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Durham photos

pompeyjohnson

By pompeyjohnson
in Triangle Coffee House

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urbanesq Hamlet

urbanesq

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awesome shots as usual. thanks for sharing.

I have always thought Durham had the most potential of any other city in the state to have a truly dense, architecturally interesting and socially diverse downtown. These photos suggest it already has that! It's funny-- i've spent lots of time in downtown Durham, but always forget about how beautiful some of those buildings really are.

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ericurbanite Whistle-Stop

ericurbanite

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Amazing - is the Lucky Strike a Bowling Alley, cuz i couldn't find it on LuckyStrike's website

No no no LuckyStrike's are cigarettes. You might not be a smoker but LuckyStike's is one of the oldest cigarettes. I remember touring the wwII battleship in wilmington, nc and they had lucky strikes on the ship at one of the displays(i think the post office).

Just do a google search of lucky strike cigarettes

47ls1.jpg

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urbanesq Hamlet

urbanesq

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^^ there was an old ad campaign/show sponsorship that was called the "Lucky Strike Extra," which I never saw, but the term has been used in my non-smoking (but from tobacco farming roots) family my entire life to mean a small gift that you get in addition to the main present(s) at either birthday or Christmas.

Does anyone else remember this?

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RaleighInvestor Unincorporated Area

RaleighInvestor

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Nice pics.

Too bad DT Durham is a ghost town most of the time. The potential is there, but it'll take time to turn that around.

Downtown Durham is turning right before your eyes. There have been monumental strides taken in the last 24 months, and you will not recognize the place three years from now. By the end of the decade there will be nearly 1,500 "downtown" residences, business will be thriving and the retail will be completely different from what you see today.

One year ago, I would have checked myself in to Dorthea Dix for making the above statement.

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Flash Whistle-Stop

Flash

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Thanks guys. I appreciate all the comments.

I totally forgot about getting some shots of University Tower and the Duke Chapel. Downtown really feels discombobulated with all the road construction compared to the last time I was there, and its not entirely evident in these photos.

I wouldn't mind scooping up some of Durham's niceties and placing them in Raleigh.

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DigitalSky City

DigitalSky

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No no no LuckyStrike's are cigarettes. You might not be a smoker but LuckyStike's is one of the oldest cigarettes. I remember touring the wwII battleship in wilmington, nc and they had lucky strikes on the ship at one of the displays(i think the post office).

Just do a google search of lucky strike cigarettes

47ls1.jpg

ooohhh ok totally had no idea

I of course assumed it was related to this http://www.bowlluckystrike.com

Thanks for the clarification

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JDC Burg

JDC

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Downtown Durham is turning right before your eyes. There have been monumental strides taken in the last 24 months, and you will not recognize the place three years from now. By the end of the decade there will be nearly 1,500 "downtown" residences, business will be thriving and the retail will be completely different from what you see today.

One year ago, I would have checked myself in to Dorthea Dix for making the above statement.

I've been in Durham for less than a year, so I wouldn't know much about what it was like 24 months ago. However, I work downtown and live only 10 minutes from there (on foot), and those streets are e-m-p-t-y. Aside from the Brightleaf district and the area by the judicial building, it's dead. I'm sure that has a lot to do with all the construction and the fact that Duke kids aren't allowed to leave campus.

I hope you're right about the environment in 3-5 years, because right now, I'd bet there are nearly as many abandoned buildings as there are occupied ones.

One thing that I think keeps people off the streets (and in their cars) is the weather. Yeah, we all say the weather here in NC is beautiful, and it is sometimes, but between June and August it's too hot to be out, and after Halloween, locals complain that it's too cold (even when it's sunny and in the 40s).

Oh yeah, and shedding that reputation...that'll be The Bull City's biggest hurdle. Anyone catch that high-speed police chase yesterday (Wednesday)?

Downtown Durham is turning right before your eyes. There have been monumental strides taken in the last 24 months, and you will not recognize the place three years from now. By the end of the decade there will be nearly 1,500 "downtown" residences, business will be thriving and the retail will be completely different from what you see today.

One year ago, I would have checked myself in to Dorthea Dix for making the above statement.

I've been in Durham for less than a year, so I wouldn't know much about what it was like 24 months ago. However, I work downtown and live only 10 minutes from there (on foot), and those streets are e-m-p-t-y. Aside from the Brightleaf district and the area by the judicial building, it's dead. I'm sure that has a lot to do with all the construction and the fact that Duke kids aren't allowed to leave campus.

I hope you're right about the environment in 3-5 years, because right now, I'd bet there are nearly as many abandoned buildings as there are occupied ones.

One thing that I think keeps people off the streets (and in their cars) is the weather. Yeah, we all say the weather here in NC is beautiful, and it is sometimes, but between June and August it's too hot to be out, and after Halloween, locals complain that it's too cold (even when it's sunny and in the 40s).

Oh yeah, and shedding that reputation...that'll be The Bull City's biggest hurdle. Anyone catch that high-speed police chase yesterday (Wednesday)?

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ncwebguy Burg

ncwebguy

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I lived in Durham from 89-91 and *never* went downtown, except for senior prom.

Duke kids don't *have* to venture downtown -- everything they need is over on 9th street. They *might* venture to Satisfactions, etc. in Brightleaf, but that's about it. I'm pretty sure native, blue collar Durhamites like not having to rub elbows with the silver spoon blue bloods LOL.

I try to keep tabs on downtown durham a few times a year -- World Beer festival, a Bulls once in a while, a get away from Raleigh day trip, etc. The "street maze" concept and convention center/hotel/Carolina theater complex were not the jump start Durham boosters were hoping for. The closing of Durham High/opening of West End was the first sign of life, then DBAP/Diamond View, and now American Tobacco campus are getting the ball rolling to convert the corpse of the cigarette factories and black wall street into something relevant and vibrant. The Full Frame documentary film festival, American Dance Festival, etc. have put Durham on a lot of artist's maps.

As a tribute to the working class meets state of the art, I would *love* to see a Lucky Strikes bowling alley somewhere in the American Tobacco (who made/makes? the Lucky Strike brand cigarettes, hence the water tower) complex somewhere. Something to draw residents there when the Bulls are not playing, or something to do after a game. Also, bowling leagues build a sense of community in a way little else can.

The Heart of Durham hotel was symbolic of Durham -- a once proud landmark that had fallen on bad times but still stood tall with all kinds of untapped potential. I don't know why no one said "look at this area just outside RTP with a great sense of place" until now.

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