Platform and Development at W Cabarrus/S Saunders

[Deb]

As reported in April, Kane Realty is under contract on this large property situated across the tracks from Union Station currently owned by Clancy & Theys. Kane’s preliminary plans include office and residential, possibly with restaurants and street level retail. This property is located in close proximity to existing single family homes, including those in historic Boylan Heights.

https://www.heraldsun.com/news/business/article207796994.html

There’s a rezoning meeting this evening at 6:30 pm at the Dillon (ninth floor). The developer wants to rezone from IX-7 to PD.

Clancy & Theys also owns another large property across the street from this one, so it will be interesting to see what eventually happens there, too.

[OakCityDylan]

This is very exciting given it’s proximity to The Fairweather!

[JosABanks]

Hopefully they’ll get rid of or at least muffle that annoying gas line and it would be really nice if there were something that connected this parcel to the other side of the tracks for pedestrians. Guessing it would be highly unlikely but with the eventual closing of Cabarrus between West and Dawson there will only be two ways to get across the tracks and into the warehouse district from the South Street/Dix area, over via Boylan Ave or under via Dawson.

[RobertSanderlin]

@Deb
Please forgive my ignorance, but what is PD?

[mike]

The West Street tunnel under the tracks will be the primary connection between South St area and Warehouse District.

[Deb]

Not ignorance at all! It’s a Planned Developing district, which seems to be pretty open to just about anything.

Per iMaps:

PD (Planned Development): This district is intended as a relief mechanism from the prescriptive standards of a general use zoning district. The PD District intended to be used to achieve a higher quality of project design than could be accomplished through the strict application of a general use district or set of general use districts, without adversely impacting the adequate facilities required to serve the property and surrounding area.

[JosABanks]

Yeah but that’s still a ways off and it will have it’s own issues like not having a pedestrian exit for Davie Street.
Hopefully they maintain a pedestrian crossing across the tracks at Cabarrus once they close it off to vehicles.

[mike]

The RUS Bus station website had an interesting massing for this site… especially considering how accurate the rest of their massings matched the proposed developments…

[Deb]

Kane didn’t have a lot of details to offer at the neighborhood meeting last week. They are requested rezoning to Planned Development as mentioned earlier. This means they can create a master plan that supposedly will allow more customization and specificity than other standard zoning categories. They’re planning to hold neighborhood meetings to gather input from surrounding residents.

It looks like they’ll be asking for 7 stories of residential along Dupont and Cabarrus (yellow) and 20 stories of office space in the northeast quadrant of the property along West and the railroad tracks (blue).

The natural gas substation at the corner of Cabarrus and Dupont will have to remain because it supplies gas to all of the surrounding areas.

Also, Councilor Crowder was in attendance and confirmed that the West Street Extension is not likely to happen any time soon. Kane didn’t indicate any inclination for a public-private partnership to try to help in that regard, either, but he did acknowledge that opening West Street (especially if the Cabarrus RR crossing is closed) would be in their interest.

[orulz]

The PD submittal is now up on the city’s website:

Z-028-18.pdf

This looks about right to me for size/scope.

The one condition I would try to impose on this is to get the developer to build the buildings along West to meet the future grade of the West Street sidewalk as it goes under the railroad tracks. This will make this grade separation feel less like an awful tunnel.

[Francisco]

This is the best we can hope for. However it’s sad that every building in DTR will basically be just a parking lot with a hat.

[Kevin]

Not bad! I do like how it transitions in density. Wish they had less parking, especially being so close to Union Station.

[Straggler]

I’ve always thought the warehouses along Dupont would develop over time. The parking deck here might be helpful if that were to ever happen since there’s a lot of warehouse space but basically only street parking.

[evan.j.bost]

I too see those warehouses as primetime future renovated retail/restaurant space

[Deb]

I’ve heard rumors that some of the current tenants on Dupont (along the RR tracks) are preparing to vacate, probably in anticipation of the property being sold.

[Phil]

If by developed you mean demolished - I’m sure you won’t have to wait too much longer.

[evan.j.bost]

With historic boylan right there? Seems there needs to be a step down from Kane’s PD to century old residential. Renovated warehouse turned retail would be

[Marco]

Wait, let me guess, 20 stories right? Ummmhummm

Just like that 20 story over there, or that 20 story over here. Nice horizontal skyline you are making there Raleigh. That 20 story fast track review is pushing developers to limit height capacity. How about we add a 20 - 25 story expedited clause?

[RobertB]

At this point I would rather have density than height. Height will come.

[RobertSanderlin]

I personally think that 20 stories would be awesome! Also I think with that this is in reality a negotiation strategy and you start at the most and then settle or compromise and in this case we’ll end up with 18…
JK did it with the NIMBYs for his Dillon project and there will be those who think that this is no place for 20 stories…back around to compromise. I believe that you can have (and should have) both height and density. One should not be exclusive of the other.