Carolina Row at Crabtree

[RALNATIVE]

Plans are in the works for a large mixed use development at the intersection of Glenwood and Lead Mine that will be called Carolina Row at Crabtree.

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/triangle/news/2014/05/14/texas-developer-unveils-big-plan-for-90lifestyle.html

 

 

This development does sound impressive; however, I have some concerns about increased traffic in this heavily congested area.

[MireLanski]

Found a few more renderings.  I'm not as concerned about the traffic in this area.  While it is heavily congested, I feel the area does an excellent job at traffic flow.  My commute traverses that very area in the morning around 8:30 and i get through to the highway in under 4 minutes every time even amongst tons of traffic.  

 

Here are some more renderings.  Note that there is no visible entrance to Glenwood Ave for this project.  

 

http://www.trademarkproperty.com/property/carolina-row/

[RALNATIVE]

Nice renderings.

[Euphorius]

The TBJ article says the two old apartment communities will be torn down to build this. That should help limit the traffic impacts from the new apartments. I like these renderings. It's like a more modern version of North Hills. I also like the fact that they have experience luring high end retailers to their developments. I wonder if they are going to extend Mariott Drive to Lead Mine. That's kind of how it looks in the renderings on their site. It also looks like there is a greenway trail in between this project and Glenwood.

[Gard]

I think this will be an excellent project for the area.  I really like that they're going to build a pedestrian bridge to add connectivity to the mall!

[Jones_]

I think the renderings are only giving us half the picture. It looks like the second apartment complex to be replaced is wedged between the Marriott and Charles Drive. Thats fine and all, but the pretty part is certainly the retail perched up on the hill. A connection to Marriott Drive would help with traffic a little bit so there would be a connection between Lead Mine and Creedmoor without having to get on Glenwood. Anyway, this certainly continues the Crabtree trend of adding density and and making it higher end across the whole area. 

[OTSpazz]

I thought the city was planning on starting to limit retail in this area to get a better handle on traffic. 

[DwnTwnRaleighGuy]

I don't think limiting retail is the "real" answer. The roads/area access are the issue and where the answers will,(hopefully), be found.

[DPK]

A connection to Marriott Drive would help with traffic a little bit so there would be a connection between Lead Mine and Creedmoor without having to get on Glenwood.

 

There is a connection:

[ctl]

Will give people on southbound Lead Mine an alternate way into the mall or to get on westbound Glenwood. 

[orulz]

I thought the (eventual) plan was to convert Marriott Drive and the mall entrance that comes in at the top of the parking deck by Cheesecake Factory into right-in, right-out only, although I do prefer the way that this breaks the area up into smaller blocks.

[MireLanski]

I am sure I am the odd one out here but, for the life of me I just do not think the Glenwood Ave intersections at Creedmoor Rd and Glenwood Ave and Lead Mine Rd are that bad.  My morning and after noon commute take me through these intersections and while there is a ton of traffic, it flows very quickly.  In my personal experience (and i video recorded this just to be sure) at 8:30 am - 9 am when I am approaching from the north and stopping at the Creedmoor light for a full cycle, I can be on 440 in 2:15 minutes. That means through Creedmoor and through Leadmine.  The video I took today showed me stopped at Creedmoor and Lead Mine Rd light and still managing to get on to the highway in 2:15 seconds.  

 

That development will not significantly increase traffic to where the traffic flows will be unbearable, IMHO.  

 

I used to honestly dread going through Glenwood Ave until that became the most efficient way to work.  Not saying there shouldn't be a concern there, but I think the traffic light are managing the flows very well.  

[Jones_]

^ This is because nobody is making the movement of west 440 to west 70 to left turn into the mall at that hour. Its a gigantic flood of cars coming from north and west from Glenwood, Creedmoor and Leadmine at that hour all cascading either onto 440 or on down Glenwood. That is probably a good happenstance situation. The real log jams are say Saturday afternoons when the destination is the mall itself. More people living here will increase the destination trips to this area at these times. I don't know what the improvements should be (like I said in a previous post, I stare at this google map forever and come up with nothing remotely feasible) but it doesn't take a complex algorithm to see that jamming more and more in this limited access valley can't be sustained. This particular development probably isn't the straw breaking the back and the connector helps a lot imo, but the stuff like up on Kidds Hill is gonna make it tricky real fast. I already make my shopping trips there strictly on Monday evenings well after the evening rush is over. But a person's idea of good and bad traffic are subjective. Two light cycles is bad to me given that I can walk to Cameron Village and downtown in equal time. But I understand that to some people two light cycles is practically free flowing. 

[ctl]

My hunch is that fewer cars go into the CVM lots and decks these days than at any time since 2000. Partly it's because of competition from other venues (Southpoint, TTC, the revitalized NH, etc). Partly it's because malls, in general, are in decline. CVM built the restaurant complex between Belk and B&N to attract more people. Don't know whether it's working. 

 

Growth in retail adjacent to CVM would just return traffic levels to what we saw 1985-2000... which was horrendous in December. CVM in December 2013 was an absolute breeze compared to CVM in December 1988 when the only competition OTB in Wake County was a moribund NH and a still-small CTC.