Coming Attractions

the future of tomorrow is in development today

Even as early as the 1760s, Wake Crossroads — the Downtown Raleigh area of today — actively supported trade. Isaac Hunter and Joel Lane built taverns and inns near their homes that served travelers along the main north-south road across central North Carolina. In 1792, state commissioners bought 1000 acres from Lane, William Christmas developed a city plan, and on December 31, 1792, the NC General Assembly established the city of Raleigh, named after Sir Walter Raleigh, to serve as the permanent state capital, It later became the county seat as well.

Centrally located in the gently rolling hills of the Piedmont between the ancient Appalachian Mountains to the west and the Atlantic coastal plain to the east, the city grew slowly, with businesses providing services and basic needs catering to customers whose livelihood was based largely on agriculture; Fayetteville Street became the commercial center of Raleigh.

After the Civil War, the city continued to experience slow, steady growth, and familyowned businesses filled the downtown district. By the early 1900s, Fayetteville Street attracted people not only for shopping, but also for entertainment, offering something for all ages. But while Raleigh’s major growth occurred after the end of WWII, the development of shopping centers and housing north and west of the city in the ‘60s and ‘70s pulled people and businesses away from the city’s center into the suburbs, effectively weakening the very heart of the city.

But all that’s changing now.

A little more than 200 years after the city of Raleigh was founded, Downtown is experiencing a rebirth, a renaissance possible through the vision and progressive thinking of individuals committed to community. Planned investment by 2007, both public and private, exceeds $2 billion!

What’s fueling this revitalization? Playing significant parts are the return of people choosing to live Downtown and the Five in Five Goals of the Livable Streets Strategic Plan for Downtown Raleigh—five major goals to be completed by 2008, including the Fayetteville Street Renaissance Project, a new Convention Center and Hotel, an improved pedestrian environment, regulatory reform to entice businesses back Downtown, and expanded downtown management. The city is marketing itself, taking advantage of Downtown’s distinctive districts to show the diversity of living, working, and entertainment opportunities critical to the vitality of any downtown. And as people continue to move back into the city’s core, businesses will follow to provide services and amenities, helping tomaintain the city’s vibrant future.

To meet this growing population, over 2640 residential units, from luxury condos to single-family dwellings, rentals, and affordable housing, are planned or under construction throughout Downtown Raleigh and will effectively double the present residential population.

Recently completed are Carlton Place in the Moore Square District; Boylan Heights Condos, The Dawson, and Gateway Park in the Warehouse District; The Hudson in the Fayetteville District; and The Paramount and The Quorum Center in Glenwood South. New residences under construction offer an even greater variety of options and amenities for Downtown living.

At the corner of Hargett and Boylan, overlooking Downtown and neighboring historic Boylan Heights, Bloomsbury Estates offers a life rich in both traditional ambience and metropolitan atmosphere. The structure itself is crafted with great attention to detail in true Second Empire style, complete with romantic mansard roofs; arched dormers; gracious, private porches; and lush European gardens with a fountain, gazebo and 16-foot clock tower. Amenities are distinctive as well, with a full billiards room, library, wet bar, and even a rooftop pool that, with Bloomsbury’s enviable location on the highest peak in Wake County, provides spectacular views.

Inside Bloomsbury, owners can choose one of 10 different floor plans (either contemporary or traditional) and from those, adapt 10 additional customization packages for essentially 100 different plan options. All homes offer sophisticated finishes, state-of-the-art appliances, and superior material and craftsmanship, staying true to the vision of developer John Bruckel.

With a passion for both history and architectural craftsmanship, Bruckel chose to build on a site that in itself is rooted in history. This location originally served as Joel Lane’s home site and later became the first planned State Capitol in the nation, essentially giving birth to what is now Raleigh.

“I wanted to make a positive impact on the skyline of downtown Raleigh,” states Bruckel. “One hundred years from now, I would love people to look up the hill from downtown and observe that this building started the second wave of beautiful historical structures in Raleigh.”

Located in the rapidly growing and very popular Glenwood South District, 222 Glenwood is a unique 117-unit mixed-use condominium project with 20,000 square feet of ground level retail space developed by Trammell Crow Residential and Halter Properties. Floor plan options range in size from 700 to over 1600 square feet for one-bedroom, one-bath studios and two-bedroom, two-baths plus den, respectively.

Amenities include a private, landscaped interior courtyard with pool, fireplace, and Wi-Fi Internet access; elevator access to new boutique shops and restaurants within the building; concierge services; clubroom opening to a private landscaped patio, outdoor grill, and fireplace; private health club; controlledaccess, covered parking; maintenance-free living; wireless security capability; spacious balconies; hardwood flooring in foyer, kitchen, living room, and dining room; panel interior doors; granite countertops in the kitchen and bath; built-in stainless steel appliances, including microwave, dishwasher, smooth-top stove, sink, and disposal; pantry; and panel maple cabinets.

Also located in Glenwood South is The West at North, a 15-story condominium and loft development by Hamilton Merritt, Inc., which will feature ground-floor retail space, restaurants, and other businesses. Eight different floor plans offer from 700 to over 1900 square feet of living space, with luxury amenities such as reserved covered parking spaces, secured building access, a ground floor entry lobby, pool and patio, concierge service, outdoor balconies, specialty lighting, granite countertops, hardwood floors, frameless glass showers, 10-foot ceilings, expansive exterior glass, Wi-Fi and Ethernet wiring, and views of the city in a unique residence close to galleries, boutiques, cafes, and exciting nightspots.

