(renderings of Downtown South Masterplan courtesy 10 Design)
by Ron Bernthal
The $2.2 billion, 140-acre Downtown South Raleigh Masterplan is a large-scale project proposal located in North Carolina for Kane Realty Corporation. The mixed-use development comprises offices and residential areas in addition to hospitality, retail and leisure space. The proposal includes the design of a 20,000-seat football stadium and a VR center designed to further enhance the urban development of the south end of Downtown Raleigh. A 500-room hotel is also part of the proposed plan.
Connectivity is at the core of the project. The architectural firm 10 Design has stated that the project includes fast and easy accessibility from Downtown Raleigh through the creation of a bridge loop that encloses the entire development, providing efficient circulation from in and out of the site, and with the rest of the city. The project will be a positive connection to Raleigh’s extensive greenways system and local historic neighborhoods.
Situated in the ‘City of Oaks’, the masterplan draws inspiration from the organic patterns of the trees, and retains most of the existing vegetation across the site, which will also create a benefit to residents and workers by reducing noise and cleaning the air from the I-40 highway which borders the development.
10 Design’s vision for Raleigh is to develop a new neighborhood that will be a positive addition to the creative creative economic growth of the East Coast by providing brand-new homes and public areas for the community, and contributing to the revitalization of the southern areas of the city, and complementing the well known Research Triangle district to the north of the city.
The project ties in with the development of the Bus Rapid Transit (BTR) network to the south. It will generate new job opportunities for the area and create a lively neighborhood that supports the city’s culture of technology and sports, as well as its large network of parks.
The masterplan’s series of mid-rise buildings are positioned across a central pedestrian walkway and pocket parks, creating a vibrant retail and F&B street that will create a small-scale neighbourhood within the development, a convenient and beautiful environment for residents, workers and visitors. The Raleigh City Council approved the controversial rezoning for the parcels in December 2020, leading to the developers’ purchase of the final piece of property. Construction is expected to begin in 2022 with tenants able to move in 2024.
Not all residents of Raleigh are happy about the new project. Nearby residents say they fear Downtown South, which developers hope will eventually include a sports and entertainment stadium, will force them from their homes as property values, and the taxes they pay, increase. “People are feeling like they’re about to be priced out of Raleigh,” said Stephon Whitley to WRALTechWire. Whitley, an organizer with One Wake, an advocacy group calling for more affordable housing and property tax reform in the area. “Their taxes have already doubled and tripled in the last few years, and they worry, once that development goes up, how that will affect their property taxes and their ability to stay in their homes,” Whitley added.
10 Design, part of Egis Group, is an international architecture and master planning practice with offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Edinburgh, Dubai, Miami, London, Shenzhen, and Singapore.
