October 8th, 2008



Two Hannover Square


Raleigh View Road


Western Boulevard Overpass


Dorothea Dix


Charter Square Site


Density angle from Wilmington Street


Side of BB&T


Rock Quarry Road offramp angle


Fresh Air Raleigh


Western 2


Fayetteville Street


Hammond Road


Dorothea Dix at night


South Saunders


Closer Wilmington Street view


The Edison in the skyline from Wilmington Street

53 Responses to “Downtown Raleigh - October 8, 2008”

  1. KING of RALEIGH wrote:

    LOVING THE PHOTOS!!! THE EDISON RENDERING IS HOT!!

  2. Evan from Holly Springs wrote:

    Oh wow! I sure hope the Edison is built. It makes a great addition to Raleigh’s skyline. Looks exactly how I envisioned it.

  3. Ernest wrote:

    Such an amazing collection of photos!!! The weather has definitely helped a lot, but without good equipment and a great eye for details this would mean little. As boring as our skyline may be, you make it look pleasant. The addition of The Edison was an amazing feature of the last image :) We were looking forward to seeing an image that includes this wonderful vision and we got rewarded… Many thanks for putting this together, Matt.

  4. Travis wrote:

    Very cool Edison rendering. Something to be excited about for sure.

  5. Anonymous wrote:

    Cant wait to see the edison :-)

  6. NYC wrote:

    Hammond Rd, Wilmington Street, D. Dix at night and The Edison shot…..WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The night shot of D. Dix is actually a great look for DT Raleigh. That shot looks very full and dense to me for some reason.

    Thanks, Matt!!

  7. John wrote:

    As usual, great work Matt!! I wonder if that Wachovia sign will change to Wells Fargo or CitiBank.

  8. Ari wrote:

    I’m not going to waste my breath, using CAPS LOCK to explain my feelings towards your pictures. You know how I - we - feel. :) :) :)

    Also, that Edison rendering DEFINITELY susprised me! I love it though! Also, smart putting RaleighSkyline.com in brighter colors that usual, I can think of quite a few people who would love to steal it and call it their own.

  9. Matt H. wrote:

    The Edison rendering looks pretty good…I think that the Edison is kinda ugly, but beggars can’t be choosers, right?

  10. laryea wrote:

    damn boy you are the man!

  11. Jagblue81 wrote:

    does anyone know how much longer they are gonna keep that eyesore of dog food plant or whatever it is DT?

  12. Eric wrote:

    Wow that Edison rendering made me knees shake!!! Awesome work man!

  13. TC wrote:

    Rendering looks good, BUT, these buildings should NOT be the same height. I like the design, but they need to change the heights of EACH building (offset them) and change the design of each rooftop. This currrent design looks to repetitive, need to creative differnet heights and looks, thus, giving it the effect of density.

    I applaud them for the desing effort, but come on, we do not need twins on each side of the street. This group needs to look at this again. If they do not make changes, there is a serious lack of vision (also, do not make street level retail look like RBC Bank or Progress Energy, starting to look identical around every corner - do not need the cookie-cutter effect)

  14. dwntwnraly wrote:

    As always, amazing work. Downtown is lucky to have you cataloging its progress.

  15. KING of RALEIGH wrote:

    I agree with TC…and for the little factory (dogfood plant) ..I have been wondering for YEARS what’s going on with that place

  16. Ernest wrote:

    TC, as mentioned before, the final designs and height are subject to market conditions, not initial renderings and wishful thinking. Could, would, should… it is all speculations at this point. Let’s wait until the first tower gets build and we’ll see how the rest will evolve. Personally, I would love to see the two towers on Blount Str being twin, but the two taller ones having something unique. Several cities in the U.S. have similar tower that have difference tops, and they complement each other very well. For the moment, we only get to see the mass of The Edison and the direction the architectural details are going. The final word belongs to the market conditions, so don’t lose hope. At least one of the taller ones may end up even taller :)

  17. James K wrote:

    What is the status of the Edison, especially now with the economic situation? How far along in the process are they, and what is the likelihood it doesn’t happen…again with the economy like it is?

