Raleigh Development News

[Raleigh-NC]

Let me post a few more up-to-date images of the skyline. Yes, I know, there is an obsession with the Dorothea Dix angle, but for good reasons, I think

The Raleigh View Rd is still one of my favorite spots for capturing the skyline. I simply love the density from that angle!!! Can anybody spot that stupid Marriott Hotel? Sorry, I couldn't resist

The goal behind taking this photo is not to show off my telephoto lens, but to demonstrate how important The Edison towers will be for the skyline. For those not certain about the location, the 38-story and 24-story towers will appear to the right of the photo, where the small red crane is. Personally, I am VERY anxious to see The Edison finished, in all its glory

Note: The distortion in the last photo was due to the temperature. Not very warm, but warm enough to "ruin" the photo. I will need to get back there when the temperature is cooler.

[g-man430]

Tux is not gay: http://forums.goupstate.com/eve/foru...5/m/5681031696

[South Street]

Raleigh-NC, pleasant surprise this morning - nice pictures as always. The first picture is really detailed in capturing a view of most of the commercial part of the downtown area. The lights are on all over the city. The contribution the RBC makes to the Raleigh skyline amazes me; the building is more impressive than I anticipated. Now about the Marriott, believe it or nor not, it looks good in this picture. Maybe there is hope yet as the finishing touches are applied. Thanks for your pictures on Feb. 5, of the sw corner of the Marriott. The columns appear too stout for only 4 floors, can't help but wonder if a future addition is planned for this building?
I share your anticipation for the Edison project, also eager for sites 1 & 4; and it is easy to visualize the new Judicial Center in your first photo. Lots of building activity to look forward to in Raleigh even if it seems to take forever.

[ncnative]

Originally Posted by South Street

Now about the Marriott, believe it or nor not, it looks good in this picture. Maybe there is hope yet as the finishing touches are applied.

I was thinking the same thing. Maybe there is hope afterall.

[Skyliner]

RaleighNC, those are freakin' fantastic photos of your current hometown's skyline!!! WOW! Great job!

[Raleigh-NC]

Glad you guys liked the pictures. Since I haven't posted any construction update photos lately, I figured I may redeem myself by posting some skyline update shots

[dbearhug]

Looking at the massing and composition of these wonderful skyline shots, here's an interesting thought that has come to mind about Raleigh's downtown resurgence. Those people who have paid a premium to live in the RBC Plaza, Quorum and West@North are going to be pretty upset when their presently unobstructed sky views are blocked by a neighboring tower. I've seen this debate in Chicago where condo owners pay a $10K premium and then see the resale value diminish by something nearby that is newer/better/brighter/taller/faster (insert the appropriate adjective). One way that some developers have done to protect their tenant's investment is to purchase the airspace rights around their properties (and I believe that Progress Energy may have done just that with Progress 2). The other way is to have the buildings playing hopscotch down the street. I apologize if this has been debated before, but I was curious about other's thoughts in this regard?

Peace and All Good

[Raleigh-NC]

Welcome to the forum, dbearhug

You are raising an excellent point. Raleigh does offer some nice views to any potential high-rise living urbanites. Could the developers buy the air rights? They certainly could, but here is the problem: Who is going to offer so much money? The value of the land must be offset, somehow. If I am an owner of a small parcel, there are two possibilities: 1) I receive an offer from a developer who wants to build a tower. 2) I receive an offer from a developer/owner from an adjacent structure, for air rights. Which one is going to be higher? I think the former.

N&O is trying to depress us more: Condo market goes sour. We already know about some of these projects, but I fail to see what is wrong. 630 North's reduction in the number of condos is nothing new, nor is the scale-down and stalling of Boylan Flats. 111 Seaboard has difficulties because of many reasons, some of which is the location - the existing fabric of the Seaboard Warehouses leaves much to be desired, IMHO. Great future, but the present conditions are still not helping. 111 Seaboard is more of a pioneer project in that area. Oh well, typical N&O pessimism

[g-man430]

Hey, you guys are turning into Greenville.

[Raleigh-NC]

With your help, we might even get Bob Ellis to come here and announce a few projects

Just a little update: In my possession I have a couple of initial renderings of the Clarence Lightner Public Safety Center, and they look good The city will go for LEED certification, which means the 15-story design could be equivalent to something around 20 floors. Rumor has it the city may post something tomorrow, most likely in their official website, or the Livable Streets page, so keep your eyes open. The renderings I have are on paper format, so I can't share them with y'all, but be patient for a day

[g-man430]

Oh god no. My eyes, my eyes. The horror.

[ncsugrad204]

The new Clarence Lighter Public Center Rendering. Eat it up BOYS

[ncnative]

Unbelievable! Hard to imagine something this nice coming to downtown, but then again, it has been long overdue.

If only it were a few stories taller.

[rickydavisfan21]

Originally Posted by ncnative

Unbelievable! Hard to imagine something this nice coming to downtown, but then again, it has been long overdue.

If only it were a few stories taller.

Are you serious? Maybe I missed something, or something is lost by the quality of the rendering, but I seriously think its nothing short of Fugly

[ncnative]

Originally Posted by rickydavisfan21

Are you serious? Maybe I missed something, or something is lost by the quality of the rendering, but I seriously think its nothing short of Fugly

To each his own! It's a city government blgd for god's sake. Let's be glad that it looks this promising. It could look much worse.

[Raleigh-NC]

Thanks, ncsugrad204!!! Here is the link to WRAL-5's online report, titled Raleigh Law Enforcement Center to Top $225 Million. Before anyone jumps ahead to any harsh criticism, PLEASE keep in mind that this is a VERY early design. The white section is very likely an area of the building that has not been decided how it will look yet. Also, if you look at the top right of the building, you may recognize something that looks like a transparent "fin", similar to The Hillsborough, about 3 floors tall. [Note: Both projects have been designed by the same firm.] Well, it is in fact a fin.

Personally, I am satisfied with the early concept and I hope that the final product will be even more impressive than expected. This is the kind of thinking we need for public projects. Modern, efficient and attractive. Not to mention this is proposed a highly energy-efficient project, which justifies the price tag. I know it won't satisfy everyone, but it is a public safety center, after all.

[Raleigh-NC]

One more detail: the adjacent building (City Hall) will eventually be replaced by something bigger, although it is still early to make this a topic for discussion.

[Quadrilateral]

I think it looks awesome. A good postmodern structure that isn't another featureless box on the outside.

[VISTA08]

I agee, it's really not a bad looking building.

[g-man430]

It's so ugly, it's fugly.