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Friendly Center & The Shops at Friendly


StevenRocks

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CBL does own Triangle Town Center and Cary Towne.... TTC definitely the more upscale w/Saks. I think the remainder of the tenants at TTC are your normal run of the mill stores? CBL also owns a few other upscale shopping malls around the country.

Sorry I went a bit off topic....

Edited by blburton
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I about laughed at this quote on their website:

"When it comes to delivering the ideal group of customers, CBL does it with style. CBL knows when a mall's superior quality exceeds expectations, it can truly be a top-tier retail destinction." :lol: (looks like they need a new grammar editor also)

Apparently, CBL has a portfolio called "Special Properties." I expect Friendly Center to be included in that soon.

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Yeah, I wasn't sure whethere they did or not. I just remember an ad around 2003 or 2004 that advertised Hanes, Oak Hollow, Randleman, and Four Seasons together. I'm surprised Starmount didn't sell Friendly Center to a company like Simon or Taubman. CBL doesn't have any experience (that I'm aware of) in dealing with upscale centers and they treat their properties like crap.
Four seasons was never one of the malls in the "Carolina's Three Great Shopping Places" campaign. Those were some awful commercials. :(

CBL does own Triangle Town Center and Cary Towne.... TTC definitely the more upscale w/Saks.
CBL bought both those malls for the Richard E. Jacobs Group, which also owned Hanes Mall, Randolph Mall and Eastridge Mall. They were nice malls (with the exception of Randolph) before, and CBL has not improved them.

"When it comes to delivering the ideal group of customers, CBL does it with style. CBL knows when a mall's superior quality exceeds expectations, it can truly be a top-tier retail destinction." :lol: (looks like they need a new grammar editor also)
:lol: More like "CBL is the leader in delivering customers more cell phone kiosks and no-name urbanwear stores than they can handle"

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  • 4 weeks later...

I don't know if this has been posted anywhere, but www.somersetatfriendly.com is the website linking you to the residential development at the Shops. These condos look posh and they even include a virtual tour of the units! Looks like square footage of the units ranges from 2000-4000 square feet with a starting price at $412,000.

Although it's nice and dense, I have significant beef. THE ENTIRE DEVELOPMENT IS AUTOMOBILE DEPENDENT!!! It's great for live-at-home wives who spend rich hubby's cash to stay up to date with the latest fashion trends or for retirees who like to shop. Otherwise, who else would live here? The nearest employment center is the shopping center (aka low wages!! :whistling:) - I HIGHLY doubt that the cashier at Macy*s or the busboy at P.F. Changs will be able to afford living here. I had no idea these units (albeit nice) would be this pricey. Do you think that developers were really trying to target the middle age/retiree demographic here or is it just me?

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I don't know if this has been posted anywhere, but www.somersetatfriendly.com is the website linking you to the residential development at the Shops. These condos look posh and they even include a virtual tour of the units! Looks like square footage of the units ranges from 2000-4000 square feet with a starting price at $412,000.

Although it's nice and dense, I have significant beef. THE ENTIRE DEVELOPMENT IS AUTOMOBILE DEPENDENT!!! It's great for live-at-home wives who spend rich hubby's cash to stay up to date with the latest fashion trends or for retirees who like to shop. Otherwise, who else would live here? The nearest employment center is the shopping center (aka low wages!! :whistling:) - I HIGHLY doubt that the cashier at Macy*s or the busboy at P.F. Changs will be able to afford living here. I had no idea these units (albeit nice) would be this pricey. Do you think that developers were really trying to target the middle age/retiree demographic here or is it just me?

looks the building will be 5-stories. It looks nice. I worry that the developer may have trouble selling all the units because of the number of units. Butit looks like a nice development. 100 condos no less than $400,000. Looks like the target are retirees who are looking to sell their big old homes in search for something with less maintance. The website says the condos will offer views of Greensboro's skyline. Everything about this development is upscale. Residents of Somerset will be able to walk to PF Changs, Brooks Brothers and the world's largest Harris Teeter. Rumor has it that the Shops at Friendly will get a Cheesecake Factory. This developement is looking more and more like what we see in Charlotte and Raleigh.

top.jpg

Edited by cityboi
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True.... when I think about the NW Greensboro demographics, it makes sense.

looks the building will be 5-stories. It looks nice. I worry that the developer may have trouble selling all the units because of the number of units. Butit looks like a nice development. 100 condos no less than $400,000. Looks like the target are retirees who are looking to sell their big old homes in search for something with less maintance. The website says the condos will offer views of Greensboro's skyline. Everything about this development is upscale. Residents of Somerset will be able to walk to PF Changs, Brooks Brothers and the world's largest Harris Teeter. Rumor has it that the Shops at Friendly will get a Cheesecake Factory. This developement is looking more and more like what we see in Charlotte and Raleigh.

top.jpg

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yes its a VERY wealthy section of town. Irving Park and Starmount Farms are nearby. Friendly Center is really developing an upscale image. Hotels such as the O'Henry and Proximity are there, and upscale restaurant and shopping chains.

