Mangum 506 open house turns out crowd

Wondering what the interest in downtown condos and residential units are? A look at the open house and party for the Mangum 506 condo project (map) on Friday night suggests it continues to be fairly deep, and fairly intensive.

I stopped by to check in and take a look at the plans for a few minutes, only to find the Center Studio Architecture office literally packed wall-to-wall with Durhamites checking out the newest downtown residential project. Over the course of an hour or so, I'd estimate that about 75 people made it through to look at the site plan, 3D models, unit floor plans and cabinetry samples.

Which is a good sign of demand for downtown residential units, particularly with competition from the completing-construction Trinity Lofts near the DAP, the Durham Kress, and soon American Tobacco. Downtown Durham's renaissance depends on drawing a critical mass of residents to support retail and dining options in the urban core, and to create activity beyond the 8am-to-5pm of the workday.

Although projects like Mangum 506 are coming online in the midst of a national downturn in the residential real estate world, the continued growth in the Triangle and the Bull City bodes well -- The Durham News notes the Wall Street Journal's notes Durham prices are up 7.2% over the 4Q 2005 national peak price -- for finding buyers for these condo units, especially in light of the increased interest in urban lifestyles.

Comments

[barry]

the free pomegranate martinis didn't hurt the turnout, either.

[Phil]

I admire the Mangum 506 people for their risk taking. Best as I can tell, they picked one of the least obvious corners of downtown to attach themselves. They seem about two blocks farther away than they might want to be for proximity to emerging retail, commercial space, or new/reviving residential. And given the major institutional landholders in between them and downtown (Durham Public Schools, Durham CVB), I don't know that there's going to be a lot of infill between them and other more active things. Maybe they're hoping for connecting infill toward the Durham Central Park side? Or up toward the tiny five points?

[KH]

The location is why the top price is around the entry-level of other lofts that are coming on to the market over the next few years. They are hitting a sweet spot that everyone else ignores for various (profit, feasibility or greed) reasons.

[Ross Grady]

Dude, it's right across the street from Public Hardware! How more central do you want? ;-)

More to the point, 2 blocks from Piedmont/Durham Central Park, 2 blocks (more or less) from
Bull City Headquarters (here's hoping it survives & thrives), just a few blocks from the Carolina Theatre & Rue Cler, as well as the Durham Public Library & the Downtown Y . . . Averaging it all out, I find as many/more things I like to do on that side of downtown vs. the West Village side, and I think it'd be nice to not be so close to the DBAP, Ambacco, West Village et al.