MR-2

Somehow, terminal C managed to look a lot worse than terminal A, despite being newer. Maybe it was the red gabled roof. Made it look like a warehouse. I remember going in it the first time, when I was really young. It looked like the coolest thing. Didn't last very long. It also might have something to do with 'A' being the combination of the old A and B terminals. After they combined it with the B wing, they had more room to spread out the baggage claim, pickup/dropoff, security stuff.

Terminal A will be renovated (not rebuilt) after Terminal C is completed. Then it will probably continue to serve as a passenger concourse. Someone posted renders of the refitted building, and it looked pretty compatible to the future C, though a little more retro.

I'm not sure about roundabouts now. The more I think about it, the more I think hampering traffic will be bad for the area, especially if we want to get more residents there. Commuting should be a plus to the location, if we want to lure people/developers there.

Agreed on the lanes. It needs all of the ones it has. Better sidewalks, light fixtures, maybe a traffic circle or two, and some incentives for NCSU students to actually spend money on the street, and it would pick up. Some 10-floor condo buildings on the state-owned lots near the old Darryl's building and across from Thompkins hall, and the place would be bustling. Especially if these properties have cheap units.

The Lafayette, the WCPS, Progress II, and Reynolds I won't be on Fayetteville street. Only two of those will be visible from the money shot though.

All these tech companies need someone to manage their money, so eventually they do bring things downtown. Some of them could move offices directly downtown, if they establish a big enough presence.

At this point we know we're getting businesses and big skyscrapers downtown. Nightlife isn't something you can just pay to get though. When I'm biking around downtown at 11:00 or later it looks like a ghost town. There's nobody and no reason to have anybody after 9. We need reasons.

A southeast angle, either SSE or ESE This will be a wall of towers when construction is complete. From the second floor of the lobby, and from the higher floors in some nearby apartments, this angle will be gratuitously dense.

That would be a good spot for an Elmo's. We really need an Elmo's in Raleigh.

Companies located in the RTP are required to keep their campuses separate, and obscured from the road. Many the sprawly aspects of the park's setup are furthered by its management. This isn't just within the park boundaries of course. It affects campuses nearby in Morrisville and Durham.

King Crimson - "Three of a Perfect Pair"

The more I hear about RTP the less I like it. I know it's what we're known for, but the RTF is so backwards at times it's insane.

Raleigh needs an Elmo's. I think a big bookstore like Barnes&Noble would also do a lot for downtown. See the ones in Baltimore and Denver if you're not sure.

This is dead on. I agree.

NCSU has no situation worked out with the shops on Hillsborough for a student discount. There IS some sort of off campus mealplan, but it isn't conducive to getting students to spend money on their campus's commercial artery. The mealplans available tend to steer people into the cafeterias and campus restaurants, and away from real local establishments. That's definitely one thing. It might not be the main thing, but hell if I know what it is.

Denver has a great downtown with a lot of shops and eateries. They have a large volume of infill occurring, and they will be getting two new tallest buildings in the coming years (similar to Raleigh). Lots of residential projects going up along with those. Denver's light rail is really what I envision for Raleigh. It runs under the convention center and spiders out from downtown. One interesting thing I noticed is that the 16th street mall they have actually worked. Unlike Raleigh's Fayetteville street, which was pedestrian only, 16th street has an exclusive bus system that stops at every block, so you can tour downtown Denver from the buses. They also have urban indoor malls being constructed, and something similar to our city market. There are patchy areas, and outside of Denver proper, I would consider the metro area a lost cause as far as planning goes. With no prohibitive hills or woodlands, sprawl is quickly devouring everything. Meanwhile downtown is still having problems with crime and poverty. Aside from that though, I would consider the city's current trend a successful one, and one we should try to emulate.

Terminal C's post-modern look will give a good impression to business travellers, and that makes it worth the cost. Hopefully Terminal A's renovations will be extensive enough to make it seem like the same airport.

Raleigh could go many ways. The architecture of the six new tall buildings will determine a lot. The way I see it, the linear layout with four 30+ floor buildings separated by a couple blocks will make it look like the beotch stepchild of Atlanta and Asheville. Hopefully someone will come along and build something >40 floors between RBC Centura and Wachovia's towers. That would look good. I predict Durham will take on an Austin reminiscent look. I'm thinking Charlotte will look like Dallas, with a concentrated core that isn't rivalled by anything else in the city. That isn't complete though, because the tallest building in Charlotte will likely still have a spire. Winston-Salem... probably Tulsa. Probably more dense, but when I think about it in my head, all I really see is that 50-floor building. Greensboro... Birmingham

This will be a very nice square in Raleigh when everything's finished.

Whenever I look at the government complex leading from the capitol to the Archdale building, I am reminded of the Washington Mall and the Smithsonian. Maybe some day it'll look something like that.

They appear to be renovating the east branch of the building; perhaps this will have a Hillsboro entrance?

The DH Hill Library is very unfriendly to pedestrians. If we're going to fix up Hillsboro street, we need to give it a proper lobby, like Davis in Chapel Hill, with a good entrance facing Hillsboro.

I think Carrboro will surprise everyone and outgrow Chapel Hill.

I think Raleigh will always be competing with Durham and Chapel Hill for nightlife. Eventually the sheer number of residents and the sheer amount of money downtown will make the place interesting. Those are things Durham and Chapel Hill are far behind on.

That would not go down well. Hunt was an average governor, and Helms didn't leave a particularly positive legacy for NC. We already have a statue for our presidents. Polk was the only good one of the three, though. We don't have much statue material really. That's unfortunate. Maybe the Wright Brothers?