A five-year plan unveiled by Raleigh leaders aims to overcome the longstanding disconnect between the downtown core, parks and colleges and, more recently, the pandemic’s negative impact on demand for office space.
“Downtown Raleigh has been steadily growing and gaining momentum — new housing and offices, open space investment, events and street life,’” reads the Downtown Raleigh Economic Development Strategy report. “However, like many cities across the country, the pandemic was a profoundly disruptive force to this trajectory and business as usual.’’
Unveiled last week, the report by the Downtown Raleigh Alliance and the city of Raleigh embraces recommendations from Interface Studio, a Philadelphia-based planning and urban design practice, to focus on four needs. The report urges a focus on revitalizing retail, spurring office demand, supporting minority and women-owned businesses and investing in “catalytic projects’’ to stimulate downtown’s economy – or risk losing the innovation race to rival cities.
“Regional competition continues to be strong,’’ the report cautioned. “Downtown Raleigh is the largest urban center of the Research Triangle — a global brand and one of the fastest growing regions in the country. However, it faces stiff competition within the region, including other downtowns and lifestyle centers that offer pedestrian friendly, new urbanist environments with curated tenants and a public realm managed by a single owner.’’
In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic as “hybrid work is becoming more entrenched,” the report said, “office utilization and reduced foot traffic are major concerns for the health of the office market and retail. The decline in foot traffic and shifts in commuting patterns can have a significant impact on storefront sales and leasing. We need to prepare for a permanent structural shift and plan for other forms of foot traffic and different types of visitation patterns.’’
The report pointed out that downtown Raleigh’s growth is “disconnected. New investment is happening but not equally across downtown. Over time, downtown development has shifted west to areas like Hillsborough Street, the Warehouse District, Glenwood South, and now to the south around Dix Park, while the downtown core is disconnected from these investments.’’
The Fayetteville Street area comes across as drab and isolated in the downtown’s analysis, described by the report as lacking “some of the color and vibrancy of these newer districts. To thrive, the core needs a compelling vision that prioritizes street activity, improves connections to nearby assets and attracts a variety of different people — not just office workers.’’
10 Big Ideas for Downtown Raleigh
(cited in Downtown Raleigh Alliance report.)
* Energize downtown core with daily activation and placemaking to bring more people downtown.
* Elevate public art to create a unique experience that celebrates Raleigh and North Carolina.
- Diversify retail opportunities to address downtown needs.
- Support growth and diversification of innovation sector downtown.
- Position Downtown Raleigh as the Creative + Design Center of the Triangle
- Expand capacity of MWBE entrepreneurial ecosystem to support downtown and citywide needs.
- Integrate the government campus with the downtown core.
- Create exceptional public spaces for everyone.
- Create a bold connection to Dix Park.
- Design streets that encourage walking, biking and public transit
photo credit: AK Photography
