This is in the very early stages and is being done quietly. obviously the ultra-conservatives would choke on the thought of spending money on a new arena. part of this evaluation is including preliminary studies on what sports teams might call an arena home in addition to the Hurricanes. The NBA is obviously on the discussion list. Again, this is very early; most likely 10 years off before we’d even have anything built. any facility would require corporate/big money backing in addition to location, what type of building etc.

i know its hard to fathom blowing that building up but it is already nearly 10 years old. the old charlotte coliseum lasted less than 18.

DT Raleigh is an odd place. It doesn’t have as many historic mid-rises - normally perfect as fillers in the skyline and excellent opportunities for renovations - as one might expect from a capital city. Instead, we have several uninspiring buildings that still dominate the landscape (i.e. County Jail, Wake County Courthouse, Archdale Bldg, One Hannover Square). These buildings will have to be overwhelmed by better and taller structures, otherwise we’ll maintain an image that is unattractive and uninviting. It is not really about tall buildings, as much as it is about the opportunity to get the best of both worlds: nice-looking skyscrapers with excellent pedestrian feel.

Quite honestly, I am not afraid about the “ego buildings”. In a city as large (landwise) and spread out as Raleigh, there is more benefit in bringing walkability and urbanity in areas outside downtown, than being too worried about creating mediocre ground level experience in a few blocks. One walk around downtown and you will discover something very weird: Much of the pedestrian unfriendliness comes from poorly designed low-rises and mid-rises. All those great looking historic low-rises on the west side of the 200-block of Fayetteville Street look butt-ugly on the Salisbury Street side. There are many smaller buildings that have an awful impact at the street level. What I am trying to say is this: smaller buildings do not guarantee us pedestrian friendly experience, much like high-rises do not necessarily take away from the ground level activity. Right now, there is available land for redevelopment in DT Raleigh and we deserve something far greater than what we are getting, IMHO. In a few years we will only be left with smaller lots and from that point on it will be very hard to get iconic towers.

You make a good observation, though. Getting “ego buildings” for the sake of having an impressive skyline isn’t good when the street-level suffers. However, I will worry about this only after we get a few iconic towers and escape the mediocre image we have established as a result of the small-town syndrome of the past.

There is however a strategy to ‘more, smaller’ structures than just a few gargantuan buildings. it keeps more people closer to the streets. it doesn’t create an ‘eclipse’ of the sun which allows for a more pleasant street-life with some sunshine filtering onto the streets, cafes, and people. Think of Washnington, DC. granted, a much larger metropolitan area than anything in the South but no buildings are taller than the Washington Monument and the streets are lively and active.

i’m not suggesting that the City avoid more ambitious, taller, structures that help ‘fill-in’ the skyline but we should be careful about being so concerned with the ‘Ego buildings’. There is a lot of land Inside the Beltline. 150+ 15-35 story buildings versus 15 40-story buildings could make for an interesting skyline as well as a much more exciting street.

We should learn from the RBC Plaza project. The residential piece of this building has sold out (great job), it could have reached 40 or 50 stories (I would not have been surprised if all the additional units sold out).

Check the following links:

http://www.craigdavisproperties.com/images/cso_elevations.jpg

http://www.craigdavisproperties.com/images/citysiteone-west.jpg

http://www.craigdavisproperties.com/pages/cso.htm

The building to the left of the Quorum Center is The Winston proposal, is it not?