These pictures are awesome, thank you! The pictures of the downtown skyline actually help make Raleigh look larger, as in matching the population…Lol
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Does anyone have the ability to take a skyline picture of downtown and make a mock of the projects that have been announced so we can have the ability to see what we can expect our skyline to look like in the near future? I know that’s a lot to ask for someone to just do in their free time but I feel like I’ve seen it done before and it would be cool to have a visual to look at of downtown including a rough sketch of 301, 400h, Edison, go triangle towers, FNB, Peace, Two Glenwood etc. etc etc. Pretty much everything that looks like it is going to be happening soon. If only I was that skilled with Photoshop. Or paint lol.
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I Love this view of DTR. The parking lot across from Charter Square would be an ideal stop to put a 30 story tower there to fill in that edge of DTR, But that is Just me dreaming.
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Hi team
Have followed this site since my days in California. Very informative. Regarding retail in DTR. As a few others stated before, it’s not the same anymore, however, some BIGBOX chains have discussed ways of becoming more urban friendly. My recollection is WalMart and/orTarget as leading the charge. Another option would be to attract a few major outlets into the DT area. Lastly, I do think the city made a HUGH MISTAKE when it built the PNC arena on the outskirts of town and not the city center. There went the foot traffic on any given night.
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Unfortunately it wasn’t the city’s decision to build the arena there, it was NC State. 
but hopefully in a very near future some sort of sporting venue gets built downtown, the NCFC stadium aka an MLS team.
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MLS expansion only has one spot left. I would be very surprised if Sacramento doesn’t receive it. Was really hoping Raleigh would get one of the four expansion teams. I think are best bet is the Hurricanes moving downtown after the lease at PNC arena runs out.
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@GucciLittlePig
Thank you!
Perfect picture for the perfect time of year… 
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That shorter portion is/was a separate building. I knew Sir Walter was built in two phases but had never seen a pic until OldeRaleigh posted one recently. The corner of Salisbury and Davie was one of those single car, Spanish Mission gas stations like at Oberlin Fairview or City Market. Anyway, if Sir Walter ever became a hotel again, I’d like to see that shorter portion returned to a separately used building of some sort with some ground floor retail. Salisbury has a little bit of retail now and making spaces for more is the only way to get more.
Nice Pic. Between 1912 and 1924. I’m blanking on which Governor’s house was at the site of Sir Walter though…
This is about DTR’s peak in my mind…roaring twenties…before the American dream kicked in post WWII. Though the loss of the Second Empire Courthouse was pretty horrible. Why are their people on the roofs everywhere? Is it a Thorton Marye open house or something?
What are we looking at here? I am not sure I can id any of the buildings, especially the one in the right center set back from the street. Is that the County Courthouse? As I look at it, that might make sense. A little help please!
pBeez: looking south…wilmington st on left, fayetteville center, salisbury on the far right…few buildings in the pic are still standing…beasley’s and mecca in the bottom left corner, post office mid right, briggs is bottom right…the sir walter block is the residential area in the upper right corner…
Mark: Your guess is as good as mine as to why they’re on the rooftops, maybe an airshow??..was it Governor Fowle’s house??
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Yeah Governor Fowle. (I an not well versed in most Governor’s though I’ve been trying to David Stones landing on the Neuse in my spare time…so I know him.
So, any chance that you have this same shot at about 1900 or so? I am fairly certain the 1795 Wake Courthouse was moved to the SE corner of Wilmington and Davie when the one seen on Drie was built (1830 something, later enlarged). That 1795 courthouse was used as a hotel according to Elizabeth Murray and Drie shows a hotel there (so as of 1871). Sanborns shows a wooden building there labeled as a hotel fairly early(1884 maybe), still there in 1903 but gone in 1909. So a photo of that intersection 1903 or earlier would yield a picture of the 1795 courthouse. We’d then have pictures of every courthouse except the Bloomsbury/Lane site log structure. Your photo shows a brick building, either being demolished (not likely since it’d be sort of new then) or being built.
Thanks for any insight and cheers.
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There’s a lot of history in that aerial photo. The L-shaped prewar building left of center is the former Commercial National Bank tower. The PNC tower now occupies that block.
Across the street to the right is the former Citizens National Bank. The First Citizens bank building (the one that has no windows facing Fayetteville street) is on that site.
The narrow building at the bottom was the Raleigh Metropolitan Hall now occupied by 227 Fayettevile. These three buildings are, in my opinion, are the types of buildings that should have been preserved at all cost.
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OMG, that Raleigh Metropolitan Hall should have been saved. It reminds me of Faneuil Hall/Quincy Marketplace in Boston. What a loss.
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I had no idea about Raleigh Metropolitan Hall. But that does help explain why Market Plaza and Exchange Plaza are there mid block. I always wondered how/why these two Plazas were there. Mystery solved!!
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Exactly! I’m jealous of those string lights. 
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