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Developer Roy Carroll may build Greensboro’s tallest office tower


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GREENSBORO, N.C. — The Lincoln Financial tower has long been the tallest building in Greensboro, but that may change.

Developer Roy Carroll said he hopes to build a new office tower in Greensboro that would likely be the tallest in the state outside of Charlotte.

Carroll is calling it “Project 561,” for the height of 561 feet. That would make it taller than Raleigh’s PNC Plaza, which is 538 feet tall.

The tower will feature office space and possibly a small hotel, Carroll said.

Carroll said he will not build until he has a major tenant lined up.

Project 561 would become North Carolina’s fifth tallest building, behind four in Charlotte.

The Lincoln Financial tower is 375 feet tall.

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I almost crapped in my pants when I first read this article. Roy Carroll is really taking on some huge projects in downtown Greensboro. He already has a massive mid-rise luxury apartment/hotel project under construction stretching two blocks across from the downtown ballpark and has redeveloped the old 16-story Wachovia Building into the luxury Center Pointe condo complex. What really surprised me was the height. This building would be taller than Raleigh's tallest and would be over half the height of the Bank of America tower in Charlotte. It would be the tallest building in North Carolina outside of Charlotte. Roy Carroll is considering two designs. one a straight-sided tower with a pyramid top and another with curved glass side similar to the curved tower in Dubai. If Carroll moves forward with this project, downtown is in line for two towers, the other being  a modest 12-story Wyndham luxury hotel compared to the behemoth Roy Carroll is planning which would dramatically alter Greensboro's skyline.

 

Developer Roy Carroll says:

 

“We’re in discussions with several groups about occupying this"

 

http://www.greensboro.com/business/carroll-may-build-city-s-tallest-office-tower-updated/article_d8c252ca-1519-11e5-b603-cb5d2946aebc.html

 

http://wfdd.org/post/could-new-skyscraper-spring-Greensboro

 

http://myfox8.com/2015/06/17/carroll-may-build-greensboros-tallest-office-tower/

 

 

5581fd72b82b5.image.jpg

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I was in Greensboro recently for a concert, and enjoyed myself, despite not really seeing downtown. This is an exciting development for you guys. I live over in the Columbia, SC forum, and we, too, have had recent news of a proposed new tower (or two) for our CBD. A developer has proposed a 29 story apartment tower (22 stories atop a 7 story parking deck which already exists)-it would become the new tallest in SC. I hope yours looks great, and I look forward to getting back to the Winston-Greensboro area again soon. 

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This is great news, but I will try to be cautiously optimistic. It's been my dream that Greensboro would break the 30 story barrier downtown. The late '80s to early '90s was a great period for tower development in Greensboro, but there has been little on that scale since then.

While GSO will still trail Winston-Salem and Raliegh, it's skyline will at least be as dramatic. If it happens maybe other vertical developments will follow. I still think Greensboro's skyline is smaller than it should be for a city it's size. That might change with Honda and others moving in...
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I think the key to this project happening is getting commitments from the groups of potential tenants that Carroll is talking to . The article said a minimum of 28 stories which means it could break the 30 story mark. Unlike the rest of downtown's towers, this building would clearly be visible from the interstates. It would be over twice the height of Roy Carroll's Center Pointe tower. Carroll said the tower could include a hotel as well.

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Well, damn. I can't say I expected anything like this anytime soon. While I'd love to see this happen asap, if it does get built it will probably be after Bellemeade Village has been finished so I'm gonna be holding my breath until then.

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I agree, I don't think the cranes will be rising in the near future. I say at least three years before he even pushes the button on this project. It just depends on the time it takes to line up the tenants. VF Corp, Greensboro's only fortune 500 company, would be a good fit for this tower. A move from north Greensboro to downtown would bring its executives closer to the Wrangler Headquarters downtown.

 

Roy Carroll says it would likely sit on top of a 6 story parking structure which confirms in my mind it would go up on the lot he owns next to Center Pointe.. The side of Center Pointe facing the lot was purposely built without balconies because he anticipated building another tower there.