Other residential units under construction include Chavis Heights, 163 units of subsidized and market-rate mixed-income housing in the South End; The Palladium, 60 for-sale condos in Moore Square; 139 for-sale condos in the RBC Plaza in the Fayetteville District; and 712 Tucker in the Glenwood South District.

Empire Properties, under the direction of owner Greg Hatem, is currently developing several properties in Downtown Raleigh. When the L Building is completed in 2009, it will be the first multi-tenant office building built in the core of downtown in the last 15 years. Empire Properties was chosen by Wake County as a partner on the project, the first public/private partnership between Wake County and a private developer. The building’s classic, modern design, as an innovative seven-story, mixed-use center, grew out of an effort to create a lively and inviting downtown atmosphere and will offer 120,000 square feet of office and retail space, including a second Morning Times coffee shop and Davie Street Diner, both operated by Empire Eats.

“There’s this great resurgence for office space in downtown Raleigh, and this is one of the most creative ways to build 1,000 parking spaces and completely hide it behind an office building,” says Hatem. “It’s also wonderful that the building will be filled with all kinds of fun retail spaces on the first floor.”

One Eleven Seaboard, located in one of Raleigh’s trendiest and most desirable areas, the Capital District, is an exciting mixed-use infill project featuring 53 condos and 11 ,000 square feet of premier retail space. One Eleven Seaboard is within walking distance of Logan’s, Seaboard Station, Cameron Village, Glenwood South, Downtown Raleigh, and Mordecai. Amenities include 10-foot ceilings, two-story town home plans, one- and two-bedroom plans, granite countertops, floor-to-ceiling windows, on-site parking, elevator access to all floors, and upgraded features and finishes.

Established circa 1869 and once the center of downtown Raleigh’s most prestigious address, Blount Street, also in the Capital District, returns to its heyday with the creation of Blount Street Commons, spearheaded by LNR Property Corp. and featuring Vanguard Homes and Legacy Construction builders.

“The revitalization of this magnificent, tree-lined address covers six blocks and 21 acres to preserve the historic significance of the district,” explains Scott Misner, Public Relations Director for SteeleMcKinney Ltd., in charge of marketing the project.

“Combining 19th century charm with a 21st century lifestyle, Blount Street Commons offers a glorious mixture of old and new, designed to encourage commercial and public life interaction. Public access to abundant green space forms a glorious streetscape with wide sidewalks that link historic homes with shops, restaurants, and live/work commercial space. Special touches, such as carriage ways and a neighborhood performing arts theatre, give Blount Street Commons a turn-of-the-century feel with urban convenience.

“New residential development at Blount Street over the next two years features historic heritage homes, carriage homes and row houses with carriage way access, as well as garden flats and stacked townhomes. The live/work space at Blount Street includes ground floor retail with urban residential lofts above—all in keeping with the community’s architectural tradition. Also of historical significance is the fact that several existing heritage homes are being moved within the Blount Street district and made available. These homes as well as several lots are currently available for sale,” says Misner.

Included in the list of buildings approved, planned, or ready for construction are Glenwood South District’s The Glen on Peace, 630 North, Reynolds Tower, and Boylan Flats, a “green” building design; City Site One in the Fayetteville Street District; and the Capital District’s Franklin Street Plaza.

Many of these new and future residential units are located in mixed-use buildings also offering office and retail space, hotels, restaurants, and parking. These projects include The Quorum Center, The Lafayette, 630 North, Franklin Reynolds Tower, City Site One, Franklin Street Plaza, the L Building, and RBC Plaza, headquarters for RBC Centura Bank.

At the corner of Fayetteville, Martin and Wilmington Streets, RBC Plaza is a 33-story, 730,000± square-foot mixed-use building offering retail space, Class A office space, and 139 one-, two-, and three-bedroom luxury condominiums ranging in size from 800 to 2000 square feet. Local company Highwoods Properties will develop the building, scheduled to open in late 2008. Dominion Partners,LLC, is the developer of the residential condominiums. Amenities will include ten-foot ceilings and private balconies, 24-hour security, smart key access, highspeed Internet connection wiring, private storage units, eight levels of 560± controlled-access in-building parking spaces, approximately 500 additional parking spaces in a future parking deck, a fitness center, clubroom, 23rd-floor pool and plaza, private balconies, floorto- ceiling windows, upgraded finishes, garden tubs, and granite countertops. When complete, RBC will be the tallest building in Downtown Raleigh’s skyline at 540 feet.

Downtown Raleigh is home to the Triangle’s only Fortune 500 Company, Progress Energy, and its new headquarters is the recently completed Two Progress Plaza in the Fayetteville District. Also recent to Downtown is the Capital District’s Seaboard Station, home of the city’s newest grocery store and other retail offerings.

Planned is the new Contemporary Art Museum in the Warehouse District, a mixed-use development incorporating residential and commercial space at 409 West Martin Street, which will provide CAM with exhibition, education and administrative space necessary to fulfill its mission. The new facility, designed by the architectural team of Clearscapes and Pugh + Scarpa and to be developed by Grubb Properties, is scheduled to open in 2009.

The Capital District’s Green Square, a four-story research center for the NC Museum of Natural Sciences, will also include office space for employees of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and State Employees Credit Union and a 700- space parking structure, as well as the Starwood Hotel/Hampton Inn. Plans for development of the expansive Dorothea Dix campus in southwest Downtown Raleigh are ongoing.