The U.S. Postal Service can’t seem to cover their costs so it is only natural that closings like this are occurring. The state of the current economy also doesn’t help things out.
I actually first heard about this news on Twitter. The tweets I read were from people asking others to support the office and demand that it be left open. I do understand that the service is still needed, even relied upon by some but I can’t seem to get behind the idea of keeping the downtown office open.
Am I against the mail service? Not at all. I feel that this service should continue to exist for all citizens but in today’s shift from paper to internet, the service should transform with the times in an appropriate way. This shift is not what this post is about so I’ll stop with that statement in order to stay on topic.
Anyway, the historic, beautiful building on the corner of Martin and Fayetteville Street will have some open space soon and I believe this creates an opportunity for something new. My first idea that I have had for a little while (PROOF!) is for the Century Post Office to be repurposed into a library. Maybe not right away, or perhaps not the first use of the new space but with a growing downtown this would be a perfect opportunity to have a downtown library in a landmark building with a prime address.
The federal government’s current cutting of excess properties makes this an interesting opportunity for, perhaps, Wake County to make a play at moving into the building.
Downtown probably still has a long way to go before the downtown express library is upgraded but you never know.
The postal service may be moving out but the building will still stand and can serve citizens in a new way in the future.
CityCamp San Francisco via Steve Rhodes, on Flickr
I’m sure there is a quote out there, somewhere that says any idea that isn’t created is worthless. I actually think that complaints without action are also worthless. Well, it is now time to take those complaints and annoyances about our city and create a way to fix it.
As part of a growing group of organizers for CityCamp Raleigh, I wanted to help spread the press release about this event on June 3rd, 4th and 5th, which by the way I am very excited about. There is a huge potential for some great projects to come out of the collaboration between technology enthusiasts and citizens.
Read the press release below and register for the event to join us.
Citizen-led “unconference” brings innovation and cooperation to the capital city June 3, 4, and 5, 2011.
Raleigh, NC, May 11, 2011: CityCamp Raleigh today announced the first city-focused “unconference” in North Carolina that brings together government, business, neighborhood, non-profit, and academic communities working toward next generation solutions for Raleigh. In a world challenged to do more with less, the City of Raleigh is open to ideas from citizens and technology professionals (web developers, programmers, and app developers) on how to streamline procedures, share information and create innovative solutions using the latest technology. According to Mayor Charles Meeker, “our citizens are ready for Raleigh to move forward and be more open sourced focused. The technology is successful. Raleigh is ready to be the worldwide hub for open source.”
The event is free to the public and will kick off Friday, June 3rd at 12.30pm at Vintage 21 downtown Raleigh, S. West Street, and continues Saturday and Sunday, June 4 – 5, 2011. “The City of Raleigh has a long and successful history of citizen participation and engagement,” said City Manager Russell Allen. “The possibility of using technology and software applications as new methods of achieving transparency and interaction is a very exciting opportunity. Strong cities find ways to connect creativity for the benefit of productive outcomes.” Other confirmed speakers at this time include, Michael Tiemann, VP of Open Source Affairs at Red Hat, Inc., as well as president of the Open Source Initiative, and Jimmy Goodmon, VP/GM, Capital Broadcasting New Media Company.
Read the rest of the press release at the CityCamp Raleigh site.
Ruben’s Downtown is now open at the corner of Person and Edenton Street. Breakfast and lunch is on the menu at the moment and they have wifi. Add this to your list of new places to try.
Mon – Fri: 6:30 am – 2:00 pm
Sat – Sun: 7:00 am – 2:00 pm
The website for Tasty Beverage Co. says it all:
There is a lack of a dedicated beer store in Raleigh and we plan to fill that gap. We plan to offer an impressive selection of beers from the American craft beer industry as well as the world. Tasty Beverage Company will also feature a selection of wines, high quality sodas, local meats, and cheeses.
