Answer: There should be nightclubs.
Out some nightclubs… Or a sports bar Fayetteville street will be back… Just stop being NIMBY and fight the JGKES (James GoodKnight Education Syndrome) and allow that Urban feel.
Here are a few of my thoughts on Fayetteville Street:
- It’s time for a refresh - get rid of the newspaper stands, power wash the sidewalks, re-paint (is it paint?) the intersections. What can we add to make it “cuter”? Can individual businesses add cafe lights to their space like Anchor?
- We need things like Putt Shack and/or a bowling alley - and both could go in that Kimbrell’s space. Have a restaurant that is open during the day for lunch folks.
- It is criminal how our city leadership at the time just ceded all traveling off-broadway shows to Durham. They have events all the time bringing in folks from Raleigh and Cary. I’m not sure how to fix it, but something needs to be done to bring more events to our performing arts center.
- When big street fair events (Brewgaloo, Food Truck Rodeo, Artsplosure) come back, Fayetteville Street will feel more alive again
- City Plaza is a big fat dud. And the most recent renovation did nothing to help it. Not sure what to do here. It might help to have some churn in those kiosks.
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Yeah, c’mon Leo, stop being such a NIMBY and blocking all that Urban feel on Fayetteville St!
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This calls for a new emoji. Now, you can just NIMBY me all you want.
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A few to-go drink windows would be amazing, but the city went full crack down when there were even small patios in front of bars over there. Back when it was a place people thought about going to for reasons other than office or court visits.
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I’d like to agree but the other and new areas being built will continue to be more of a draw and FS will be a cob web. It reminds me of going to blockbuster just before it closed for good. It has no soul or sense of being, no ownership, it’s just flapping in the wind. I’ll pray and hope to eat my hat.
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Honestly I agree with you. I want to have Leo’s optimism on this, but I just see Fayetteville St getting worse every time I go there. I’m really just hoping post pandemic it will get better.
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Leo is the ultimate DTR optimist and that’s why we all love him.
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Nightclubs are the answer…
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It’s either that or my serious love for the underdog.
While everyone 
s over all the rezonings on the west side, which we’ve talked about, I’m now thinking about Fayetteville Street/Moore Square and parts east. Consider:
- The first BRT line will be on the east side, connecting to Moore Square Station, basically Fayetteville Street
- I’ve always kept hearing about a Marbles expansion. After that 40-actually-30 story rezoning, a mixed-use dev could go there along with that expansion. Marbles contributes a lot of ped traffic to downtown.
- Everyone was in love with Fayetteville Street when the Sites 2/3 renderings were dropped remember? You’ll fall hard once again, if that actually happens.
- The Nexus may surprise us after their 40-story rezoning is approved.
(public hearing March 1) - The Raleigh Convention Center and performing arts center have been muted for almost 2 years now. It should start to pick up as the pandemic fades. What’s different though? More hotel rooms are available compared to 2020 as the hotel building has actually picked up.
The real question mark is the high density office space around Fayetteville Street. What will happen? Will workers go back? I say yes but in a different way. Instead of, I’m making up numbers here, 30,000 employees across 250 companies in downtown, our new future could be 30,000 employees across 1,000 companies. That diversity in business culture could be fantastic in terms of offering a mix of brands and diverse uses for all that office space. That’s business dynamism right there.
…or not. 
(but fun to think about)
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Night clubs and bars that are only open during limited hours are part of the problem IMO. Fayetteville St. feels dead during the day time due to Zenith, Anchor bar, foundation, Issac Hunters, Haymaker and WORK, that are only open from 4pm(or later) until 2am. Fayetteville St. needs more shops and restaurants that are open during the morning & lunch hours to get more foot traffic through the area. As much as love that we mainly have locally owned stores downtown, I do think a couple chain stores on the street may lively it up.
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I’ll play the optimist for a minute here, too:
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Nightlife has proven itself on the street. Zenith, Work and Anchor are all doing well. You’ve got Foundation and others.
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Fayetteville has one thing no other corner of Raleigh does — street activation during events. Stand at the corner of Davie or Hargett in the middle of WOB or Brewgaloo or Hopscotch. There’s clearly a lot of interest in orbit. I think this is where the case can be made for drinks-to-go.
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It’s still consistently walkable with great cross-street foot traffic already. When I lived at The L, I’d walk Davie, Martin, Hargett daily without having to plan my trip around dead zones.
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All the reasons @dtraleigh mention, like convention recovery, new developments bringing residents in, etc.
Honestly, the biggest thing I’d change is to get some attractive dining options in the Isaac Hunters and Oxford/Wahlburgers spaces, build up that lower half of the street for the visitor/weekend crowd, and try to build on the proven nightlife case by drawing a sports bar or something the street doesn’t have today.
It’s important to remember, too, that Fayetteville doesn’t need to aspire to be Glenwood. The current tenants on the street would probably be first to remind us of that.
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A sports bar would be amazing. DTR doesn’t have a good one. Ale House is …fine? At least it has a view, but it’s not particularly packed or partisan even during Panthers or ACC tourny games when I’ve been there.
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Someone talk the Canes owner into opening a Canes themed bar/restaurant down there!
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RIGHT! “Caniac Cabana” or something lmao. Honestly I’m not even a hockey fan, nor would I ever go to a Canes themed bar/establishment… but I bet A TON OF PEOPLE WOULD!
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Tobacco Road is a great sports bar IMO
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I miss the street festivals. But, the pandemic and resident noise complaints killed those off.
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I’m a sucker for Woody’s. Something more like Tobacco Road’s setup would be a great addition to the street, though.
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You know I went once and didn’t like it, but it was also still in the teeth of COVID and serious social distancing. I should give it another shot.