I wonder if some of the more corporate tenants on Wake Forest have some ridiculously long contract that keeps that area from being redeveloped.
Keeping up with my disappointment with recent development or planned development in this area, I think the new Midtown East shops in front of the Wegmans was a massive failure in terms of potential. Besides the obvious missed opportunity for a dense mixed-use space, the setup of the stores was a horrible choice. Instead of the streets in the middle of the shops, they could of had a inner courtyard with tables/trees/decorations. Sort of like a smaller Lafayette Village. As it is now, the place isn’t inviting at all, and is just another car based strip mall. From the early renderings, it made it seem like it would be pedestrian friendly and inviting to eat outside or walk around.
Also, in the mall thread which got a little off topic, there was some discussion on the new designation of “Midtown”. I think everything from North Hills, down Six Forks to Wake Forest, down to Whitaker Mill, over to Peden Steel, everything west of Capital up until and including Highwoods Blvd, and across St. Albans back to North Hills is a good area to market as “midtown” and invite denser development with pedestrian friendly characteristics. The large apartments, which are east of Atlantic already changed their names to have “Midtown East” in it.
4 Likes
Agreed on both counts. The shops in the front are a very weird arrangement. They should have done mixed use. 5 story apartments over ground floor retail. Similar to NH East.
3 Likes
All I see is parking, parking, parking. Makes me long for the days of the Country Club Plaza in Kansas City.
Where’s the parking?
It’s largely in the middle or on top. The experience forces the shopper to ditch the vehicle for the streetscape experience. J C Nichols figured this out in 1923. But, yet, we still get islands in the asphalt. Ugh!!
7 Likes
I was noticing in the Midtown / St. Albans Report that the plan envisions buildings up to 12 stories with anything over 5 stories encouraged to include a portion of affordable housing.
What’s interesting about this ‘Midtown Waterfront Park’ area is not only the activation of a good chunk of urban Crabtree Creek as a part of the public space, but the conversion of a road called, of all things, Industrial Drive, as a new ‘urban greenway’.
That’s quite the change in roles - from an area known for 1-story industrial buildings to a dense area with housing, workspaces, and a new park along a developed waterway. With a couple of new pedestrian bridges!
17 Likes
It would open up the likely of redevelopment all along Hodges and Atlantic also. I’m a firm believer in the path of less resistance, and this area is perfect location wise, price wise, existing use wise, and with a lack of single fam hones to experiment with this type of large scale development with a focus on ped/bike and quality of life factors.
Side note: I’m not sure how a “pedestrian connector” running smack dab through the middle of a busy Costco parking lot will work out.
3 Likes
I guess the Southern States dealerships are going to move or am I missing something?
1 Like
God I hope so. What a waste of land.
4 Likes
Plus it floods pretty regularly down there, and they have to move all of the cars when it does. Seems like a terrible spot for that reason alone.
It would actually be pretty cool if that area were developed in a way similar to how we build at the coast anticipating that it will flood in that it’s just a normal part of building property there. I’d love to go to a bar by boat in Raleigh during a Crabtree flood
2 Likes
Just a side note that the entire ‘urban park’ area is an old landfill and an unlined one at that. An old neighbor of mine on Noble Road (who fought in WWII old) said the swamps down in there were filled in as landfills specifically for the car dealerships.
2 Likes
Not going anywhere, I know the owner well.
I had no idea they straightened out that big part that used to dip south. That’s where the hockey rink is that floods even in mild rain storms so that makes sense.
You can see from some of the undeveloped around off Crabtree creek in that area just how marshy and swampy it was/is.
I was actually envisioning a conservation area/waterfowl park down in there somewhere that is replanted or returned to its more or less pre Colombian look. Add some walking trails that connect to the greenway proper and it might be nice.
4 Likes
That would be awesome.
1 Like
https://www.bizjournals.com/triangle/news/2020/06/26/raleigh-real-estate-firms-linking-up-for.html
Business Journal: “Plans include up to 500 residential units and as much as 400,000 square feet of commercial space east of Five Points in Raleigh”
2 Likes
I saw this but wasn’t able to read it (let my subscription lapse for now) and incognito mode no worky. Anyone able to provide some info assistance?
