I would kindly argue with this one point… 
I (and I can NOT speak for most people) “have” to drive but don’t “prefer” to drive!
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I think this is an important distinction and would be interested in seeing some research into attitudes of the general public toward driving. I used to think I preferred driving, but as I traveled internationally and often didn’t rent cars, I realized I actually preferred not having to drive or park or worry about a car at all.
I’m even more interested in these attitudes among young adults (Gen Z or whatever they’re calling them). I’m late Gen X/geriatric millennial depending on who you ask, and I couldn’t wait to get my driver’s license at 16. Today’s teenagers seem much less interested in driving and don’t equate driving with independence as much as previous generations did, so I’m curious how they might shift the prevailing narrative.
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Xennial here (1979 WOOHOO!!), I live in a walkable 1980s neighborhood in N Raleigh. I recently went several days without even getting into a car, much less driving anywhere. Earlier this week I had to make two round trips from Raleigh to Tarboro in the same day for work (KMN!!) and kept telling myself how much time I was “wasting” sitting in a car. I loathed my daily commute until WFH became a more permanent option. I would love to live downtown proper/adjacent, or back in the Cameron Village area like I did in college (and went 2 months without driving once), but the financial reality is that life is more comfortable for a family with younger kids in the burbs.
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE a good road trip, but as far as day-to-day life, I would gladly hand over my car keys if I could get to all the places I regularly need to be (office, shopping, dr appts, church, kids schools) without a car. Just glad I can easily walk to the two grocery stores, a pharmacy, and a dozen restaurants a few times a week and leave the car behind.
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We’ve been here before… Yes the decks are a necessary evil, HOWEVER - we have seen proof that they don’t need to be so “evil”
Examples: PNC Tower - for those unaware, this tower is nearly 1/3 parking deck… yet you’d NEVER know it just looking at it, as they have wrapped the entire building in glass to create one cohesive glass tower. This is the GOLD STANDARD for parking pedestal buildings in Raleigh, IMO.
400 Hillsborough - this building hasn’t actually been built yet, so time will tell if the final product aligns with the render, but take a look at that render… they have included 2 floors of parking within the building. Yet, again, you’d never really know just by looking at it (Save for the parking entrance), as it is hidden within the building and once again the entire building is wrapped in glass.
Quorum Center - while this building’s deck may not be super hidden (it’s clearly a parking deck jutting off the backside of the tower), it is exceptionally well integrated into the tower itself, IMO. For starters, it ONLY appears to jut out from the backside of the building, leaving the entire façade of the tower facing the street as tower-only (no ground floor retail > 5 stories of unhidden deck > actual tower above, like so many…) - and the deck itself is wrapped in the same brick/materials that the tower is made from, so it actually has the appearance of one complete building - rather than these weird hodgepodges of glass ground floor, then bare concrete deck with some lazy metal siding, then more glass tower sitting awkwardly on top. Plus, there are also 2 levels of office built on top of the Quorum deck. I much prefer this model of tower w/ attached parking deck vs the parking pedestal with building on top (if and only if the parking deck cannot be built into the tower like PNC Tower’s is)
So, my point stands that parking pedestals- while perhaps necessary in certain developments- do not HAVE to be so aggressively ugly and lazily hidden. They can be thoughtfully planned out to look better integrated into the building they are servicing, and should be in order to build a more attractive, inviting city overall. Thanks for making it through this rant, for those that have!
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I feel if they could incorporate the backside of the Origin deck + this new one into a great big mural then that would be amazing. I’m thinking of the people riding out of RUS getting to see this amazing big mural would be a huge win for the city. Something super creative, or nods to Raleigh, etc.
Just my $0.02.
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301 looks pretty much exactly like it did in the renders. People just overlooked that it was metal rather than glass at the base.
PC: @GucciLittlePig
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I mean… yeah… that’s kinda my point, the deck is not well hidden. But could and should be, hence not being included in my examples of buildings that did do a good job of it haha
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Removing need for cars will never happen. Independent movement is not new with cars they just replaced horses.
Only time I have been where did not need to drive was when doing a long term project in Silver Spring. MD and there was a large apartment building across street from office. Rented a efficacy that was actually quite large and walked across street to office. But still needed one to there from home. So only way going to get rid of cars is cram every one into central high rise housing with streets jammed with public transit and people. See 1900 NYC. Question if cram everyone into city, who is going to grow and deliver food to all those people living in shoe-boxes?
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I think I misread your comment. I thought you were saying that 301 pulled a bait & switch with the rendering just like Block 83, but maybe you meant that they pulled the same “glass at the corner only” move. In any case, I agree that it sucks.
Fun fact: the parking garage I worked on in Chapel Hill pulled a bait and switch, but in the opposite direction. It’s WAY nicer than the initial media release (and I’d love it if Raleigh would put a similar amount of effort into its garages. This is being developed by the city, which really helps them maintain a higher standard of design).
Initial media release:
Final design:
Moral of the story: never trust an early rendering.
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Oooooo yes, that deck design is much tastier than anything we get! And you know what I did kinda allude to a bait n switch with 301H that was incorrect (I thought your comment was in response to my rant about Raleigh parking pedestal buildings that did it right haha), but still stand by that they totally half-assed the integrated deck and its screening. It looks lazy and cheap because it is lazy and cheap.
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I agree with others that people will drive less once you have very reliable and easily accessible public transportation (e.g. stops that are within easy walking distances so you aren’t drenched in sweat on a July morning on the way to work). And with that level of public transport comes harder to find parking because it won’t be necessary. In Boston, I left my car on the road all week except for when I needed to get groceries. I’m not sure how a person carries a gallon of milk and 20 pounds of kitty litter and everything else home and I don’t have time to go to the grocery store multiple times a week. On trips to places with reliable public transportation, I will take it and leave the car if possible (used the RFTA buses in Aspen over the summer).
I think younger people take Uber and that’s why they don’t care about driving.
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bloomsbury apts and bloc83 phase 3 site plans combined. those east facing end units of the apartment building are going to have a parking deck wall a couple feet from them. oof.
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That third slide is pretty stylie, especially for a parking deck !
Yeeeeessch-a-Roo!!!
I once lived in exactly such an apartment. Tbh, not the worst place I’ve ever lived. You gotta think that the Neari Coleman development is going back to the drawing board tho
I hope the transportation does one day get better. I would love to “look at it” while I drive by because I will never ride it lol… I come from a big city and I’m use to having to put on headphones to avoid the weirdos who come on and start yelling gibberish because they are insane. But anything that pushes a city forward I’m for it so I agree
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I gotta ask for some thoughts here- so the Bloc 83 Phase 3 announcement included details that they would be adding onto/expanding the existing gigantic parking deck that ORigin hotel is wrapped around - does this kill our hopes for a future Phase 4 tower on that lot behind the Origin deck (on Hargett St)? Or is there still going to be space for something left over - I cannot quite make heads or tails of the site plan included.
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Certainly doesn’t leave much room for a tower next to the tracks with the way this plan is drawn up for additional deck space on that lot UNLESS* they could build the tower on the parking deck in the future - (sorry neighbor apartments that once were houses)
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