JeffC

We've discussed this before on here, but, in short, the main reasons are (1) expense, of course (no rail line already going to/near RDU) but also (2) not only no support from RDU Airport AUthority, but downright hostility as well...the airport authority is addicted to the parking money they get, so they aren't about to take any actions that would (a) cost lots of money and (b) also have the effect of reducing their revenues. It is simply not in their economic interests....and, statutorily, the Airport Authority has the final say about what happens on airport property.

off topic, but did we ever figure out why Third Place started closing early? Were all those hipsters hanging out there at all hours of the evening not purchasing anything? Seemed like an extremely dumb move to me, given the audience they were catering to, but I wasn't looking at their revenue numbers...

gogoraleigh reports that Second Empire is taking over the drab block of abandoned storefronts between it and the Clarion Hotel for expansion. Gutsy move in this economy...particularly since Second Empire's upper end clientele must be absolutely cratering...

Is the old Seaboard Air Line route the railroad line paralleling Atlantic Avenue and heading northeast out of Raleigh? Where do those tracks end? (i.e. where does the route abandonment start) Isn't this the same route that TTA would use for their Raleigh commuter rail project?

All I can say is, you are a damn tightwad if you would rather clog up the parking lots of nearby businesses (who are struggling to survive) rather than pay $10/month to park (what the state currently charges employees to park in the decks).

Not really downtown, but Taste of Thai at the FOTN/Wake Forest Road split also just closed...it was my favorite Thai place...Anyone know of another Thai place in town that has Red Curry Duck on the menu? It was my partner's favorite dish, but isn't part of the "standard repertoire" of Thai places...

Good luck to the new venture...we really need a strong presence in this space, which Its Prime Only clearly was not. In retrospect, it seems whoever at Powerhouse ventures signed the Its Prime Only lease took temporary leave of their senses...who could possibly have thought that a generic undercapitalized chain steak place could compete with Sullivans just a block away with a better location? Brewpub seems a much better choice, and though it's true two other brewpubs have disappeared, Greenshields leaving downtown was due to the owner's own temporary moment of insanity, thinking he would do better in Cary than downtown (he lasted about six months IIRC in Cary after closing Greenshields downtown).

Re: critics of the purported traffic worsening effects of turning Hillsborough into less of a thoroughfare, check out this report from Scientific American (the print edition this month has a more detailed version of this) which describes recent studies showing that reducing capacity and certain "shortcuts" actually improves traffic flow...by changing the behavior of so-called selfish drivers (I guess the same guys who wait until the last minute to merge when there is a lane drop) Link

THe phenomena of "neighborhood" malls and shopping centers going belly up and emptying out is primarily happening in areas where the demographics of the surrounding neighborhood go south which (1) takes away affluent shoppers and (2) scares away folks from outside the immediate area that might want to shop there. In our area, see as examples pretty much every shopping center along Capital Blvd south of the 401 split (which will within 10-15 years replace the ITB portion of SE Raleigh as Raleigh's ghetto), and the late great South Square mall. No such demographic downturn is happening in the neigborhoods surround CTC...

So Obama's economic stimulus proposal includes $10 billion for mass transit. Any chance we would be in line to get any of that? Come on Barack, show us the love for turning NC blue last November.

I think the problem in Raleigh is that the city was going to piggyback on TTA's efforts in the Wye...and when the entire TTA light rail system collapsed, any serious and realistic planning for the multi-modal center collapsed along with it. The entire fiasco illustrates the shortcomings of multiple agencies/Jurisdictions trying to plan a facility together. The better approach, IMO, is for one agency/Government to step up and take the lead (i.e. the City of Raleigh), take input from the other potential participants on what space/accomodations they might eventually need (TTA, CAT, etc.) and then build the facility, leaving room for expansion by these other participants, if and when they get their act together...otherwise, it's too much like herding cats, and nothing ever gets done.

Any reports on the two new big box restaurants that have opened in that new area where Mccormick & Schmidt is located? Can't recall their names...