Edited by cityboi
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I don't know if this has been posted anywhere, but www.somersetatfriendly.com is the website linking you to the residential development at the Shops. These condos look posh and they even include a virtual tour of the units! Looks like square footage of the units ranges from 2000-4000 square feet with a starting price at $412,000.

Although it's nice and dense, I have significant beef. THE ENTIRE DEVELOPMENT IS AUTOMOBILE DEPENDENT!!! It's great for live-at-home wives who spend rich hubby's cash to stay up to date with the latest fashion trends or for retirees who like to shop. Otherwise, who else would live here? The nearest employment center is the shopping center (aka low wages!! :whistling: ) - I HIGHLY doubt that the cashier at Macy*s or the busboy at P.F. Changs will be able to afford living here. I had no idea these units (albeit nice) would be this pricey. Do you think that developers were really trying to target the middle age/retiree demographic here or is it just me?

I second that, this development keeps adding to a big problem. I'd like to think developers in the Triad would take ques from Charlotte area builders but I guess they're only in it for the money around here. :( Much like every other urban infill development in the Triad, this one will most likely cater to the demographic you described blburton.

I take it Somerset at Friendly will go here? Not very pedestrian friendly if you ask me.

FriendlyCenter.jpg

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I think it could have been much worse. I do think the development is pedestrian friendly because its in walking distance to some of the city's most beautiful gardens and greenways. These are several gardens near the development

Bog Garden

Greensboro Arboretum

Bicentennial Garden

plus a greenway

Overall Somerset is a nice midrise development. I also think this is a very interesting and unique feature

"buyers can choose from a variety of floor plans and are able to move around interior walls"

The website said this development should be complete by late Summer of 2008.

Edited by cityboi
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It is in walking distance to amenities but is it walkable?

It is...keep in mind the roads adjacent to the development are not high traffic commercial roads. They are very neighborhood oriented roads. But yes it is walkable. I do think there could have been a little more thought in the pedestrian nature between Somerset and the Shops at Friendly because the stores are surrounded by alot of parking. But other than that its pedestrian oriented.

Edited by cityboi
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It is in walking distance to amenities but is it walkable?

Sounds ridiculous, but in this case yes it is both. Very old century tree canopy overhung type residential road, the gardens being only a block's walk away. However, some sections of this neighborhood DO need some sidewalk treatment/upgrade.

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I second that, this development keeps adding to a big problem. I'd like to think developers in the Triad would take ques from Charlotte area builders but I guess they're only in it for the money around here. :( Much like every other urban infill development in the Triad, this one will most likely cater to the demographic you described blburton.

I take it Somerset at Friendly will go here? Not very pedestrian friendly if you ask me.

I've got to disagree to a certain extent here. While I think the overall development was not designed very well there are numerous places of employment within walking/biking distance. First off there will be new office space just beyond Mimi's Caf

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I can be standing on the corner of Friendly and Holden and know that Friendly Center along with hundreds of businesses, hotels, and restaurants are less than 1/4 mile away from me, within walking distance. BUT, (like I stated above) walkability is a whole different scenario. I know many of you reading this are not urban dwellers and pretty much drive your car to every place you have to go, but have any of you honestly tried walking the Friendly/Green Valley/Benjamin Parkway area? Try getting out on foot, then you'll see what I mean. Personally I don't enjoy walking across 6 lane roads with no designated pedestrian crosswalk onto a 3-foot wide sidewalk.

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^ We may mean different things here, no, Friendly and Holden Ave's are not all that walkable themselves, but the gardens/parks mentioned above as well as most of Friendly center, are linked and walkable without having to cross these thoroughfares. Some of the Hobbs neighborhoods are similarly accessible, and the residents here can easily access most urban services with a short walk of a few blocks. Though if you are referring to those who MUST cross these main roads then I suppose you are right, so kind of unclear there, though the new condos going in will not require such a walk, nor many existing residents in the vicinity. I wouldn't kid myself that the area is an urban environ, but it has achieved a high level of encapsulation.

