Developer mum on his plans for lot



GREENSBORO -- What does developer Roy Carroll plan to do with the vacant lot north of his Center Pointe project downtown?

He won't say specifically.

But here's a hint.

The former Wachovia building -- where workers recently shifted from the demolition to the construction phase -- will have balconies on three sides, but not the north.

There won't even be windows on that side of the $37 million rehab project.

"Everything we have looked at doing at Center Pointe, we have kept an eye on that lot," Carroll said. " ... A building could be built on it in the future .... There are always dreams."

Beyond that, Carroll won't say more.

Currently, he's using the lot as a staging area for Center Pointe, a complex of condos, offices and retail at the corner of Friendly Avenue and North Elm Street.

Once the project is finished, he'll use the lot for parking for people who live in the building.

But downtown officials anticipate bigger and better uses for what has become one of the city's prime pieces of property.

"It's the only real vacant lot that overlooks Center City Park," said Ray Gibbs, president of Downtown Greensboro Inc. "It is a size that could be developed for something significant."

For now, Carroll said, he's focused on the project at hand.

Recently, the crane on the north side of the building began lowering the first of 156 balconies into place.

The largest of the slabs of concrete and steel weighs about 15,000 pounds and measures about 15 feet deep and 10 feet wide. Ten feet of that depth will be attached inside the building, with 5 feet extending over the sidewalks.

Another sign of construction is the erection of a hoist on the North Elm Street side of the building. With an 6,000-pound lifting capacity, it will be used to transport workers and material.

The building's transformation has given sidewalk superintendents plenty to ogle.

Rico Cantey, a 47-year-old city employee, said he's kept track of the project from the beginning, stopping by six times a month to photograph the progress.

"I look forward to seeing the finished work," Cantey said Monday. "But the process is more important. It's more exciting."

So far, Carroll said, the project remains on schedule.

"The surprise is that we haven't hit more surprises," he said. "For the most part, everything ... seems to be rolling smoothly."

This could be the future skyline
http://www.downtownstadium.org/CPphase2.jpg
http://www.downtownstadium.org/CPphase3.jpg

If I tell you that I am dying with anticipation you may not believe me :lol: Seriously, I can't wait for you guys to get something like that. If built - or should I say 'when built'? - this twin tower will do miracles for GSO's skyline. Can't say how much I appreciate the two renderings you put together :okay: Have you taken a screenshot of the rendering with the triangular crowns on the top of both towers? You posted a link a while back. I might have a screenshot saved in my older hard drive, but I have to look for it very carefully.

http://greensboring.com/pod/park_central_plaza.jpg

Lets hope this happens. It would greatly enhance our skyline and we need it:okay:

g-man, you are da man!!! That is the rendering I saw :okay: Thanks for posting it here.

^^:) You're quite welcome.

Thank You Raleigh-NC, If downtown Greensboro had a couple 30-story towers, the skyline would be the bomb. But dont forget...there is a highrise courthouse project on hold that will been anywhere from 15 to 20 stories tall. After a couple highrise projects, we'll se a dramtic change in Greensboro's skyline.

I personally would like to see a more intersting second tower. One thats not box shaped but has the same architecture/styling cues as Center Pointe. Maybe even something thats cylindrical with pertruding windows or cylindrical shape inside a box. The only NC tower that is cylindrical is that hotel in downtown Raleigh. So a tower that shape and height would be rare and would immediatly stand out as a signature tower.

Very cool. :yes:

Very cool. :yes:

cool..you are from Newberry?....im a map maker and I just completed a layout of Newberry, SC :)

here are some more rendering of Center Pointe

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o35/tljo/CP20071.png
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o35/tljo/CP20072.png
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o35/tljo/CP20073.png
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o35/tljo/CP20074.png
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o35/tljo/CP20075.png
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o35/tljo/CP20076.png
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o35/tljo/CP20077.png

cityboi, I think that the next stop for GSO's skyline will be 30 stories, or above. You guys deserve it :yes: Then, we can talk about 15-20 story fillers :lol:

cityboi, I think that the next stop for GSO's skyline will be 30 stories, or above. You guys deserve it :yes: Then, we can talk about 15-20 story fillers :lol:

lol That would be something if the fillers were 20 stories!

on the webcam you can see some of the balconies being put in place

http://gsowebcam.wcsr.com/
http://gsowebcam.wcsr.com/images/webcam/Camera1.jpg

:lol:

Seriously, if you get 1-2 high-rises around 30 floors, anything between 15 and 20 floors would be a filler. I think that GSO has reached the point when developers have to think bigger and taller, before land becomes scarce and too expensive. GSO has a great street-level feel, and the skyline is also nice, although one may argue that more high-rises are needed. Personally, I "sound-proof" myself to filter out all the skeptics who question the financial viability of a 30+ story tower in GSO. It can be done and done well. Sometimes you do not need major relocations. There is an abundance of older buildings in DT Greensboro that could be converted into lofts, thus creating more demand for office space in the future.