    Great pics!

  18. brandon wrote:

    raleigh may have to change it’s money shot angle!!!! i dont think the edison would really stand out as much from the south saunders angle if it gets built…what do you guys think?

  19. Ernest wrote:

    James K, The Edison is a solid project… Anything can go wrong, theoretically, but there is a serious developer behind this vision, with solid financing to support it. Unlike others, he makes little noise and believe me, I have faith in his ability to deliver the goods.

  20. flyer1965 wrote:

    my new favorite angle is Western Blvd overpass, especially the one with the headlights streaking
    WAY TO GO, awesome

  21. BMA wrote:

    The daytime Dorothea Dix shot should be the new postcards for Raleigh! I was at the airport flying out this week and the only postcard shots they had were of the RBC Ctr. Your photos are fantastic! How do we buy them???

  22. Ari wrote:

    The night one or the day one, flyer1965?

  23. Ari wrote:

    Excuse me, the EVENING one or the night one, flyer1965?

  24. Ernest wrote:

    flyer1965, did you say “streaking”? That reminded me of the movie “Old School”… I can picture Will Farell “streaking” on South Saunders Str, without any cars behind him, and Raleigh’s skyline in the background - use the two Western Blvd photos as your setting :LOL:

  25. jrd wrote:

    I think the new rendering with Edison from the Wilmington St. view will be even better than the rendering. With the two small towers having the same floor count as the second and third tallest in Raleigh and being built according to LEED standards, I think they will be way taller than what the rendering shows. And naturally, that puts the two taller ones well above RBC.

    I love seeing the view from Dorthea Dix. If you look at all the developable space like; N&O block, accross from the Sheraton, around Nash square, and of course the Edison, its easy to see what potential there is for downtown to grow and have a dense, beautiful skyline. I hope that all this space will not be wasted on low to mid-rise buildings that do not bring people downtown.

    I cannot wait until that land becomes a park. I think it would be awesome for the city to build some sort of large signature structure to serve as an observation deck.

  26. KING of RALEIGH wrote:

    I have JUST the Idea for a structure!!!…I don’t know where to get started!!

  27. EP wrote:

    The Best!!!

    Matt, can you impose Charter Square in the shot with The Edison from the Wilmington Street view?

  28. KING of RALEIGH wrote:

    That’s a GREAT idea EP!! How about another with ALL of that…AND Quorum, West at North, and a possible Reynolds Tower rendering all in one?? That’s a task huh??!! It can be done…

  29. EP wrote:

    Once DTR has all it’s current projects up combined with those of Glennwood South we will have quite an extensive skyline, similar to that of Chicago. I’m with you King of Raleigh, I’d love to see all projects in a few shots together.

  30. Ernest wrote:

    Creating urban canyons along Salisbury, McDowell and Dawson streets is very important, if we want to have a decent skyline. I am not greedy… 5-6 towers above 600ft would not just fine, provided we do not waste any more space with low-rise and mid-rise buildings on critical locations. If the Reynoldses fail to deliver The Hillsborough, the city can use that location to place the Clerence Lightner Public Safety Center, like Crowder proposed - one of the few times I agree with him - and then consider redeveloping the entire block (where the City Hall is now) in a fashion similar to The Edison. We can get a lot out of our [public] investment, if we play the cards right. It requires guts and vision. Of course, we can always expect to hear about the cast shadows and other pathetic excuses, but I am sure that the city council will realize the benefits of bringing more huge private investments to downtown, at the end.

    Like EP mentioned, we need to see the entire picture to appreciate the benefits of an extended skyline, but we also need to tighten the connection between City Market, CBD, Warehouse District and Glenwood South. Make these areas feel like one. The Hillsborough Street strip is crucial to accomplishing this.

  31. jrd wrote:

    I agree that we could see a longer more extensive skyline. A nice place to see the whole thing would be from an observation point built high on the Dorthea Dix hill campus:)

  32. KING of RALEIGH wrote:

    We should really start building “up” on a serious note!! I’m actually bothered by all of the trees that Raleigh has lost in the past few years!! Skyscrapers don’t only “WOW” you…they also help save trees!!!