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While I agree that it is not a complete urban environment it has come a long way in becoming more pedestrian friendly and having spend a lot of time there I would say while it is spread of it is very walkable. Where specifically is the Friendly Center area lacking crosswalks? Maybe at Northline and Green Valley, I'm not sure on that one but I think there is a cross walk there? Without seeing it in front of me I believe there are crosswalks at every major intersection along Friendly, Green Valley, and Benjamin Pkwy. I guess if more people used the sidewalks the city would have an excuse to make them wider but they are plenty wide for the 10 people a day that use them. As far as being able to walk to high paying jobs from the Somerset Condos (ones in which the employees can afford the price of the condos), it is possible.

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Crosswalks are not enough, I think what JerseyBoy is referring to is a true melding of the commercial and residential aspect of things, and one very much focused on a person, not the automobile. Simply having a crosswalk across a busy thoroughfare is not at all pedestrian friendly. Strip Centers adjacent to housing neighborhoods are also not necessarily pedestrian friendly or urban. It is the human scale and human orientation that makes something pedestrian friendly, one in which the automobile driver is at best frustrated, at worse prevented from access. Crossing seas of parking lots are not pedestrian friendly, and definitely not human oriented or scaled. Also at issue is the level of services available I think, necessities such as food, recreation, banking, employment, etc. For the neighborhoods that are nearby/on the right sides of Friendly Center, it is possible to live in a decently urbanesque walkable environ.

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Crosswalks are not enough, I think what JerseyBoy is referring to is a true melding of the commercial and residential aspect of things, and one very much focused on a person, not the automobile. Simply having a crosswalk across a busy thoroughfare is not at all pedestrian friendly. Strip Centers adjacent to housing neighborhoods are also not necessarily pedestrian friendly or urban. It is the human scale and human orientation that makes something pedestrian friendly, one in which the automobile driver is at best frustrated, at worse prevented from access. Crossing seas of parking lots are not pedestrian friendly, and definitely not human oriented or scaled. Also at issue is the level of services available I think, necessities such as food, recreation, banking, employment, etc. For the neighborhoods that are nearby/on the right sides of Friendly Center, it is possible to live in a decently urbanesque walkable environ.

I think Friendly Center is getting there. Certainly its not to late to improve things.

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In terms of pedestrian access, Friendly Center works internally for the most part, but it's not the type of environment I'd walk to if I lived nearby because the pedestrian access to the site is poor, a vestige of the automobile suburbs Greensboro has had in spades for years. In terms of vehicular access, it's the reverse. All roads lead to Friendly, but it's better to walk after you get there.

The condos are a little pricey to be located on the back end of a shopping strip. For my 400K. if I had it, I would want a little more connection to the rest of the built environment, kind of like Brikdale Village or Phillips Place in Charlotte.

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Crosswalks are not enough, I think what JerseyBoy is referring to is a true melding of the commercial and residential aspect of things, and one very much focused on a person, not the automobile. Simply having a crosswalk across a busy thoroughfare is not at all pedestrian friendly. Strip Centers adjacent to housing neighborhoods are also not necessarily pedestrian friendly or urban. It is the human scale and human orientation that makes something pedestrian friendly, one in which the automobile driver is at best frustrated, at worse prevented from access. Crossing seas of parking lots are not pedestrian friendly, and definitely not human oriented or scaled. Also at issue is the level of services available I think, necessities such as food, recreation, banking, employment, etc. For the neighborhoods that are nearby/on the right sides of Friendly Center, it is possible to live in a decently urbanesque walkable environ.

Ahhh yes, finally someone understands. :rolleyes:

I have walked this area before, that's why I'm criticizing it so much. It's our job as citizens of a region to push for change and how things are developed, not just say "it's getting there" or "it's fine." We should not settle, but make things the best they can be. Wouldn't it be nice to have a walkable corridor from downtown to Friendly with a streetcar coming down Friendly? Then, you could say to your coworker," What are you doing after work? Do you want to come grab a bite to eat at Friendly tonight with me?" Instead of," Do you want to carpool to Friendly with me tonight to get something to eat?" We will never get anywhere as a society if we accept mediocre work.

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On a way to pick up something I wanted off of craigslist, I drove through the PTI/New Garden area this past summer. Like you said, I would take Friendly any day over that.

As far as the shopping center of Friendly, yes that is walkable and is what a shopping center should be, except the vast acres of asphalt. My biggest concern was how the buildings didn't greet the major thoroughfares in an urban fashion. I understand the developer's thoughts behind that, but this should be a corridor (along with many others in Greensboro) that the city redesigns and makes into a walkable neighborhood.

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