Triad Tower

[cityboi]

It seems that there are rumors of a proposed 12-story office tower to be built in Greensboro. The bad news is that this rumored proposal is not downtown where it should be. the location is near the airport next to the 7- story Embassy Suites Greensboro. Where ever they build it, its good news because we havent seen a new office tower since 1990. But I do wish this proposal were downtown. Greensboro's skyline could use a boost especially since Greensboro will be getting a 15-story downtown federal building and a possible apartment tower which could reach 10-15 stories. I just dont want this to lead to more suburban office towers because it will hurt the office market for downtown. It goes against the grain of everything that is trying to be accomplished for downtown Greensboro.

I know Charlotte has a number of suburban office towers especially near South Park.

Anyways, if this 12-story building is built, im sure it will be designed to look really modern with a cutting edge design Who know maybe its a taller version of the Burlington Industries building thats being demolished at Friendly Shopping Center west of downtown Greensboro.

[twincity]

Western Guilford County is really booming. It was on the news just tonight reporting how highway 68 has grown in a short period of time and now its being expanded..hopefully they can give it a new name. the combination of FedEx the new urban loop and an expanding PTIA is going to make that area even hotter for development.

[cityboi]

I would imagine the 12-story tower would look something like these two 12 story buildings. If only something like these were built downtown Much of the office building architecture near the airport area resembles this style. It would be built next to the 7-story Embassy Suites so its sort of like the birth of another skyline for Greensboro. The airport area in Greensboro is viewed as the "downtown" of the Piedmont Triad. This certainly would be the tallest "suburban" office tower in the Piedmont Triad. I'm still baffled why a developer would want to do this considering the high office space vacancy in the Triad. Another wierd thing is that this building would almost be in the flight path of the airport.

[Spartan]

Why would they not build it downtown though? That is very odd and dissappointing. At least downtown is getting some new additions.

[cityboi]

I just found out that the developer already owns the land. If he had chosen downtown, he would have spent alot more money to purchase expensive downtown land. But It is sort of a disappointment that this building is not considered for downtown.

[cityboi]

As far as the design goes, I dont know exactly what it will look like. The two photos above are just examples of what the arhitecture around the airport area looks like. Of course all the office buildings in that area are around 2-4 stories tall. But this proposal is just a rumor right now but its coming from believable sources. Weither it actual gets built or not, thats another story. The developer may decide to scale down the project because it is mind baffling that someone would want to build a 12 story office building near the airport with the high office vacancy rates in the Triad. But I do hope this project happens even though I'd rather see this tower built downtown.

[Danny 4 Peace]

Highway 68 will become Interstate 73 in a few years. Mayor Holliday has said he sees the airport as the new core of Greensboro and wants more infrastructure connecting the airport to the rest of the Triad and the state. With the FedEx hub underway I can see his point. I didn't think the airport area would have its own skyline!

[cityboi]

a 14-22 story office tower is planned to be built near Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro near the intersection of Hwy 68 (I-73) and I-40. Word has it that the building was proposed here because its a great location with the FedEx hub opening soon. A tower such as this would be attractive for Dell which could locate a sales office in the area. Dell is already interested in building a manufacturing plant in the Forsyth County area. The tower will be built near the 7-story Embassy Suites Hotel and will have a rooftop restaurant over 20-stories up (Should be able to see Greensboro's and Winston-Salem's skyline at the same time) The building will also feature underground pedestrian tunnels connecting to surrounding office buildings. The developer had origionally planned to include a hotel with this proposal some time back but the economy went sour due to 911. There's no word on wether or not he will eventually include the hotel. The developers will reveal his plans some time next week. Hopefully he'll have renderings ready. This will become the first office tower to be built since the downtown office tower boom of the late 1980's and early 90s' during that time, 3 office towers were being built at the same time which dramatically altered Greensboro's skyline.

