Tayfromcarolina

Agreed it was a misleading article. "For Shame" But anyway. Hechts will be switching over in the Triangle area in September to the "MACY'S" Brand but macy's credit cards are already being accepted in hechts. Hechts stores in Georgia have already switched over I've been told.

Yeah, I waited to late also. All the mens stuff is gone. But if your looking to buy some used jewelry cases or furniture have at it. Lord & Taylors last days may be for you.

Wake Forest Has tons of room to expand to the east to highway 401. Maybe 100,000 is a bit high. Yeah those are just guesses based on population trends, potential growth and road access to certain areas.

Hopefully we will have some kind of Highspeed Rail by that point. I envision midtown (atlantic ave. to crabtree) being really upscale and flourishing. Cary will be even more sprawling and monotonous than ever, with Apex and Holly Springs not too far behind. On the brightside I think downtown will have some "true" skyscrapers 40 stories plus. The airport will be finished with both new terminals A and C renamed to A and B, and the second parking deck will be complete. Southpointe, Triangle Center and White Oak Malls (in Garner) will be main focuses of retail along with established North Hills and Crabtree. And Brier Creek southwest to Highway 55 will be the most exclusive area of the triangle stretching well in to Durham County. 2020 my Future populations estimates: Raleigh- 526,000 Durham- 302,000 Cary- 205,000 Chapel Hill-115,000 Wake Forest- 100,000 Apex- 60,000 Knightdale-40,000 Garner- 32,000 Clayton- 26,000 Triangle at large 2.2 million

I thought they already decided what to do with the park and to build the 12-story residential towers last summer. I thought it was a done deal. I rather like the retail and residential plan that was the main forerunner last real. We have a million greenways, Umstead, Lake Wheeler, Jordan Lake..... That location is prime for a good mix of retail, residential and park. They can all be meshed together I believe.

Yeah those garages definetly need some help. But I think all in all that Crabtree could still be "THE MALL" to visit in the triangle. They should continue luring the Exclusive Stores in the area. (That's what sets them apart from Southpoint and TTC). They should take a que from Southpark mall in Charlotte which still holding their own despite the addition of the new Northlake mall. They may try to get some outdoor type stores going on in the area where Toys R' Us and Barnes and Noble sit and redesign those stores to go with the rest. And for goodness sakes get Neimans as a regional draw.

I say lure Neiman Marcus in and let that be that. With there Charlotte store now open it is time for The triangle to have our own NM. Or maybe a Parisian Dept. store.

I like Craig Davis and the Empire Renderings. A downtown Library (finally) Spa, Movie Theater and Shops and the Condos on top are precisely the next step in that area. Duke is as everyone else has commented far far too late. They should just select another prime tract to invest and develop. The Davis/Empire design and scheme in my honest opinion is flawless. And the renderings are first rate. After all the early bird gets the worm right?

If you think Raleigh is an expensive city to live in you are right. Ran across this today at Forbes.com Forbes Richest Cities

Once again I say Neiman Marcus if Charlotte has one so should we. Afterall we do have Saks and Nordstrom in the Metro now don't we. Whatever the case IT should be upscale retail dillards simply won't do. Dillards "Yawn".

Yes $2.10 sounds cheap. Due to the powers that be lasts years $1.75 around this time seems to be all but forgotten. It's a consipiracy I tell you. I might have to look into taking the train to Charlotte from Raleigh now that it is so timely.

There also supposed to build a twin to the new parking deck. I suspect it will be shortly after terminal C is through with the remodeling process. Both Charlotte/Douglas and RDU are expanding and remodeling to cater to the increasing number of airplane traffic.

Yep, that's right. And once terminal C is finished they will begin work on the construction of the new Terminal A. Which is supposed to handle the increasing number of international flights. Slate to open in 2012.

I like this plan presented by Raleigh/Wake county FAR FAR better than any of the other proposals. Residential is the main factor to drive any retail, parks. etc. And this plan has plenty of it. Plus adding a couple signature highrises to the mix. I truly hope this becomes a reality. I believe it is a great way to use that land.

I wish I could make it. Make sure you make enough noise for me too. And give us plenty of info tomorrow. Good Luck against the nimby's.

