How are we worried about parking decks from a few early renderings? Seems like we’re focusing on the wrong thing, the big thing is getting a very good hotel on the street with the most trouble being activated.
Also…hotels need parking.
18 Likes
I think the developers should go taller
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The Omni OKC hotel contains 605 rooms and doesn’t look very impressive. I guess you don’t need much. 17 stories, 214 feet tall.
The Raleigh one will be taller simply because of the limited base.
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The addition of 500 hotel rooms within walking distance from the Raleigh Convention Center is essential to the success of the center’s approved expansion plans, according to the city.
An estimated 1,790 hotel rooms are already in the pipeline for Downtown Raleigh, though those projects are not located close enough to the convention center, according to the Downtown Raleigh Alliance.
I’m a little confused by what they consider “Close enough” for hotels with regards to the new convention center. It seems like that is a big part of actually getting events, but off the top of my head it doesn’t seem like many convention centers I’ve been to have all THAT many hotels within walking distance.
Orlando comes to mind - which is #1 or #2 in the country - and every time I’ve gone i’ve had to literally walk across a highway to get there from my hotel.
Does anyone know what the cut off is for measuring this?
Also seems like a mistake to not choose someone who was going to build 40 stories. Don’t know why that was not a prerequisite after the rezoning
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Omni brand will do conference ‘activation’ well but they’re not really known for ‘wow’ design…
This will fill that 1 ac ‘hotel’ site between Salisbury and Faye well.
Still might get and need more wow for the other 1ac+ lot that was slated for multi-use residential…? 
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Both sites were slated for “mixed-use”. This one was hotel + residential and the other was office + residential. So really, if the city wanted to get most bang for their buck they could try to push the developer to add 13 floors of residential to the top of this. I’m sure it would complicate the project but that would be closer to getting what they asked for.
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Still very worried about this one. Haven’t heard a peep about that demo yet even.
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The San Diego Omni Hotel is 32 stories tall BUT has condos as well. The hotel only occupies 11 floors.
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Just approved!
This was a key point in making the selection:
Certainty of Funding: Preston Hollow Community Capital and Omni have the capital to fund this project without any financing contingencies. In today’s world, both debt and equity for projects like this are almost non-existent.
I can’t overstate how important this is; they have their funding locked in. This project is actually getting built. They are ready to move as soon as contract is final and permits approved. I’ll share the concerns I’m reading here about design/height. But the renderings aren’t final, and Omni spends time to get to know a city and finds ways to make each hotel feel unique. This project is a big deal!
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Hah, oil cracks $100/barrel and the Dallas money immediately shows up. Even after spending all that cash covering SMU’s TV fees for the ACC 
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That really is an important distinction. Despite the hype/scaremongering in the media, very few of these large projects that got approved in the last few years are actually happening at the moment (or maybe ever) due to interest rates and other financial uncertainty.
Glad to see this approved!
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Omni would be great for us the second in the state and downtown it will make our city vibrant!!!
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Please Run again Johnthan Melton your Raleigh’s hero.
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Haha, I think that depends who you ask, I’ve been called other things too 
I’ll be on the ballot in 2024.
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100% agreed here. I’m not sure if it applies to construction, but observed momentum is also a big deal. Other construction projects currently sitting on their hands may be willing to kick things off when seeing timelines. Omni is a big name, and I’d imagine other projects will want to follow this momentum.
I’m super excited about the project. Also looking forward to filling in that blank space next-door. You can see Shaw on the map there too. I know that they’re looking to interweave their property with the fabric of downtown. This area will really begin to close those gaps.
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Great news for downtown. I like the part where it will actually get built. I used to worry about height and design, but I’d like to see Raleigh grow first and foremost.
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Now will you guys have control over design and floor count we all are surprised this isn’t 40 stories.
Yeah I wonder if the council can negotiate the design or whether he can build more stories.