Ace Hardware survives on excellent customer service serving people like me who are tired of having to either feign death or mug an employee at Home Depot or Lowe's to get some attention. I haven't been into this Ace in particular, but the one up at North Ridge thrives on this formula. I've NEVER, even once walked in to the North Ridge Ace for more than 15 seconds without someone coming up to me and asking if they could help me. In contrast, judging by the sorts of things the numbskull former employees are posting on the closure thread over on New Raleigh, CCG never had the customer service superiority going for it to offset its other, obvious shortcomings...

Is 500 Glenwood the old Pine state Dairy Administrative offices (across the side street--Johnson?) from the Creamery? If that's the one, then mercy, what an ugly building...hope he strips it down to the girders...

Original name of Caldwell when I was there (late 80s, right after it opened) was the Link Bldg., for obvious reasons...

I have seen on the coffee tables of some long time Raleigh residents an album of pictures of now demolished Raleigh landmarks called "Forgotten Raleigh" or something like that...it was published by either the Junior League or the Womens Club of Raleigh, probably 20 or 30 years ago. It has pictures of the Tucker House, among many others. There are probably copies of this book at some of the local libraries...

Apparently, the piece at NewRaleigh on Yancy's was at least partially a fabrication/smear by a disgruntled ex-employee (read the N&O article linked above). Who knows what the truth is (yet) but I'm a little disappointed in New Raleigh, and hope they will have better quality control on what they run in the future...I certainly will take stuff (particularly the editorial stuff) with a grain of salt in the future...

This was a response to the previous poster who stated he liked this outdoor seating more than Lily's or Moonlight--not a suggestion that anyone would want to hang out there, which is sort of my point, and one of the reasons many restaurants have outdoor seating...

If you are in for a quick lunch and it's a nice day (i.e. not 90 degrees plus) sure, it's a pleasant enough outdoor seating area. But to hang out at night with friends? Why not just go to Home Depot and hang out on the outdoor furniture for sale out in the parking lot...same concrete bordering on a sea of asphalt...

Lily's is also a haze of smoke in the outdoor seating area from all the YUGs (Young Urban Goths) out there or next door at 3rd Place chain smoking....Plus, it is so loud inside...not the place to go if you want relaxing...

Ate lunch there today. Basic fast food chinese, like the place that used to be at the corner of Salisbury and Hargett. Styrofoam plates, cheesy pictures of the food on the menu board, the whole nine yards. Some nice outdoor seating, but a view only of an asphalt parking lot, with the freight yards in the distance. But hey, every downtown needs cheap Chinese, and this at least tasted hot and fresh. Not sure why they are trying to call themselves "gourmet"...maybe an English as a Second Language mistranslation? Bet it goes a little upscale at night. They have a setup where they could put out a buffet, but it wasn't set up at lunchtime today... On an unrelated note, as I walked past Capital Grocery on the way to the chinese place, it seemed to be doing a bit of the lunch business...mind you, not as busy as the cafe at Logan Trading Company ( I no longer refer to that place as "Seaboard Cafe" because newbies confuse it with the white tableclothed "18 Seaboard"), but far from a "how does this place stay in business" level of emptiness... And speaking of "how does this place stay in business", I am completely perplexed by all the glowing reports we were hearing before Tookie's opened downtown about how good it is...I guess it was good food if you had a "gas station" level of expectation, but for a sit down table service restaurant in downtown Raleigh, it simply doesn't cut it...

Other striking thing to me is how few trees there are around in that photo...campus is essentially a giant field. I know we grouse all the times about BRE (big real estate) on here, but I suspect Raleigh has a heck of a lot more trees today than it did when this photo was taken, when it was a tiny burg surrounded by acres upon acres of clear cut farmland/pasture.

New ownership, which I think can be nothing but an improvement. Hope the new owner improves the sanitation over Cody's, which perennially flirted with a "B" rating...I never had to look...if they had the big potted plant in front of the sanitation grade, it meant it was a B that month...

No way University Park residents (who include some of the most well-connected and influential folks in the city) go for a nine story building here...But would be nice to see this rather seedy corner of Cameron Village updated...I'm guessing it would stretch along Oberlin and encompass the old Ballentine's building...

I thought the Ruth's Chris was going in the JK's spot, with the hotel space up for grabs...am I mistaken?