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Our larger downtowns


IBruton

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If all buildings are built that has been announced in Charlotte, we will have 22 buildings over 12 stories going up and completed by 2009 in the Uptown area of Charlotte.

Raleigh should have 5+ new buildings downtown by then.

Greensboro and Winston-Salem should be good for some more high-rises also.

North Carolina big three are moving along at a good pace. It would be great if all could double their skyline in the next 10 years.

I rather have 3 or 4 large metro areas over one big metro area.

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Keep in mind that Durham has had a downtown baseball park for several years and is ahead of Greensboro in redeveloping its downtown for residential as well as offices.

That is a good observation and at the growth rates Durham should take the # 3 spot in the state (population) within 10 years. Hopefully their skyline will too but that has a long way to go.

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I doubt Durham will surpass Greensboro in population over the next 10 years. Downtown Greensboro and its outskirts are filling in pretty rapidly (especially the southern and eastern areas) and both areas of town are poised for future growth especially over the next 10 to 20 years. I don't think population estimates show this though. The population of Greensboro won't catch up with Raleigh or anything, but Durham catch Greensboro is a stretch.

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I agree with all of those observations. The density of the skyline and the feel of downtown reminded me of the big cities of the northeast, but just outside, you get that gritty, southern feel too. I like it!!

I am interested to see Greensboro's about 10 years down the road. It seems like before any major corporations come, downtown will expand in all directions, boasting ample residential property, entertainment for all, and general livability. Here is a link courtesy of TBJ about the plans for theSouth Elm Street Redevelopment project just south of the current CBD.

I am anxious to see Greensboro's progress also. Greensboro seems to have a solid plan for downtown growth with an emphasis on livability. In my opinion Greensboro benefitted from never having an interstate split downtown. Great neighborhoods exist on all four sides (used to be three sides but Southside has reinvigorated the south side of downtown). Greensboro does not have a large CBD, but this allows for immeditate gratification with smaller projects.

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IMHO Winston-Salem has the second best skyline in the state. Raleigh is very close, but i think its the approach to DT W-S on I-40 that makes Winston more impressive. Approaching DT Raleigh via S. Saunders street at night is pretty cool.

FWIW, Richmond while not having a "tall downtown" has a very dense impressive looking one when approaching via I-95.

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IMHO Winston-Salem has the second best skyline in the state. Raleigh is very close, but i think its the approach to DT W-S on I-40 that makes Winston more impressive. Approaching DT Raleigh via S. Saunders street at night is pretty cool.

FWIW, Richmond while not having a "tall downtown" has a very dense impressive looking one when approaching via I-95.

I agree with the Winston statement. It has a few gaps, but it just makes a very positive statement from any way you look at. I visit the city via 52 from Lexington and as you round the cloverleaf for I-40 it just pops in your face from around the bend. The buildings in Raleigh look somewhat "fat" to me. Big wide boxes. Im still waiting for some nice infill in both cities tho. Raleigh needs something really sleek and Winston just needs some nice midrises. Durham skyline is really depressing to me. It reminds me of High Point some what. You can really tell the effect RTP had on it.....................Now as for the activity in the cities. Im worried Greensboro has to many clubs on Elm. Yes, they are apart of it's street scene, but what do they provide in during the day hours? I don't have much experince with Durham so I won't comment. Raleigh I last visited in 2003. It was dead except for the museams but I've heard it's come along way. Im looking foward to visiting Glenwood South. Sound's like Columbia's Vista. :)

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If all buildings are built that has been announced in Charlotte, we will have 22 buildings over 12 stories going up and completed by 2009 in the Uptown area of Charlotte.

Raleigh should have 5+ new buildings downtown by then.

Greensboro and Winston-Salem should be good for some more high-rises also.

Raleigh is getting around 10 12+ story buildings. Durham is getting at least two. I would say with confidence that visually both cities will double their skylines, along with Charlotte.

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IMHO Winston-Salem has the second best skyline in the state. Raleigh is very close, but i think its the approach to DT W-S on I-40 that makes Winston more impressive. Approaching DT Raleigh via S. Saunders street at night is pretty cool.

FWIW, Richmond while not having a "tall downtown" has a very dense impressive looking one when approaching via I-95.

I agree completely. I love the W-S skyline from that angle and from 52. The first time I drove through there at night I nearly wrecked because I was looking more at the skyline than the road. It is easily the second best. I hope that if they build anything new, they make sure it compliments those views before approving their design.

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I wholeheartedly agree about Winston - for a city of its size it's got an impressive array of buildings; more importantly, it also has a wide variety of styles, everything from the old Reynolds building (the basis for the Empire State Building) to the domed Wachovia tower. Raleigh really is boxy - some cylindrical, sleek or curved towers would do wonders for the skyline.

The reason why Raleigh's (and Durham's) downtown has always looked rather shoddy in comparison to its population is simple: until recently, much of the job growth was taking place on the suburban campuses of RTP. Jobs have been created by the thousands, but because they're in the hi-tech and bio sectors (the fields of most of the major companies at RTP) they've all been added to RTP campuses. This has more or less left downtown Raleigh relegated to government workers, Progress Energy, banks, and lawyers - aside from the banks (which aren't HQs, just regional centers) there haven't been many opportunites for major expansions in those professions.

Wishful thinking: Imagine what the skyline would be like if IBM, NovoNordisk, Nextel, and the rest of the major RTP offices relocated their operations to downtown adding 38,000+ jobs. Raleigh would have a skyline that would more resemble that of Charlotte's. Granted, not all of the jobs would move to Raleigh - some would obviously go to Durham - but it'd still make Raleigh's skyline much more attractive.

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Without offending anyone, I'm not a big fan of downtown Raleigh. I can appreciate the efforts the city is making, but architecture that currently exists I find unattractive. Most of this can be blamed on city and state goverment buildings that sprung up in the days of urban renewal. Don't get me wrong, Raleigh has some beautiful downtown neighborhoods and the best sign ordinence of any large NC city it's just the CBD that needs a little TLC. I hope some of the new construction is more inspiring than the flat top Quorum building that is almost finished. Oh well, please don't flame me, just my two cents, with all of the new construction planned my opinion could change quickly.

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I saw some downtown pics of Durham on consultwebs.com nc photos. It had some wide angle shots that really impressed me. Also some aerials of the city with the ballpark that if you didn't know any better you would think photo was taken in the New England area. I love the brick buildings and warehouses. Durham has a distinct character all of its own. More attention needs to be paid to this city. To me urban renewal did not erase a lot of the lowrise and midrise buildings. Giving the skyline a surprising dense look about it. Imagine it Durham can land a few of those towers like Raleigh has. IMHO it would give Winston a race for the second best in NC. I would concede 3rd to Raleigh only because of the number of buildings but Asheville is nothing to sneeze at. It has my vote at 4th.

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