Blue Ridge

Meanwhile, the Tobacco Road rival who long ago abandoned the Triangle did not make the tournament and just lost in the second round of the consolation tourn…..I mean, NIT. Coincidence? I think not.

Come to think of it, I can’t recall the last time I was impressed by a Hilton-branded Hilton…

Charlotte (#21), Raleigh-Durham (#22), Greensboro-High Point-Winston-Salem (#45) …and, if you want to get technical, Western NC contributes a not insignificant portion of the Greenville-Spartanburg-Asheville-Anderson (#36) market. So, 3.5?

Hard agree. In North Hills “proper” (as it currently exists), The AC and the Hyatt House are both nice but combined offer insufficient space. The Renaissance remains the only luxury-ish Midtown hotel, but both the hotel itself as well as the brand are dated. It’s also far less convenient for business travel to North Hills. The Hilton on Wake Forest is an insult both to the Hilton chain and the North Hills name. The majority of that strip opposite the Duke hospital from 440 to St Albans, including the Hilton, Denny’s, Bahama Breeze, and a Days Inn, is ripe for redevelopment in the coming years.

Very good chance FC Nashville and the Titans have squeezed out every bit of support for any public funding of sports facilities. That may be an under the radar factor as well.

Saving everyone a click: We have final, officially official confirmation that a long-rumored Target store will indeed be the major anchor of Gold Leaf Crossing, to be located near Five Points in Fuquay (US 401/NC 42/NC 55 intersection). Plans show a footprint just short of 150K sq ft, roughly 10% larger than the Holly Springs store. (Also worth noting that the HS store is among the worst suburban Targets I’ve visited, and friends there are excited for a new option.)

Seems like an absolute no brainer to me. Borrow inspiration from the infill and density spurred by Charlotte’s Blue Line and scale from there. (Yes, I realize it’s somewhat apples to oranges - maybe like Honeycrisp to Granny Smith - but let’s aim high here.)

I’ll save everyone a click: it’s Norse Brewing of Wake Forest, now with a new location in Zebulon. There are no pictures in the news story. They call it a “Viking Longhouse concept,” yet a quick Google search reveals what looks like a very average brewery/gastropub. The Viking theme - be it truly executed or in name only - will do well with the Zebulon crowd, I imagine.

Wells is leaving its downtown tower: https://www.wral.com/amp/21232190/

Very minor note, but while cruising June permits from across the area, I noticed something interesting: a permit application for new signage at the former Mason Jar Tavern in Holly Springs (114 Grand Hill Pl). The new tenant appears to be none other than Dave’s Hot Chicken, and would mark the chain’s first location in the Triangle.

FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies Acquires Additional 41 Acres of Land in RTP Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, April 19, 2023 – FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies, a world leading contract development and manufacturing organization for biologics, vaccines, and advanced therapies, today announced the acquisition of 41 acres of land adjacent to its existing state-of-the-art campus in Research Triangle Park (RTP), North Carolina. The additional 41 acres brings the total campus size to just under 119 acres in RTP giving the company room to grow for future capacity for manufacturing and development of biologics. The FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies RTP campus is comprised of three main buildings which include over 170,000 square feet dedicated to GMP manufacturing of biologics; 151,000 square feet of process and analytical development laboratories* and ~60,000 square feet of administration space. Currently there are over 650 employees at the RTP campus. Since 2014, FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies has significantly grown its footprint in RTP, most recently with the expansion of its BioProcess Innovation Center, which broke ground in April 2022. That expansion will double the site’s laboratory space and capacity to support Process Characterization programs. The expanded laboratories will be fully operational in spring 2024. “With an established history in RTP, we’ve been able to build strong relationships with academia and the local, regional and state communities, to ensure we are building a strong foundation for the future,” said Chris Vannais, chief operating officer, FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies, RTP. “We look forward to continuing our growth in RTP, so that we are well positioned to continue providing life-impacting therapeutics.” https://fujifilmdiosynth.com/about-us/press-releases/fujifilm-diosynth-biotechnologies-acquires-additional-41-acres-of-land-in-rtp/

New Mixed-Use Development Coming to Downtown Holly Springs: https://www.hollyspringsnc.us/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=1404. Great news for a boomtown that sorely needs more density in the town core. Meanwhile, I noticed yesterday the long vacant Rite Aid building on the corner of Main and Holly Springs Rd will soon have a new tenant: AutoZone. A whole 1/2 mi from both an Advance and O’Reilly. Great use of prime real estate. [emoji58]

More to come in downtown HS if the 120 N Main development gets off the ground. https://www.hollyspringsnc.us/2436/22-DP-02-PLDP202200021 Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The fact is, a right-wing extremist very, very quickly jumped on the attack and, at minimum, used it to advance a political/religious cause. Sure, she can’t be convicted of the crime itself for that alone, but the fact that it was so quickly used to advance an extremist cause is alarming, disgusting, and worthy of thorough investigation by a more unbiased authority than the local sheriff who himself has been tied to her extremist causes. It does not take a rocket scientist to connect the dots and realize how bad this is.

…wut? An extremist intimating the attack was because of drag queens was reported on by several media sources. The posts are still present on social media. Facts and evidence = gaslighting because it doesn’t align with your political viewpoints? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk