Raleigh Marriott City Center Hotel

[Jones_]

10 floors? They are constructing the sixteenth floor.

[CHGuy]

roofs aren't concrete

[Jones_]

Many times on a cast-in-place concrete structure, the roof structure and deck is concrete. I have personally worked on such a project.

[CHGuy]

Really...where? I am not a structural engineer but that seems like an awful lot of unnecessary weight....plus a lot of unflexibility when it comes to utilities coming thorough the roof.....do you see them more often on bigger buildings with large HVAC units? I don't see the point unless a large roof weight needs supported. Are constructions crews generally only trained at either steel frame or cast in place concrete or crews more flexible than that?

[Jones_]

There are many reasons why you would want a concrete roof. It reduces that amount of noise and vibrations on the inside of the building from rooftop mounted equipment, you don't need to add extra framing to support small items mounted on the roof, you can slope the concrete to the drains (you don't need to depend on sloping insulation or steel), you have a monolithic roof deck reducing the chances of leaks to the interior, etc.

There is also the issue of construction trades. Yes, steel crews and concrete crews are different people. If you already have the concrete crews on the site, it is easy for them to finish the structure. You don't have to introduce another trade on the site which can affect timing and coordination.

You are correct in that there is less future flexibility for moving/adding equipment to the roof and creating new openings, but you would have to add steel framing for supporting the equipment and/or openings in concrete or steel structures anyway. You are also correct in that it is a lot of added weight that must be taken into account structurally and cost wise. That is why many concrete structures have steel roofs.

The building that I have personal knowledge of is the second MCI building on Westin Parkway. It is an all cast-in-place structure clad in granite, curtain wall and aluminum panels.

[Tayfromcarolina]

Some pics I took early this afternoon from a birds perch view. I don't think that the building will get much taller, with the exception of maybe some structural or venting above. I counted 16 floors with the 17th about halfway framed. Gotta give it to the workers, it was definitely hot today.

[Jones_]

Some pics I took early this afternoon from a birds perch view. I don't think that the building will get much taller, with the exception of maybe some structural or venting above. I counted 16 floors with the 17th about halfway framed. Gotta give it to the workers, it was definitely hot today.

[unique1rdu]

Very nice!!!

[RaleighRob]

Wow...maybe it's the angle, but that building looks very skinny. Almost like a book standing up on its edge.

[bananzamonkey]

Wow...maybe it's the angle, but that building looks very skinny. Almost like a book standing up on its edge.

[Subway Scoundrel]

Great shots !!

All I can say is "yep, it is a convention center hotel." Just like in many other cities. I heard all the talk of "efis" and what it looked like but knowing this hotel would always be skinny, blockish, etc.

I remember hearing some of people from the city who thought they were getting a Ritz-Carlton, Fairmont or a whatever even though the payout was $20M. I kept thinking, "it is a damn CC hotel, like a matchbox".

I still say, I hope it is a 4star for a while. Many of these hotels consider themselves as a 4star when they open but move fast to a 3 1/2 star after a couple of years and work their way down.

That being said, I like the hotel and glad it is here.

[JeffC]

Great shots !!

All I can say is "yep, it is a convention center hotel." Just like in many other cities. I heard all the talk of "efis" and what it looked like but knowing this hotel would always be skinny, blockish, etc.

[dmccall]

I've called this hotel the "Members Only Jacket" of architecture before. I was just hoping we'd get something nicer than the Sheraton, but honest it will take a lot of dressing up with finishes and lighting to save this thing from being Sheraton 2.0.

[Spatula]

If the windows were a bit bigger, so that they touched with the closest window horizontally, forming pairs, it would look a lot better. This is the 21st century. The 70s were a long time ago; why people persist in putting little square windows on things still boggles my mind.

[cityboi]

Some pics I took early this afternoon from a birds perch view. I don't think that the building will get much taller, with the exception of maybe some structural or venting above. I counted 16 floors with the 17th about halfway framed. Gotta give it to the workers, it was definitely hot today.

[Jones_]

I stopped and ate lunch at Subway in Richlands going towards Swansboro today and caught an interesting blurb about EIFS in their weekly newspaper (unfortunately they don't have an online edition). The town of Beulaville (also covered in this paper) just rehabbed their town hall and they ripped off the EIFS, which appeared fairly new, because they said it was very hard to keep clean and woodpeckers were attracted to it......I would love to see some woodpeckers clinging to the side of our hotel, but regarding not sliding towards becoming Sheratonesque, you don't want your beige EIFS turning tailpipe grey too fast....even little Beulaville hates the stuff!

[DwnTwnRaleighGuy]

I know its in the past, but the city should have only sold them half of the site for this hotel and given the $20 million only if they would build it taller than this book-end.

[Spatula]

Dont forget to add another floor. Remember there is never a 13th floor in a building

[ChiefJoJo]

Another angle from tonight:

[avery]

I was looking at the current webcam...is the blueish-grey on the exterior of the Marriott the final finish?

http://earthcam.com/clients/raleigh/index....cam=3&type=

[rooster8]

That is probably a base for the EIFS.

[bikwillie]

It looks like this whole thing is covered in EIFS to me. I thought only 20% could be EIFS.

[cophead567]

I noticed this today on the webcam page. I feel lost as to what this thing across the street from the hotel is. anyone know? I was guessing an entrance to the underground deck but then why does it look so tall?

[Gard]

^^^

Doesn't appear to go underground, so couldn't be an underground parking entrance. It looks like some sort of column, maybe for some special lighting to shine on the Marriot?

[ncwebguy]

There is a website for the hotel now, http://www.marriottraleigh.com/

Not much there that we haven't already seen here. It is on a "coming soon" sign on construction wall on City Square/Hannover plaza. I think it said it was opening July 2008, but I could be filling in gaps.

As for the thing on the street, it might be an escalaltor/elevator entrance to the underground parking deck that will be below the hotel, street, and site 1? It is in line with the sidewalk on the east side of the future F Street.