Some photos from the blog post I just published on this. I have more to share later.
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I may have missed it but I’m not seeing this on here. This is my own mash up of two site plans.
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So they’ve gotten rid of the skybridge link on the 4th and 5th floors of the office buildings? Wonder if a larger tenant that had wanted both buildings fell through? Or just cutting costs?
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Nice recap of the projects here. It makes sense to have development here vis a vis Union station, but only if the West Street extension actually comes to fruition. In the current state, there is no public right of way directly connecting this area to the warehouse district. Yes, you can cut through the depot, but it’s not really meant for that purpose.
I doubt Kane would invest in this area is there’s a chance the West Street extension won’t happen, but it’s a little concerning that it doesn’t even seem to be on the radar at this point. It would be great if West Street could be done in conjunction with this development instead of after the fact.
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I normally don’t pander to the doom and gloom of parking decks, but man that deck in that location is a huge missed opportunity! That corner delivers great views of DT…and the deck should absolutely have retail facing Dupont circle. I’ve always imagined Dupont circle as a thriving neighborhood retail/restaurant strip similar to N. Person st. But a 1k car deck right on the curve there kinda kills the dream
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According to Bonner, the plan is to have retail in the entire first floor, including along Dupont.
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Is there a section cut along West St. floating around somewhere?
I’m wondering if this drawing actually does allow for a West St. extension. The optimistic part of me can’t tell if the white edges around West St. and the road to the northeast of Building 1 is a curb or a retaining wall.
I’m sure it will be nice, but this plot plan doesn’t look to drive any connectivity between this development and the old flex/warehouse buildings there on the north side of the circle.
There is an elevation drawing up the thread a bit. The developer is regrading West to match the grade on the north side of the tracks for the future tunnel. One parking deck entrance will be here, so they’re either taking a big gamble that the extension will in fact happen or they know it will happen.
@evan.j.bost, I definitely agree with you on that. Not sure what the future holds for those small warehouses on Dupont.
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Sorry, all I see is a shadow pointing towards Boylan Heights. 
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I get that the West Street extension would make things more connected but I don’t see why NOT having the tunnel really changes anything from a walking/transit-use point-of-view. The Depot does have a sidewalk along the fence on the western side, I see nothing wrong with using it. I mean this is a 10-minute walk to a transit (rail and bus) future hub.
My point is that I’m not sure that having the tunnel in place is going to create an increase in transit use from the developments on the 500-block of W Cabarrus.
For clarity, I’m in the minority and still skeptical on the West Street extension’s value-add here.
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I think it adds value in the opposite direction…from RUS to that side of the city…?
I think I need more here, that’s all. Cost mainly. Pedestrian and bike bridges and paths through the tracks would be highly effective at a fraction of the cost.
Sorry, I was thinking more of access to that side of the tracks more by car and bus…
Bike/walking of course a lot cheaper without…
Great blog post, @dtraleigh
1,075 spaces for parking is … a lot of spaces for parking! 
I actually cut through The Depot for exactly this purpose pretty much every work day. You can certainly do it, but it’s definitely not at all ideal. I’ve got to cross the railroad tracks, there are (for obvious reasons) no sidewalks on either side of that part of Cabarrus, I’ve got to do a ton of zigging and zagging, and The Depot’s parking lot is quite annoyingly full of cobblestones. (You’d almost think they’re trying to discourage people from doing what I’m doing.)
Extending West Street under the tracks would turn a terrible bike/pedestrian experience into a really great bike/pedestrian experience, while simultaneously improving connectivity for cars and buses leaving the new RUSbus Station as well. That’s pretty cool to be able to enhance all four methods of mobility with the same improvement. Definitely a worthwhile endeavor, IMO, especially with all of the development going up on Lenoir and South Streets that’s currently a little cut off from the rest of downtown.
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The at grade crossing of the railroad tracks is closing at some point as the plan is to close all of the at grades in downtown eventually. Ideally they’ll hold off until West St is dealt with but if they don’t then this becomes even more of a pain to get around.
There’s already been one death at that crossing in the past 3 months or so, while it may not have been accidental, it would be better if there were at least pedestrian/bike crossings over the tracks until the tunnel is built.
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They’ve said the Cabarrus St at-grade crossing closes only if the West St connection is made.
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Sure but they say lots of things and then change their mind.
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Yes, that’s definitely a factor. I think I’d rather take connecting West for cars and closing Cabarrus. Hopefully, both connections can remain for peds and bikes.
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Yes, you can walk through the Depot, and I do it daily. You can also bike through, but it’s not exactly pleasant with the cobblestones. However, the Depot is private property, so they could technically restrict this through traffic or even redevelop the parking lot at any time (i.e., it’s not a public right of way). Not to mention the at-grade crossing (that plenty of others have mentioned) being fairly dangerous. I’ve also been blocked by a freight train that was stopped across the road for an extended period of time on a few occasions. It is a flawed connection that needs a long-term solution. And let’s not forget the current north-south dead end at RUS, which to me is kind of ridiculous.
It may not increase transit use from this development, but maybe it will. People psychologically have an easier route if it’s a straight line. The less mental (and actual) friction, the better. Weaver Street Market is learning this the hard way because people mentally don’t want to park in a parking deck to grocery shop even though it’s free and they can pick up their groceries curbside.
I took a closer look at the Appearance Commission Administrative Alternate Request for this project (beware, it’s a 60+ MB PDF), and noticed that West St is considered an urban connection from Devereaux Meadows to Dix Park. I think this makes sense for connecting these two areas of the city, especially considering the bike facilities that are in the works. I’d say that plus not having a dead-end street at RUS is a pretty good long-term value-add. 
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