[Raleigh-NC]

I am sure you've heard this before: I wish this proposal was for DT Greensboro. Given the fact that the developer could have built a much smaller building, or a cluster of small buildings, I would take this tower over anything else. While we may agree that Greensboro's center would benefit a lot from such tower, the proposed location may help the city to create a high-rise mentality all over its boundaries. The more the people see high-rises, the more they will be willing to support the image of a taller DT Greensboro in the future. I don't expect Joe Sixpack to give a penny about such developments, but I am sure many residents will be excited to see Greensboro act like a big(ger) city. It is a win-win situation, in my opinion.

[cityboi]

I agree Raleigh-NC, While I'd rather see it downtown. a new tower is a new tower. Better to have a new one than none at all. The maximum height of the proposal has actually been increased from 22-stories to 25-stories. But the developers has to get permission from the FAA to build up to 25-stories.

[Allan]

Good news! It does seem like the FAA is Always getting in the way of skyscrapers though. LOL. It will be interesting to see if the FAA gives permission to increase the height though...I can't think of a time when they've given a developer permission to build above a height limit.

[cityboi]

I hope the tower is at least 20-stories. It interesting because this building will be located between the two flight paths of a current runway and a planned runway for the FedEx hub.

[cityboi]

www.triadtower.com (there is a cool fly through video on this website!)

FINANCE CANADA.COM NEWS

Defining the Economic Center of The Triad -- High-Rise Office Will Establish an Influential Presence at the Intersection of Interstate 40 and Highway 68

PR Newswire - Tuesday July 13, 2004

Naming rights available

GREENSBORO, N.C., Jul 13, 2004 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- A new office tower scheduled for occupancy by 2007 will help define the business center of the Piedmont Triad region with a dramatic presence along Interstate 40 in west Greensboro.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20040713/CLTU041 )

Triad Tower will provide 144,000 square feet of Class A office space near the intersection of Interstate 40 and Highway 68. Designs call for Triad Tower to be 14 stories, or about 221 feet high.

Triad Tower, LLC will match, and in some cases lower, material terms of current leases in comparable properties within the Triad in exchange for signed contracts to lease or acquire space in Triad Tower. This is especially attractive to companies or individuals who have recently signed leases or have yet to renew leases in their current locations, as Triad Tower will be available for occupancy in 2007 at the latest.

Leasing is not the only option. Companies and private investors may also acquire partial or whole floors based on early-adopter pricing models in which acquiring space may be more economical than leasing.

Triad Tower is part of the Triad Center campus. The first building at 7900 Triad Center Drive was developed and completed in 2000 by FALK Companies. The property was 100 percent leased within its first year. "Smart Building" features that support robust information and communication technology helped attract tenants like Cisco, EMC, Graybar and Ford Motor Credit Corporation.

"Our vision is to establish a site mark for the business and geographic center of the Triad. The Triad Center campus has proven to be a desirable location with its proximity to the airport, Interstates 40, 85, 75, the future Interstate 73 and all major cities of the Triad," says Triad Tower and FALK Companies principal Harry S. Falk. "Triad Tower continues our commitment to the Smart Building concept for the increasingly sophisticated technology requirements of global businesses."

Naming rights are also available. Triad Tower plans to begin negotiations with local, regional and national businesses to place their corporate logo on all four sides of the tower at the top, whether they choose to locate in the building or not.

In addition to technical advantages like a redundant power supply and state-of-the-art soundproofing, impressive design features and amenities are planned. Fountains will greet visitors in front of the building and floor-to- ceiling marine coral aquariums are planned to line the lobby walls. A similar sized koi tank with an observation mezzanine will be central features. The aquariums may be the world's largest indoor marine and freshwater tanks in any commercial class "A" building.

A penthouse restaurant with a public observation deck will help make Triad Tower a destination day and night. With the completion of the second runway at Piedmont Triad International Airport, airplane take-offs and landings will be an exciting view from the tower. Back on the ground, Triad Tower will offer a helipad for corporate travel.

Most parking will be under Triad Tower and an underground walkway will connect to the state-of-the-art conference rooms, auditorium and health club located in 7900 Triad Center.