  33. KING of RALEIGH wrote:

    ERNEST is correct!! the skyline of our city has the potential to be DYNAMIC if development was to go as Ernest stated.

  34. EP wrote:

    Is there a live web cam that displays Charter Square and City Plaza?

  35. Ari wrote:

    Yes, one camera that is a part of the Raleigh Convention Center camera complex is mounted on the Fayetteville Street side of the Marriott, and it has a view of both Charter Square and City Plaza.

  36. Ari wrote:

    It’s sort of live, it is updated every 15 minutes.

  37. Ernest wrote:

    KING of RALEIGH, there are a lot of advantages building up, one of which you already mentioned… Preserving all that green is just as important as creating a powerful image. Once development spills towards Nash Square, we’ll see a far more improved image. On a positive note, they are getting ready for the new Wake County Justice Center, the City Plaza and Green Square. I can see the progress of the latter from my window :)

  38. jrd wrote:

    Ernest,

    I agree that Hillsborogh St. is crucial in tying everything in, and so is Nash Square and the lot where city hall is. Hillsborough St. should oneday be a business canyon as should Salisbury st. and Hargett St. I think the major first steps should include doing something as ambitious as the Edison project on the N&O block, getting good land usage out of city hall lot and one day AT&T bldg. The South Saunders view would be really something if we could accomplish that.

    I think Matt should make a flyover with imaginary buildings in places that are most available for developement so that our city leaders can see what downtown could look like if we use our land wisely. That would be awesome.

  39. KING of RALEIGH wrote:

    IRONICALLY..I was asking about the L.E.D. lights and Raleigh’s stance as “The LED City”..well, I read the story..they installed a couple LED streetlights in front of the Progress Energy HQ!!!! Hopefully things go well, and they can place lights on 440 beltline!!!!

  40. Nick wrote:

    Slightly off topic… Does anyone know what is being build near the intersection of Six Forks and Atlantic? There is a large parking deck going up, and I don’t really think it goes along with the condos that are near there. Is this a new mid-rise office building? Will this area look anything like the 3 buildings that border the beltline on the other side?

  41. EP wrote:

    JRD,

    I agree with you in that Matt should create how impressive DTR’s skyline would look if they maximize what valuable lots are still available for real towers, and I promise you, city officials would follow Matt’s lead.

  42. KING of RALEIGH wrote:

    NICK…..my resources tell me that it’s a 5 story parking deck, along with a 4-5 story Apartment building

  43. KING of RALEIGH wrote:

    NICk..it’s a 4 story I was just told…339,000/square feet RESIDENTIAL…….11,000 square feet office/retail

  44. justin wrote:

    raleigh is the densist city in nc with 3,288.9 more than charlotte 2,515.7

  45. KING of RALEIGH wrote:

    Raleigh being more dense than Charlotte…..You are correct justin, this FACT has already been estabished a few weeks ago.

  46. Scottofraleigh wrote:

    Being the seat of State Gov’t makes Raleigh the densest of all the state. Oh wait - you mean population density, my bad!

  47. Ernest wrote:

    Wait until james hears about density in Raleigh :LOL:

  48. John wrote:

    I can’t wait to see the November photo series from Matt!

  49. William wrote:

    Has anyone heard about the nonstop flights to paris from rdu

  50. Ernest wrote:

    Yes, I have. It is a great move and shows that the Triangle could become a destination in the future, if we play our cards right. Hopefully, similar flights will be established to other European countries.

  51. Jeff wrote:

    I am overwhelmed with desire for an update! But when? Also, I agree with an earlier post about the watermarks… people would love to steal this as their own…. but think of ME and my desire for a beautiful, unspoiled desktop picture of my future home!

    :-D

  52. Anonymous wrote:

    Ummmm……NEW PICS PLEASE!!!!

  53. Bob Saget wrote:

    OMG THESE PICS ARE SO HOTE ERRRRR


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