Very well put. Those nimby's from the last meeting got on my nerves to say the least. Raleigh is a fast growing city on the verge of something exceptionally great. People really do need to realize this. Townhomes, integrated housing, resturants and a hotel or two really would work for this area. I also liked the idea of the world class botanical garden or even an NC aquarium. (something that would create a draw). As I see it Raleigh has enough greenways and trails as it is, dare I say more than citys twice the size even. I hope they don't pick that city park plan. Come what may that land needs to be used to it's fullest potential. I hope the city dosen't make a bad call on this one. They've made some good decisions as of late with the conv. center & fayetteville st. mall projects.

Sheesh. I wish someone from Crabtree Valley Mall would call up Neiman Marcus. Obviously the Population base demographics could handle it. Then they could go forward with a huge renovation. We have Nordstrom, and Saks, Neimans in next. If Charlotte has one so should we. It would create that much more of a draw to the Mall and area.

Here are a few pics of the new 230 million dollar Convention Center. Now under construction in downtown. Raleigh Convention Center I think that this along with the fayetteville street mall project. Are the first in a series of great steps for the city. What's next? And what do you wish for? I wish that the state and city could go in on a NC State Aquarium. Georgia is about to open a huge one in Atlanta. I think that this could be a Raleigh/Triangle/and State wide Attraction. We already have the Art, History, and Natural Science Museums so and Aquarium would seen to be next on the list right? Why should the aquariums only be at the coast?

Perhaps your right about the State owning it, but still. They want money too. Either way somebody's out to get money. The public's opinion(s) are a small piece out of this pie.

I would say I agree with you Ericurbanite. However, I have always kept one thing in mind, and that is>>> The city wants money. I too was at the meeting tuesday and just wanted to tell some of the idiots there to sit down, and shut up. They were so vocal about the park, that they were interupting the individuals with the LandDesign team and what not. They can be as vocal as they want to be, but still it was just 150 people. (Curse those Nimby's) and when it comes down to it, the city of Raleigh is going to pick the option, or combination of options which is gonna put some money back in their pockets. After all, many objected, and are still objecting about the fayetteville street mall project, and the new convention center. But as anyone can tell both of those passed anyway. And I'm glad they did. Something tells me the city may go with a park but still throw a great deal of mixed use housing/private office/state office/ & mental health campus/and enlarge the state farmers market. After all. What city worth it's weight is gonna let that much land go to use, and not get paid at the same time. The "Nimby's" have held the city back far to long. We have a long way to go to catch up to where we should be, but finally the city is taking some giant steps in the right direction. "Don't be afraid to dream; And while you're at it, dream big."

There is a public session for input tonight from 6-8 at the convention center there are 3 different options the public can vote on.

I hear this question a lot, in fact I was talking to the librarian at the law firm this morning where I work in downtown Raleigh. She lived in Charlotte for a number of years and a couple of years ago transferred to Raleigh. She said she likes it better here because of the universities in close proximity in the area. Also there tend to be a lot more intellectual and arts oriented things in the Triangle area. And from what I hear, and I tend to agree with this, the night life is better. Also the Schools at least in Raleigh/Wake County are amongst the top in the south Behind Austin Texas. And the Crime rate is far lower in Raleigh/Cary and the Surrounding areas than in the Charlotte area in general. So maybe this well help you out a bit in your decision.

Oh well that settles it. Guess I'll be leaving Raleigh for Charlotte in a bit. Raleigh is progressive, but Charlotte is doing big things for real. WOW is all I can say. Seems like every other month there's some big announcement in CLT. Queen City here I come.

Cary Towne needs to be renovated if you ask me, it's about that time, compared to the newer malls. In fact it's last on my list of malls. They might need to think about adding a second story.

Crabtree Valley Mall is still the most popular mall in Eastern North Carolina by far despite the new malls which have opened recently "Triangle Towne Center" and "Southpointe" People come from all over to shop there. But Lord & Taylor a somewhat upscale retailer will be leaving there anchor spot at Crabtree in late '06 I believe do to sales volume. Crabtree is looking for a upscale retailer to fill that spot. With Charlotte getting a Neiman Marcus online this year. I think Crabtree should try to lure Neiman Marcus as well since we have a Nordstrom and Saks already in the area. And if not Neiman Marcus maybe a Parisian they're all over the place in Georgia and the deep south North Carolina has yet to have one of them. Any thoughts?