Matt,

This is yet-another rewarding collection of photos and I want to thank you for it!!! Glad to see you included several shots from my favorite angle: the Duke Raleigh Hospital deck!!! Loved the wide angle shot from the top of Clarion Hotel, too.

Whooo hooooo!

Nightfall shots are fantastic and I love that shot of the West at North with the Q taking up the whole left side. This is really the first series I’ve seen in awhile with many extended skyline views - it looks like you have been doing a little exploration for some new creative vantage points, Matt. That last photo is particularly worth looking at over and over again. Thank you for everything.

Matt,
One of your best yet. You take excellent railroad photos as well as skyline photos.
I am glad you added the Glenwood south skyline, which will be expanding over the coming years.
And I always like the view from the Duke Raleigh Hospital Parking Deck.
That first photo makes Raleigh look like a big city. The Edison will make Raleigh look even bigger.

Awesome!! The one shot with the train arm going down/up with the shot of the train coming on jones street with 222 glenwood in the background is just awesome!

Ok call me crazy right now, but I know Matt doesn’t have this kind of magic…

In the shot with the Berkeley Cafe sign, underneath the window, there are two wood panels. Tell me, does the one on the left look like a painting of a man between the knees and neck? And if he had a head, I picture him with an afro. Please do not ask me what I do on my spare time.

The Boylan Heights view and the mystery angle would be awesome places for redevelopment. I’d pay top dollar for those elevated, backdrop views of the skyline outside my window or off my deck!! And JR, you ARE crazy, but I agree the wood panel on the left looks like the backside of a naked dude.

i want more pics!!!!!

Hey Matt, I was watching WRAL tonight and I could have sworn I saw one of your pictures used as a back drop. It wasn’t one of these, it was one of your older pictures. I know they’ve used your pictures without permission before. Be on the look out.

Ya know what would be cool? A new rendering from the ‘Overview of Raleigh and “the Hillsborough” site from the Clarion’ angle adding all the new buildings from that view of the city. What a neat shot there.

That is AMAZING photography! Great great pics.

WHAT’S THE LATEST HOLDUP ON THE REYNOLDS (HILLSBOROUGH STREET) PROJECT?

The developers are revising the design - not size - of the building and they are finalizing the details on the financial aspect. As you can imagine, these days lenders are VERY skeptic and reluctant to loan money when they hear of condos. From what I heard, the cost of the tower has skyrocketed and the developers are taking one final look in the design.

As some of you might have heard, an alternative design for Lafayette is also being considered. Not the architecture and size, but rather the uses. The developer wants to have the flexibility to add more hotel space and bring the minimum number of condos to half the current one. He said that he still anticipate what is proposed, but he wants to be flexible, in case the lender feels reluctant about the residential part. There will be a 5 month delay, which is also associated with the environmental clean-up of the site - sounds like the city officials are dragging their feet. So, by 2010 we should have Charter Square (former City Site One) and Lafayette finished, with The Edison following in 2012… Assuming everything goes well.

why dont they just turn some of these developments into highrise apartment buildings instead of condos… not everybody can afford condos especially now! why do they keep proposing condos? we need a developer that will bring a project of about 30- 35 stories of nothing but apartments, i guarantee that the project would not be delayed nearly as much as these ones with condos. and another thing, somebody needs to renovate the outside of the wachovia building and put some new lights on the exterior so we can see the damn thing at night! this thing is invisible at night and dusk. i think raleigh’s buildings downtown lack significant lighting as well, you’ll be surprised how much better downtown highrises would look if they had good lighting at night. matt needs to give them a picture of one of his photography shoots and tell them to make the current buildings look like that. if raleigh’s skyline really resembled like it does in matt’s rendering it would look three times better.

laryea,

I am in total agreement with what you said, both about apartment buildings and a well-lit skyline. I, as well, cannot understand the obsession with condos. I know that The Tucker (formerly known as 712 Tucker) went from a condo-apartment hybrid to 100% apartment building, with 179 units. Of course, they could have proposed a high-rise building for the Eastern half of that parcel, leaving the rest for some future transitional projects, but the developer doesn’t seem to have the guts, or the financial backing, to deliver something like that. Sure, I like The Tucker, but it is a waste of space. Of course, the price of going up, as opposed to building a low-rise, is vast, but your suggestion should be considered more seriously in the future.

As for the skyline, it certainly isn’t as impressive as it could be, partly because of its “dark” appearance during the evening hours. I can see how the owners wish to save a few bucks here and there, but this is only a drop in the ocean, I think. yes, conserve energy, but don’t place expensive buildings in the downtown area, only to make them nearly invisible during the night. I assume this will change - thanks to RBC Plaza - but not until after the latter opens its doors officially.

According to the N&O, Wachovia is finally adding signage to there building

UPDATE: The Hillsborough has hit some obstacles in financing The lenders are now requiring 35% up front, instead of 20% that used to be the case before. So, this project is delayed until financing is secured. I hope that the developers realized that all these delays over the last 2 years might have cost them more than just financing. I am truly unhappy for the latest developments and I hope they find a quick fix to this problem. According to the agreement, April 1st is when they are supposed to break ground, officially. The price tag for this project is $65 million.

they will never build this thing i guarantee it….

OK, the third picture down might be one of the coolest photos I have seen!

I have heard of plans for a mid-rise in Powerhouse Square, is this true? That would look really awesome alongside the QC.

That is the Powerhouse Plaza project. 10 stories of hotel and office space. Site plans have been submitted and I do not see any reasons to worry about delays due to financing. The mid-rise will be located across from 42nd Str Oyster Bar (to the East).