The site, at 301 Hillsborough St., would be leased to Campbell University’s law school for student and faculty parking, Mayor Charles Meeker said.
via Council considers turning site into parking area :: WRAL.com.
Tag / 301 Hillsborough
A Clean Slate on Hillsborough Street
The hole that was created by the demolition of 301 Hillsborough has now been filled. I’ll use this as a sign to move on from the former tag of ‘The Hillsborough’, the project that was planned here, and start with a new tag of ‘301 Hillsborough‘.
There has been talk of paving over the land for a parking lot in order to generate revenue rather then let the lot sit there vacant. It is expensive property so I cannot argue against that plan. We’ll keep watch for now.
‘The Hills’ Runs Out of Money
It looks like this is the end of the line for the project called The Hillsborough. I think no one should be surprised by this as it has been reported in the past that the developers were facing an uphill battle securing financing. Now that it is official, we can move on. There’s no doubt that this land will become more valuable over time. You’ve got Campbell Law moving in across the street and easy access to Fayetteville St. and Glenwood South. Hillsborough St. is a major corridor in and out of downtown so the location is naturally great.
I’m going to bet that there is not a line of people ready to bid on the site and build a tower in these tough times so a temporary parking lot makes the most sense. Fill the hole and pave it over. It could be used by the Campbell law students and faculty. I’m sure the weekend church crowds may enjoy some prime parking right on Hillsborough St. too. It could even be used as a downtown construction staging area for Green Square, the Public Safety Center, or any other project in the nearby area.
Residents of The Dawson, enjoy your view a little longer.
Pic of the Week
This picture is over a year old. There was no need to take another one cause this site, for The Hillsborough, has been the same for this entire time. According to the city:
“The developer also must meet certain other deadlines in the revised agreement or the City could exercise its option to repurchase the property at 301 and 309 Hillsborough Street. For example, site and foundation work must begin by Feb. 3, 2009 and construction of the project must be complete by March 15, 2011.”
February 3rd is only six days away. Will cranes start showing up this weekend? Place your bets.
The State of Hillsborough St.
Hillsborough St. gets my vote as being one of the most important streets for downtown. From the Capitol building out to Glenwood, the first six blocks will be a major route that connects Glenwood South and Fayetteville St. The zig zag route should become the spine of activity for downtown. It is pretty clear that Fayetteville St. and Glenwood South are already budding entertainment centers but Hillsborough St. is on the rise.
What Is Planned
The weak economy and I’m sure a couple other factors have held back some of these projects and they are currently on standby. It is still a bit exciting to see these proposals because if all are eventually built, Hillsborough St will be its own urban corridor.
A 25 story hotel and condo tower will occupy the block shown above.
Another 25 story hotel and condo tower. It is currently on hold because of the bad credit market.
Campbell Law School Relocation
Classes should start in summer 2009. I think this a key move that should create traffic on Hillsborough St. I’m worried though because there is a serious lack of rentable apartments nearby and students will be prime renters.
HBS Properties has bought up a majority of this block. Last I heard, they were floating around the idea of a 10 story tower that would wipe out this streetscape.
The Potential
There are a couple of empty lots and surface parking lots that are in prime locations. There may be controversy in the future over established churches and businesses versus developers willing to offer big money for these lots. However, we are still not there yet so let’s save that argument for later.
I see this stretch of Hillsborough St. becoming a hotel row. Two hotels are in the list above and The Clarion is already in service in this location. This is a central, easy to get to area and with a wider street, it is car traffic friendly. It connects our two major entertainment centers and any visitor has an easy walk to either one.
I also think that the triangle near the Hillsborough/Edenton merge could be something really unique for downtown. I had an idea once.
Credit Slowing The Raleigh Skyline
The Hillsborough site remains the same since January
I wanted to highlight this interesting article in the Triangle Business Journal that gives you an idea of the problems that the lagging developments in Raleigh are facing. Some are related to downtown.
“It’s just a lousy environment,” says Reynolds, who along with his father, Ted, is trying to finalize an agreement to buy the rest of the city-owned property on which The Hillsborough tower would rise at the corner of Hillsborough and Dawson streets.
Not all new developments are affected however.
Full speed ahead; double cranin-it at The Hue
‘The Hillsborough’ Construction Site
In case you have not seen it yet, here is the flattened construction site at 301 Hillsborough. The Hillsborough’s final rendering has not been released it seems. Until then, Dawson residents can enjoy their new view.
The Hillsborough site with Bloomsbury Estates in the background
CON-struction and D-struction
The early winter sunsets are really cutting into my weekday opportunities to go out and take pictures of things downtown. I really think pictures help to add more to the story but we’ve all got a life and a job to do. Anyway, today I have more quick news regarding construction downtown that may be worthy of a short golf clap.
- Ann-Cabell Baum Anderson sends out a status e-mail about the West @ North tower in Glenwood South every now and then. I’m still waiting for some news on the retail going in on the bottom floor. Her recent update:
Exciting news… We are approaching topping-out!
The roof-level is being poured this week!
Also, large windows are being installed on the 5th through 7th floors and the exterior sheathing is now up to the 10th floor! Interior framing is up to the 8th floor and exterior framing is up to the 12th floor! West is well underway!
- I jumped the gun too early this week and talked about 301 Hillsborough coming down. I thought it would be a slow process and parts of it would still stand for a month, maybe two but I was wrong. Half the building is gone and if this rate stays steady, the building will be leveled probably by the end of the day. Might be safe to assume all the debris will be hauled out before the end of the year. Enjoy your temporary new view, Dawson residents!
- Big slabs of concrete are being brought to the site of the future “The Edison” project. Right now the parking deck for the block and RBC Plaza is being put together. Reminds me of how they put the 222 Glenwood deck together, like a Lego set, and if similar this thing will sneak up on you. Check the webcam for updates on that and RBC Plaza, which is now building the condo floors.
