Quote :

"they opposed anything more than five stories, saying it would add too much density to an area already plagued by traffic problems."

...wouldn't limiting the height of buildings increase traffic problems? More land area per floorspace = less space for roads.

1/18/2013 12:15:16 PM

The difference in height is 4 ft. The 5 story proposal will be 75 ft, the 7 story proposal that the NIMBYs are railing against was to be 79 ft tall. If you buy into the "block out the sun" arguments you should be living in cary or north raleigh anyways. Same old argument, rinse repeat all over the country. Creating an urban fabric in the US is incredibly difficult with the values we have instilled in our culture over the last 50 years.

1/18/2013 12:37:08 PM

Hey slaptit what kind of planning work do you do? I recently got my MCRP from Rutgers, primarily focused on transportation. Take it to PM if needed.

1/18/2013 1:11:28 PM

I deal with planning from the developer side, had I known how much I enjoy the subject earlier in life I probably would have gone into the field. I am starting to get more involved via volunteer and appointed committees.

1/18/2013 1:27:01 PM

Vulcan you have pm

^ I was the same way. I didn't even know the field existed until graduate school, but then I fell in love.

1/18/2013 1:50:37 PM

few work-related things make me happier than doing work in a new town and digging through their development ordinances

1/18/2013 3:09:39 PM

Basically the same day I found out planning was actually a thing was the day I decided to go to grad school for it. It is probably one of the most disrespected fields there is; it doesn't pay very well (compared to similar fields and things that typically require a graduate degree) and hardly anyone even knows what it is, yet it directly affects the daily life of everyone in the country.

1/18/2013 3:29:54 PM

What sort of educational backgrounds do y'all have if you don't mind me asking?

1/18/2013 6:09:14 PM

Tried Klara's for lunch today. Pretty tasty.

1/19/2013 7:01:46 PM

^^A masters degree, typically in public administration or urban/regional planning, is the only way to be competitive. Once you start working, it's just a game to see how many certifications you can obtain AICP certification is a goal of most planners and probably the most worthwhile to pursue.

1/20/2013 1:24:11 PM

darkone

Quote :

"Clearly you're not an engineer."

correct you are! and I was kidding, of course.

1/21/2013 1:50:53 AM

http://www.wral.com/raleigh-delays-decision-on-hillsborough-street-high-rise/12071778/

2/6/2013 4:18:12 PM

^link says they delay, article says they approve

2/6/2013 5:15:10 PM

Bringing this thread back to life even though there isn't much news.

The Bell Tower hotel is supposedly going to be an Aloft.

Valentine Commons has resubmitted a site plan with both of the buildings along Hillsborough being 5 stories tall. The one at the Concord corner will be 69' tall and the one at the Friendly will be 65'. Office is gone, as well as the rooftop restaurant; all buildings will be apartments over retail. The Concord corner building oddly is planned to have retail at ground level, as well as in a basement and a mezzanine level.

4/24/2013 10:17:38 AM

Someone tell me what I need to do to force the alley to tear out those ugly rails on their "porch", and to either repaint the precast panels or remove them entirely. The pastel panels and ugly porch make me rage every time I go down the street.

4/24/2013 10:23:20 AM

it's funny. some people actually like the panels. I find them hideous

4/24/2013 10:50:40 AM

People like the slightly pink and seafoam green panels, or liked them before they were painted? They are fucking pastel colors now.

4/24/2013 10:52:33 AM

you people act like the bowling alley was asthetically pleasing BEFORE the railings.

4/24/2013 11:37:00 AM

It was ugly, but it looked better than it does now

4/24/2013 11:39:35 AM

apartment complex right beside the wells fargo? talk about convenience

4/24/2013 4:14:31 PM

It's gonna be for rich grad students.

4/24/2013 4:55:42 PM

Quote :

"It was ugly, but it looked better than it does now"

4/24/2013 5:30:28 PM

^^ Warning: Null Set

4/24/2013 5:48:33 PM

There's enough to fill a small apartment building.

4/24/2013 6:08:29 PM

I always thought the house that sat there would have been nice, but I guess it doesn't draw in the same amount of money that an enormous building packed into that small lot would.

4/24/2013 6:18:28 PM

It was being used primarily as office space and wasn't incredibly nice.

4/24/2013 6:35:22 PM

Ugh, those panels are so ugly!

4/25/2013 7:22:28 AM

That building going in beside the Wells Fargo looks like its going to be huge for the lot (4 stories?). It looks way out of place directly beside the one story WF with a large parking lot. Glad some taller buildings are going in across from campus but it looks out of place. I wanted to stop and take some pics the other day for this thread but couldn't find a place to pull over.

[Edited on April 27, 2013 at 8:32 PM. Reason : ]

4/27/2013 8:30:41 PM

Well if anything rebuilds on wells Fargo lot or the other side, it will have to be similar street front design and not have a driveway or parking lot out front.

4/27/2013 10:04:16 PM

http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/05/01/2863501/sadlacks-owner-says-time-is-running.html

5/2/2013 10:37:43 AM

The new 4 story building at 2604 Hillsborough doesn't look out of place or too huge at all. It looks like it's about 5 feet taller than the peak of the Wachovia Wells Fargo's roof, and in fact significantly shorter than the Hillsborough Building next door.

