Edison Redesign Hits City Today
The News & Observer’s Business section featured a story on the latest design for The Edison. The
previous design
(Site plan .PDF), which wrapped retail, condos, and hotel space around the RBC Plaza deck on Wilmington Street, has been through several renditions. Every one, to this point, stepped aside for Wilmington Street corner retail sites like Coopers Barbecue and Reliable Loan to remain.
Today’s Jack Hagel story reveals that Gregg Sandreuter, the Edison’s developer, made deals with the owners of those corner retail spots. Now the entire block is in play, and it allows for far more aggressive design possibilities.
The newest incarnation
, designed by Raleigh’s
J Davis Architects
, features four towers: two twins at 39 stories and two at 29 stories. The towers would include high-rise pools, condominium units, hotel space, and 250,000 square feet of office space. The plan is to finish one tower by 2012 and complete the final tower by 2018. (
New Site Plan
– .pdf)
Photos courtesy J Davis Architects
Here are some thoughts about the attached two renderings: The first image is an aerial view from the Southeast (The NW corner of Progress II can be seen in the lower right). It appears that the west towers (the taller ones) have 18 or so floors of condos or hotel space. This is revealed by the shorter floor heights above the level where the 20th floor pools are.
Powerhouse Plaza Rendering Available
Jeffery Brubaker, of
The Raleigh Downtowner
, has a
nice article in the current edition
(.PDF) about downtown development. One feature in the article is the previously mentioned
Powerhouse Plaza
(across from 42nd Street Oyster Bar).
There is also a current rendering of the 10-story complex in the story. According to the rendering, the hotel portion will carry the Hyatt Place brand. The overall design is modern and uses much glass. Its decidedly modern look evokes visions of both the International styled 333 Fayetteville in its lower floors, and the Progress II building in its upper floors. The inconsistency of materials in the vertical elements and the setback for the hotel’s pool offer relief and give the impression that the building is more massive than it really is. On the street level, the building offers minimal setback, however restaurant facades could easily be inset to offer a cozy outdoor seating area.
The only flaw apparent at this point is the neighboring parking garage. According to the site plan (.PDF), the deck will extend fully to the sidewalks of Harrington and West streets, forever locking the Plaza as a pedestrian island. Had the parking been arranged to be totally internal, the possibility of future development continuing the pedestrian experience all the way to the railroad tracks could exist.
Functionally this project is a no-brainer. Downtown’s need for decent hotels is absurd, and the demand for office space in the Glenwood South area is not being met. While this is certainly not the final rendering, the building shows promise and hopes to finally give downtown some architectural variety.
RBC Plaza from Floor 33
Champ Claris
, a realtor with YSU, had the opportunity to go up in the frighteningly “hanging off the side of the building” construction elevator of the RBC Plaza yesterday. Thanks for the photos, Champ!
(Click on the first photo to see the slideshow).
Summerfield Suites Coming To North Hills
An article on page 3D in today’s News & Observer reveals that a six-story, 140-room Summerfield Suites has been added to the North Hills East plans. It will sit atop 40,000 square feet of street level retail. By comparison, the nearby Renaissance hotel , currently under construction at North Hills, will have 229 rooms.
Summerfield Suites is a 30-unit extended-stay concept by Hyatt Hotels. Construction is expected to begin later this year.
Seaboard Apartments Coming
Preliminary plans (.pdf) for a 5-story apartment complex in the Seaboard area were submitted to the city this week. The J. Davis-designed, two-building complex will feature 112 apartments. It will apparently be a building on stilts, as 69 parking spaces will occupy the ground floor of the buildings.
BB&T Preparing to Grow At North Hills
BB&T’s two-story office building at the corner of Six Forks and Rowan has stood proudly since E.N. Richards developed North Hills Shopping Center. the tan brick building is an optical illusion, really, as it is so perfectly proportioned, it appears to be much larger than it is. It’s not a beautiful building, but is of the pre-ADA vintage that made it easy to add a second floor of offices above service areas. (See the old Cherokee Brick building on 440 between Hillsborough and Western for another example.
Enjoy it while you can because TBJ is reporting today that BB&T is making plans to demolish the building and their neighboring bank building (leased to Bank of America thru March) and replace it with one sizable building. The article uses the term “tower”, however that is probably overstating what will eventually be built on the property.
While the 2-acre site is near the ever-evolving North Hills complex, it is totally unaffiliated with Kane Realty Corp.