The proximity to the airport is promoted as a benefit to tenants who will be able to drive to the gate within five to ten minutes. Henry Isaacson, who is chairman of the board of the Piedmont Triad International Airport Authority and one of the attorneys for Triad Tower, anticipates a mutual benefit for the airport and Triad Tower. Isaacson believes that projects like Triad Tower play a vital role in the economic growth of the airport area. Projects like this, so close to the airport, are helpful in the Authority's efforts to recruit new carriers and expand services.

"The airport area is emerging as a center of economic activity in the Piedmont Triad. The confluence of transportation assets positions the airport sub-market as a unique destination in the entire mid-Atlantic region. Triad Tower would be an ideal complement to the real estate product available in the center of the Triad," says Watts Carr, chairman of the Piedmont Triad Partnership board.

Harry S. Falk is an owner of the conglomeration of independent companies grouped together as FALK Companies. FALK Companies, which built the first Triad Center building, is also involved in multi-family and retail real estate sectors, as well as "Smart Building" technology services consulting in central North Carolina.

Architect for Triad Tower is Charlotte-based Bill Monroe, president of WGM Design, Inc. Kirkland, Inc. of High Point, North Carolina, is the general contractor. Falcon Management Corporation is brokering the property.

[bobliocatt]

It really sucks that this thing won't be built downtown. But, oh well.

[cityboi]

I have mixed feelings about that. I wish it were downtown but at the same time its a great location in terms of some of the amenities. for example, the public will be able to got to the observation deck after eating a nice meal in the top floor restaurant and watch planes take off and land. Currently a third runway is being built at Piedmont Triad Intl Airport for FedEx and the tower will be located in between the flight path of the parallel runways so it will be a breath taking view to watch the planes. The skylines of Greensboro, Winston-Salem and High Point would be visible as well. One good thing about suburban towers is that they help the city look urban outside of the downtown area as well. Weither we like it or not, the airport area in Greensboro is becoming "downtown Triad". But this concept is nothing new. A number of urban cities have multiple business districts. Charlotte has uptown and South Park. Atlanta has downtown, midtown and Buckhead.

But the tower will be a landmark gateway into Greensboro coming from the west.

[cityboi]

[Spartan]

That looks alot like Columbia's Meridian tower:

[cityboi]

It does look similar. The window pattern is different and the top arch portion is enclosed on Triad Tower. But yes they do look similar even to the color of the buildings. I wouldnt be surprised if the Meridian was used as imspiration for Triad Tower.

[wolfdawg54]

That is really neat building! I think that it will be really neat for Greensboro and despite its distance from downtown will look pretty cool.

[cityboi]

[The_sandlapper]

That looks alot like Columbia's Meridian tower:

That's exactlly what I was thinking.

[cityboi]

Triad Tower is suppose to be a 14 to 23 story office tower built in Greensboro near the intersection of HWY 68 and I-40 near PTI Airport. It will have a large aquarium on the first floor and a restaurant and public observation deck on the top floor. The building is suppose to be ready to occupy by 2007 and they havent started cnstruction yet. The website is still up www.triadtower.com and It looks like there are still planning to build it. Does anyone have any inside info on when they are suppose to start construction on the tower.

[sax184]

Superdumb idea. Let's hope it's dead.

[intcvlcphlga]

Superdumb idea. Let's hope it's dead.

I agree. They should focus office development in downtown Greensboro or downtown W-S. It's also an ugly design, but that's pretty much the case with most things built in the Triad the last couple of decades...

[twincity]

well if its scheduled to be complete by 2007, then ground should be breaking soon. thats weird how they announced the porject and that was it...no updates, no schedules or nothing. i must admit though, like the ambition in the developer's idea to go tall outside of downtown Greensboro, but this type of thing might be a little premature for our area. And typically, cities with huge skylines and sprawling downtowns build tall elsewhere... this is not the case for Greensboro.