It could have easily been several stories taller, and still hardly stood out at all. If we could get some single-lot, multi-story buildings just like this built all up and down Hillsborough Street, it would be awesome.

My suggestions for the next spots: That parking lot next to Sylvia's Hot Box Pizza, and the Baptist Student Union (God what a hideously ugly building - the worst on Hillsborough Street bar none, and that's saying a lot.) The developer should take the exact plan for 2604 and replicate it, seriously - the lots are the same size. Projects like this become feasible when developers are not required to provide on-site parking.

Wachovia Wells Fargo would be another great target for redevelopment but that is a pretty big lot so they could put something bigger there.

5/2/2013 10:54:58 AM

I still wish some kind of restaurant/bar would open up in the space the Hillsborough textbooks used to be in. Most of the bars on Hillsborough are pretty small - a ton of people on the Hillsborough Hikes end up at The Alley because its the one place with any legitimate amount of space.

5/2/2013 12:45:08 PM

But other than a few hikes a year, do you think Hillsborough St can support a large bar?

5/2/2013 12:51:02 PM

^^^^Sucks that building is gonna block the nice view I had of the upper portion of the Bell Tower when I lived at 3 Maiden Lane (I assume?).

5/2/2013 12:54:00 PM

Each time I've been to Hillsborough over the last 2 semesters (although granted its only been about 5-ish times outside of the hikes) there's been a lot of people at both the Keg and the Alley. The last time I went to The Alley was a few backs on a random Saturday night and they shut down the bar like an hour and half before closing because the employees got sick of dealing with the stupid amount of people that they had trying to get drinks at the same time. I'm not talking about anything huge, but as long as it offered a different type of business as well, like being more of a restaurant during the day similar to EV, then the demand could be there.

5/2/2013 1:24:52 PM

Whats up with the big camera pole in the traffic circle this week?

I'm hoping a hilarious reality show.

5/2/2013 3:04:05 PM

I'm not that sad about Sadlack's. I live right up the street from there and it's full of loud dumbasses every night of the week. Plus it's a bum magnet. I think significantly less homeless people will roam Hillsborough St. when this place is gone.

Quote :

"I still wish some kind of restaurant/bar would open up in the space the Hillsborough textbooks used to be in. Most of the bars on Hillsborough are pretty small - a ton of people on the Hillsborough Hikes end up at The Alley because its the one place with any legitimate amount of space."

I think this place is perfect to open up a music venue.

5/2/2013 3:54:13 PM

Eh, Sadlack's has been a staple for a long time. They recently redid the place. It's always been a cool place to stop by for a beer on the patio. I've actually watched a few bands play there. And there lunch is pretty damn good. I'll miss it, even though I only go there a time or two a year.

5/2/2013 4:30:54 PM

I hope Sadlack's can find a spot as well. I've never actually been there for a show, and only once or twice for drinks--but I've eaten many a sandwich there. Always a good place to get a bite on a nice day, and always full of quite interesting characters.

5/2/2013 5:03:18 PM

Quote :

"Whats up with the big camera pole in the traffic circle this week?"

accident study, trying to figure out how some people are still fucking up a really easy single lane roundabout

5/2/2013 7:13:13 PM

Quote :

"People like the slightly pink and seafoam green panels, or liked them before they were painted? They are fucking pastel colors now."

I haven't driven by there recently but did they even bother to finish the horrible paint job? Last I checked they gave up on the last few panels. They were only partially painted above the doorway.

[Edited on May 2, 2013 at 9:09 PM. Reason : -]

5/2/2013 9:08:47 PM

Quote :

" I'll miss it, even though I only go there a time or two a year."

and that's precisely the reason they can't stay in business

aside from a handful of regulars, nobody goes there on purpose more than once a year

5/2/2013 9:58:18 PM

They are having no problem staying in business. They are being forced to move. There's a difference.

5/2/2013 10:19:33 PM

that's what I get for not reading the article

5/2/2013 10:28:00 PM

Quote :

"I think this place is perfect to open up a music venue."

A similarly sized venue that had been around for thirty years was bulldozed two years ago. Even when it was still open, it was surviving on early evening revues for crowds of non-drinkers. There's no parking, and there are almost too many venues in Raleigh as it is.

5/3/2013 1:00:49 AM

FMW & Preiss company have taken the promotions budget of 2604 Hillsborough Street to the next level by posting an ad on craigslist today.

http://raleigh.craigslist.org/roo/3763453164.html

5/6/2013 3:14:39 PM

Also of note, the retail tenant will be Saxby's Coffee.

5/6/2013 3:36:52 PM

A block down the street from Zaxby's no less. I'm looking forward to the confused freshmen.

5/6/2013 3:50:45 PM

I lived up the street from Sadlacks for a year and only ever went there once. It's nice to stop at on a hike, but other than that its filled with a lot of people in their 50's and 60's who go there every single night.

I'm not sure a hotel is the best use of the space, but that whole complex looks really, really rough and is where a ton of the homeless people congregate. A Subway just opened across the street on the other side of Maiden Lane too.

5/6/2013 7:03:46 PM

Comparing Subway to Sadlack's...well, they both use bread and cold cuts. I think that about covers it.

[Edited on May 6, 2013 at 7:25 PM. Reason : Jimmy John's is 500 feet in the other direction...and they've coexisted for 6? 7? years now.]

5/6/2013 7:24:51 PM