If y'all take the same path with Raleigh - it is wise, in this case - you will have major success attracting mixed-use projects. Let's not forget that Raleigh's population was about 260,000 when the two current tallest towers (along with another one that didn't materialize) were actually proposed. Today, GSO's skyline is far better than Raleigh's back in the late 80's and prior to 1991. My apologies for the distraction, but just to give you a good idea, let me provide a list of some mixed-use proposals for DT Raleigh that could easily work in DT Greensboro:

RBC Plaza (32 stories; offices, condos, retail)
Reynolds Tower (32 stories; offices, hotel, condos, retail)
Site One - North Tower (20 stories; offices, condos, retail)
Lafayette (21 stories; hotel, condos, retail)

I think that DT Greensboro has to pursue more mixed-uses and conversions, as opposed to single uses, not that the city's leaders need to hear me saying it :) One of the many things I love about Elm Street is the nice blend of retail and entertainment venues. It should not be hard to push for mixed-use towers after having created such a great street-level feel. Uptown Charlotte could have been a good example, but the size of the city and the huge presence of corporate entities allow the Queen City to take a different approach. At this point in time, they can get a 50-story single-use tower without any problem. Winston-Salem's skyline is also an exception, but today they would have had great difficulties in getting another Wachovia's tower without a major relocation.

In brief, once the Center Pointe and Triad Tower become success stories, many attitudes will change. High-rise living is feasible and soon will become the norm for young professionals, as well as people who desire urban living at its best.

you guys are so lucky to have people like Koury and Carroll. we need more people like them over in Winston.

:lol:

Seriously, if you get 1-2 high-rises around 30 floors, anything between 15 and 20 floors would be a filler. I think that GSO has reached the point when developers have to think bigger and taller, before land becomes scarce and too expensive. GSO has a great street-level feel, and the skyline is also nice, although one may argue that more high-rises are needed. Personally, I "sound-proof" myself to filter out all the skeptics who question the financial viability of a 30+ story tower in GSO. It can be done and done well. Sometimes you do not need major relocations. There is an abundance of older buildings in DT Greensboro that could be converted into lofts, thus creating more demand for office space in the future.

If y'all take the same path with Raleigh - it is wise, in this case - you will have major success attracting mixed-use projects. Let's not forget that Raleigh's population was about 260,000 when the two current tallest towers (along with another one that didn't materialize) were actually proposed. Today, GSO's skyline is far better than Raleigh's back in the late 80's and prior to 1991. My apologies for the distraction, but just to give you a good idea, let me provide a list of some mixed-use proposals for DT Raleigh that could easily work in DT Greensboro:

RBC Plaza (32 stories; offices, condos, retail)
Reynolds Tower (32 stories; offices, hotel, condos, retail)
Site One - North Tower (20 stories; offices, condos, retail)
Lafayette (21 stories; hotel, condos, retail)

I think that DT Greensboro has to pursue more mixed-uses and conversions, as opposed to single uses, not that the city's leaders need to hear me saying it :) One of the many things I love about Elm Street is the nice blend of retail and entertainment venues. It should not be hard to push for mixed-use towers after having created such a great street-level feel. Uptown Charlotte could have been a good example, but the size of the city and the huge presence of corporate entities allow the Queen City to take a different approach. At this point in time, they can get a 50-story single-use tower without any problem. Winston-Salem's skyline is also an exception, but today they would have had great difficulties in getting another Wachovia's tower without a major relocation.

In brief, once the Center Pointe and Triad Tower become success stories, many attitudes will change. High-rise living is feasible and soon will become the norm for young professionals, as well as people who desire urban living at its best.

You make excellent points and I couldnt agree with you more. Once one developer does it and does it successfully, other developers will follow with similar projects. Like Governor's Court in downtown Greensboro. It was the first lowrise condo development to be built downtown. After its development, other lowrise condo projects quickly followed. Once Roy Caroll Builds something along 30-stories, I thing Greensboro will get over that hump and highrise living will become more familiar with Greensboro residents and its young professionals.

you guys are so lucky to have people like Koury and Carroll. we need more people like them over in Winston.

yea. That would be nice. But I do wish Koury Corp would invest in downtown Greensboro. If Koury Corp did for downtown what its done for other areas of the city, the downtown would much further along today. Koury Corp needs to jump into the downtown market.

cityboi I also forgot to mention that long before these proposals were even presented, Raleigh officials focused on street level activity, which resulted to the creation of Downtown Raleigh Alliance and the addition of two major entertainment districts: The Warehouse District and Glenwood South. Likewise, GSO focused on, and successfully revitalized Elm Str. After bringing the people back to the center of the city, GSO's officials can pursue additional investments (i.e. high-rises), which is not going to be difficult when developers see all these people flooding DT Greensboro. That is why I am confident that GSO will get a major tower, soon. The timing is right :okay:

I certainly agree!

here is a photo I found on the internet thats shows part of the balconies being put in place of Center Pointe

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/149/425486608_54e3794371.jpg
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/173/425167039_35eba0247b.jpg

if the second tower isnt built as a taller twin to Center Pointe, I wouldnt mind at all seeing something like this 30-story residential building. Greensboro really needs to step up with much bolder and cosmopolitan tower designs. The kind of the designs that say "big city"
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/145/413829149_f7e50793e3.jpg

here is a 34-story residential tower. Somthing similar to this would be very nice as well.
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/157/413831703_d221554a66_o.jpg

Thanks for the construction update photos :okay: I agree with you, the designs you posted would certainly scream "big city". The second rendering, especially, would look perfect!!!

Im guessing that the side of Center Pointe that will have no balconies or windows would appear as if it has windows from the outside. It certainly wouldnt be a totally blank side.

When the demand is there and the numbers are right, it will come. ;)

I'll post this here as well since this thread contains some Center Pointe-related discussion:

I edited a preexisting thread and designated it as the official Center Pointe (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=403737) thread. Feel free to post info/updates regarding this project in that thread.