A close look at the Downtown Raleigh developments currently underway.
It’s no doubt exciting to be living in a city on the rise—literally. News of the next big building breaking ground or major project coming down the pipeline breaks seemingly daily, inundating us with tower announcements, floor numbers, random addresses and renderings. Which is also wildly overwhelming to keep up with—or try to envision what the ever-evolving cityscape will look like in the coming year or two or five. Enter your first real visualization of Downtown’s future skyline. Raleigh Magazine’s team recently sat front and center at Downtown Raleigh Alliance’s annual State of Downtown event during which DRA unveiled the above then-unlabeled image as representative of the ~$4.8 billion of projects planned, proposed or under construction in DTR as of now. Our awe was immediately followed by a need to align each building image with its respective project and placement (no small feat), yielding what is now Downtown Raleigh’s first true labeled map of how our skyline will take shape via a range of hotels, office buildings, retail and residential builds (or mixed-use combinations). Said one stakeholder of the illustration: “Maybe we’re finally going to get there, finally going to have some of those iconic destinations that are cool to have—ones that warrant the ‘best place to live’ accolades and give us that wow-factor that other big urban destinations have long had.”
For more on the city of Raleigh’s upcoming developments click here.
There’s a lot that goes into making a neighborhood a neighborhood: The houses and the people that live in them, of course, but also, the opportunities neighbors have to connect with one another. At The Cottages at Filmore, nestled between Five Points and Glenwood South, you’ll find three—soon to be seven—cottages clustered around a shared community courtyard and garden.
Good Dirt, a local sustainable gardening supply company, designed the space for residents to relax, hang out together and grow produce to swap and share. Rich Realty Group selected Good Dirt owners Al and Suzy Newsom to create the gathering area to round out the second phase of what the realty group describes as a “pocket neighborhood,” defined by a shared green space.
“Good Dirt was like our knight in shining armor,” says Charlotte Quinn, the co-broker in charge of the property. “We wanted a space that everybody could use and enjoy and feel like it’s their own but also shared with one another. They made this whole project come together.”
Before the Newsoms took over, the space consisted of yellowing grass and a line of holly trees concealing a water retention filtration system.
“Frankly, it was an eyesore,” says Al.
Rich Realty Group wanted the neighborhood to embrace the outdoor area so, to rejuvenate the space, the Newsoms added in a courtyard using gravel sourced from Chapel Hill, with a mobile fireplace and chairs and boulders for sitting, plus stone steps leading up to a terrace that houses seven raised garden containers—one for each cottage.
The Newsoms replaced the hollies with native plants, wildflowers and pollinators that will provide year-round color and attract additional wildlife, including birds and rabbits, while showcasing the retention system which will fill with water once all of the cottages are complete.
“We wanted to beautify instead of hide the space and make it into a point of interest [for the residents],” explains Al.
In addition, each of the cottage’s porches was adorned with container gardens of their own using Good Dirt’s chemical- and pesticide-free products. Al and Suzy hope that the central courtyard and garden will create a tight-knit community within The Cottages at Filmore, as well as the rest of the neighborhood.
“The biggest reward is getting realtors excited,” says Suzy. “We thrive on collaboration.”
