Trying to hide a parking garage is the very definition of “putting lipstick on a pig”:
The city of Raleigh’s overall density is 2.07 households per acre. 1,299 units at typical Raleigh densities would usually require paving over 579 acres = Lake Johnson Park + Pullen Park, or almost 2X Dix Parks.
Probably just two-story apartment units with ground-floor entries to the outside. In theory, they could make nice live/work units for someone who wants an exterior entrance and some foot traffic (since the other side of the street will be retail) – and also useful for dog owners.