Replacement Houses Discussion Tonight
Adrian Scott Fine of the National Trust for Historic Preservation will be speaking tonight about finding the right balance when it comes to teardowns. The event, sponsored by the Raleigh Historic Districts Commission, will feature discussion “about how the market is affecting the debate, the responses from communities, new tools to address the issue, and its role in the larger sustainability challenge.”
The event is from 7pm-9pm and will be at St. Augustine’s College Chapel: 1315 Oakwood Ave, Raleigh.
Downtown Amphitheater Under The Big Top
The block that has been long-occupied by Sir Walter Chevrolet (
map it
) is slated for long term convention center expansion. The plan is for the main convention hall space to expand under McDowell Street into the future expansion space. The block is currently being used as a staging area for convention center construction, but medium range plans call for a downtown amphitheater.
Opening in May of 2009, the 5,000 seat outdoor amphitheater is planned to feature nearly 50 shows. About half of those will be booked by Live Nation (the company that books and operates Walnut Creek Amphitheater).
The amphitheater will be mostly covered by a tent structure’s with a rich history. It was originally used in Boston until it was
replaced by a more permanent structure
and sent to Denver. Live Nation bought the structure and is giving it to Raleigh. We just have to replace the fabric canopy and erect it ourselves. It’s a win/win situation and excellent example of successful recycling.
Does anyone have any proposals for a name for this facility?
St. Albans Gets Funding
The St. Albans at North Hills recently secured about $100 million in construction loans financing. The 6-story building will contain 410 apartments, “several pools”, a 48K square foot Harris Teeter, and about 52K square feet of retail. According to TBJ the complex will have a parking deck and a separate elevator that will take tenants to and from Harris Teeter. The apartment rents will start at $925 per month.
The complex is in all likelihood the building at the bottom of the photo featuring the scaled down North Hills East project. (scaled down when compared to the renderings on this page ). The project was originally planned to be bigger, provided tax increment financing could be secured. (The TIF debate was a key topic with the Raleigh City Council last year, but ultimately did not receive support from many council members).
Renaissance Hotel Coming to North Hills
Currently under construction next to the Beltline at North Hills is the new Renaissance Hotel. The chain is a boutique line within the Marriott chain, and is a desperately needed addition to Raleigh’s underwhelming hotel portfolio. The hotel will likely open in early 2009, but already has two websites (
corporate
,
local
).
The rooms in the North Hills Renaissance will be outstanding. Each will have free wired and wireless high speed internet access, a 37″ high-def TV in the room (with jacks for accessory connectivity), a 15″ high def TV in the bathroom, refrigerator, safe, and 300 thread-count sheets. The hotel will have complimentary parking as well as 7,590 square feet of meeting space and a 5,430 square foot ballroom. Hotel guests will also have direct interior access to the adjacent Gold’s Gym Athletic Club, and to Natural Body Spa, a European-style day spa.
The exterior touches are coming together, and it appears that many of the Alexan’s features, such as window proportions, moldings, and colors, will be continued in the Renaissance. One welcome difference is the use of a textured, artificial stone. Hopefully the color selection and textures will prevent the complex from becoming a “beigemoth”. A material mockup of the exterior can be seen from the middle parking level of the old JCPenney deck.
Unconfirmed reports say that the penthouse level to this hotel will not only offer superior views of downtown, but will also feature short ceilings and countertops in an attempt to cater toward chic, wealthy dwarves. Word is that these rooms will actually carry no room charge, and will be referred to as the “Stayfree Mini-pads”.
Ramblewood Showhouse Opens Today
The 2008
ASID Designer Showhouse
opens today at 2611 and 2615 Rolston Drive. The show runs through June 1. Advance tickets are $15, Door $20, Run-of-Show $30. All proceeds go to Hospice of Wake County.
Soleil Slated for 2010
The article this morning by the News & Observer’s Jack Hagel mentions an early 2010 completion date for the Soleil Center. Work is currently being done on the supporting foundation for the 480-foot residential and hotel tower .
Convention Center Moving Along
The much-anticipated opening of the new convention center is approaching (early September), and Billy Warden at the Raleigh Downtowner has done a good job of
previewing the building
(interactive .PDF file). The center will have a 150,000 square foot exhibit hall, 32,000 square foot ballroom, and 19 meeting rooms. The center’s website has a great
animated tour
of the facility.
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