The new beer store will go in the space between Jibarra and Tuscan Blu in the historic depot building and the current outlook is for them to open their doors this summer.
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.
There are only two items that were discussed in yesterday’s Raleigh City Council meeting that are related to downtown Raleigh that I will highlight today.
The first item was approved through the consent agenda and involves a pilot program with Progress Energy. The pilot is for a solar powered vehicle charging station to be set up on the surface parking lot along Salisbury Street between Lenoir and South Street. There are more details about this experiment below, taken from the meeting agenda.
The next issue was related to the Moore Square Redesign. Concerns about damage to trees during construction were brought up and the Tree Conservation Task Force will comment on the plan soon. See the conversation in the video below.
Solar Charging Station on Salisbury Street
From the consent agenda:
“In partnership with Progress Energy (PEC) the City will undertake a solar charging station pilot project. The project will consist of a two bay vehicle parking structure with integrated solar photovoltaic cell equipment located thereon, and will include two electric vehicle charging stations with battery storage capability. The facility will also incorporate an inter-connection with the electric energy grid, as well as appropriate metering, control, and monitoring equipment and will be located on a surface parking lot owned by the City located at 616 South Salisbury Street across Lenoir Street from the Raleigh Convention Center (City Site 4). The project can be removed or reused by the City after the two year pilot project or can be extended upon agreement of both parties. The City shall provide, or otherwise be responsible for the cost of: (a) electric vehicle charging equipment for two vehicles, and (b) battery for the facility. All other costs of the solar array, equipment, and installation, site improvement, and design work, specifically including design, facility oversight, and other consultation services by Advanced Energy, will be the responsibility of PEC. As construction of the facility progresses, the City will invoice PEC for work completed and equipment installed, to be reimbursed to the City. Funding will be shared by PEC and the City, with the City’s portion funded by Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant funds.
Recommendation:
Authorize execution of an agreement with Progress Energy as described.”
Tree Conservation Concerns With The Moore Square Redesign
From the agenda:
During the April 19, 2011, Council meeting, the Parks, Recreation and Greenway Advisory Board presented the Moore Square Draft Master Plan with the recommendation that the Council adopt the plan as presented and that the Parks, Recreation and Greenway Advisory Board have the opportunity to review and comment at the 30% Schematic Design Phase as recommended by the Parks, Recreation and Greenway Advisory Board. Following the presentation, it was reported that some concern had been expressed by the North Carolina Secretary of Administration. It was directed that the item be placed on this agenda to receive a report relative to State approval of structures and to get a recommendation from the Tree Conservation Task Force.
The Contemporary Art Museum in the warehouse district has now opened. CAM Raleigh has been covered in different places on the web and the best two reads out there are:
The cost to visit is $5 and the hours are listed below.
Mon, Wed, Thurs, Fri: 11 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Closed Tues
Sat, Sun: 12 p.m. – 5 p.m.
First and third Friday of the month open until 9 p.m.
Closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas, New Year’s Day
$37 million for Transportation improvements are being discussed for Raleigh and may be on this year’s October ballot. Sidewalk improvements, station upgrades, and greenway projects are just a few on the long list here. Downtown Raleigh would see some improvements if this is passed.
The list of projects that may get funded are below, starting first with downtown related ones, and how much of the pie each one would get. ($ in millions)
A public hearing about this referendum should be announced within the coming weeks.
We’ve discussed greenways coming through downtown before and the Rosengarten piece is a crucial connector from south of downtown into the warehouse district.
The Lenoir and South Street two-way conversion stretches the previous two-way conversion, completed in 2008, to the east and west out of downtown. For Lenoir Street:
For South Street:
The description of the work for the two streets also mentions, “modification of traffic signals, turn lane improvements, installation of new pedestrian head signals, crosswalks, and raised landscaped medians.” The western side of South Street is pretty wide so medians would be an easy fit.
Source: N.C. Capital Area MPO, Roadway projects