 

http://www.wfmynews2.com/story/news/2015/06/18/future-downtown-gso-tallest-building/28949199/

 

mock up Courtesy of gsocitizen, this image below shows how tall this building would stand in Greensboro's skyline. This is an old picture because the Old Wachovia building hasn't been converted to Center Pointe.

 

 

 

greensboroskylineeeeee_zpsxeoubhpe.jpg

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  • 2 weeks later...

I discovered something pretty interesting. The article in the News & Record about this project was published in print on June 18th. On Construction Wire's website, a planned development listed in office building/hotel category was uploaded to the website June 19th, a day later. Project details say this project is in the planning stages. Roy Carroll's planned 561 foot tall tower consists of office space and a boutique hotel. Now this could be just a coincidence and could be another project but I find the published date interesting and I cant think of any other project in Greensboro that consists of office space and a hotel. I can't obtain further information because you have to upgrade to see the name of the developer . If it is indeed Roy Carroll's tower project, he is much further along in the planning stages than he is letting on.

 

 

 

 

Construction Wire (created 6/19/2015)

 

Project Type: Office Buildings, Hotels/Motels/Resorts

 

Construction Type: New, New - Ground Up

 

Estimated Value: $5 - $25 million

 

Sector: Private

 

Stage: Planning (Active)

 

Bid Due Date: N/A

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I discovered something pretty interesting. The article in the News & Record about this project was published in print on June 18th. On Construction Wire's website, a planned development listed in office building/hotel category was uploaded to the website June 19th, a day later. Project details say this project is in the planning stages. Roy Carroll's planned 561 foot tall tower consists of office space and a boutique hotel. Now this could be just a coincidence and could be another project but I find the published date interesting and I cant think of any other project in Greensboro that consists of office space and a hotel. I can't obtain further information because you have to upgrade to see the name of the developer . If it is indeed Roy Carroll's tower project, he is much further along in the planning stages than he is letting on.

 

 

 

 

Construction Wire (created 6/19/2015)

 

Project Type: Office Buildings, Hotels/Motels/Resorts

 

Construction Type: New, New - Ground Up

 

Estimated Value: $5 - $25 million

 

Sector: Private

 

Stage: Planning (Active)

 

Bid Due Date: N/A

Unclutch your pearls, Boi. Construction Wire is a aggregator of information from various sources. They picked that info up from the N&R and TBJ. There's your coincidence.

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  • 4 months later...
  • 2 weeks later...

Developer Roy Carroll said he would move forward with this project once he gets enough tenants lined up for the tower.. Office vacancy is very low in downtown Greensboro and downtown has already attracted one company which built an office building and moved its headquarters there. A smaller office building is also being planned in northwest downtown.

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thanks! While some may be skeptical about the tower, I believe it will eventually happen. People quickly forget that 27 years ago, three office towers were under construction at the same time in downtown Greensboro all of which totaled more square footage combined than what Mr Carroll is proposing.. With attractions like the performing arts center, residential development and Union Square coming online, its only a matter of when not if. Its been 27 years and we are due for another one soon. I still cant believe its been that long. I'm getting old lol

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  • 3 weeks later...
On ‎1‎/‎31‎/‎2016 at 7:43 PM, cityboi said:

thanks! While some may be skeptical about the tower, I believe it will eventually happen. People quickly forget that 27 years ago, three office towers were under construction at the same time in downtown Greensboro all of which totaled more square footage combined than what Mr Carroll is proposing.. With attractions like the performing arts center, residential development and Union Square coming online, its only a matter of when not if. Its been 27 years and we are due for another one soon. I still cant believe its been that long. I'm getting old lol

I'm sure a new tower will eventually happen in Greensboro. In fact, it may happen sooner rather than later (ie: next 5-10 years). I think what we may see is a scaled down version of this Project 561. Maybe Project 461... which would still give Greensboro the tallest building in the Triad (by a foot).

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Speaking of which Roy Carroll has purchased property for his towering downtown 561 ft tall skyscraper. It could be built across the street from NewBridge Bank Ballpark and on the opposite corner of Bellemeade Village/Hyatt Place Hotel. However he has the option to build it next to Center Pointe.

 

Roy Carroll said large and medium sized potential tenants are interested in leasing office space but he's looking for an anchor tenant for naming rights. The tower would have 28 floors on top of an 8 story parking deck and include street level retail, a restaurant and a boutique hotel. It  would be the tallest building in North Carolina outside of Charlotte. Roy Carroll has had six meetings with various potential tenants, even showing them designs of the building with their corporate logos. "we've put a number of marquee logos on the side of our buildings" "i've got a whole secret file of renderings with different marquees on the side of the building"

http://www.bizjournals.com/triad/news/2016/03/01/with-land-bought-carroll-seeks-anchor-tenant-for.html

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Looks like developer Roy Carroll has become the next Joe Koury. He has become a lead developer in downtown development His major developments:

- renovation of the old Wachovia tower  "Center Pointe"  (converted to a high-rise condo complex)

- Carroll at Bellemeade (300 mid-rise luxury apartments with rooftop pools and Hyatt Place Hotel)

- Project 561 (proposed 36 story office / retail / boutique hotel tower)

Here is a map showing the project 561 site along with all the other development that has happened and is happening around the ballpark area. The area outlined in red would be a great opportunity site for a mid-rise or high-rise project at some point in the future. I predict there will be more development activity between the ballpark and the Steven Tanger Center for the Performing Arts along Bellemeade St.  Downtown Greensboro is finally starting to see the kind of large scale urban development that you see going up in Charlotte and Raleigh.

 

I remember when ballpark naysayers more than a decade ago said a  new downtown ballpark would never attract surrounding development........surprise surprise!! It happened in Durham and now its happening in Greensboro. The ballpark has attracted three upscale apartment complexes, restaurants, a hotel and now possibly an office tower and another hotel. Its going to be a pretty dense urban setting watching baseball games. BTW the ballpark is getting a new name NewBridge Bank Park will become Yadkin Bank Park since Yadkin Bank acquired NewBridge Bank.

map.jpg

When you look at Greensboro as a whole, the city hasn't officially "arrived" yet, but its transitioning in that direction when you look at the high paying jobs and companies such as Honda Aircraft Company, Lenovo and Qorvo moving into the city. Upscale retail  and restaurants such as Brooks Bothers and the Cheesecake Factory are opening up, downtown is booming and we are starting to see some large urban developments being planning in the "midtown" area. The city is quickly becoming one of the most progressive cities in the south when it comes to social issues and policy. Greensboro still has a ways to go before the city can be placed in the ranks among cities like Charlotte, Raleigh and Greenville, SC. But the Gate City is certainly on its way. Its going to take a little time before the city's image catches up with all that is happening here.

I do think the city can find a niche in the financial sector. While it will never become a banking hub like Charlotte, Greensboro can become an insurance hub. After Greensboro based Jefferson-Pilot Life was acquired by Philadelphia based Lincoln Financial Group, the company kept its insurance division headquartered in Greensboro. So there is a presence of a major U.S. financial company in Greensboro. The city once had the nickname "Hartford of the South" due to the number of its insurance companies. Greensboro leaders should focus on making Greensboro an insurance hub again because while its great that Greensboro is attracting high-tech manufacturing companies to the city, Greensboro needs more high paying "white collar" office jobs and that will lead to more office tower construction in the central business district, high end retail and other urban development. Sometimes you have to look to the past to move forward into the future.

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  • 7 months later...

Got a tip from a fellow poster who ran into developer Roy Carroll. He asked Carroll about the status of Project 561, a proposed 561 ft tall skyscraper. He kind of dodged the question but then smiled in a sly way and said "I have some exciting news for downtown Greensboro in 2017" I don't know if Carroll is in the process of securing a major tenant for what would be the tallest building in North Carolina outside of the Queen City. That's two thirds the height of the Bank of America tower in Charlotte. We will find out in 2017 ;) Carroll said he will start construction once he secures a major tenant. Several small and mid sized companies have already expressed interest in leasing office space in the tower despite the higher than average leasing rates.

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