DDI releases updated downtown master plan

As the Herald-Sun noted today, Downtown Durham Inc. has released its draft master plan for downtown Durham. The plan is available for download (all 91 pages of it) from DDI's web site. A few first key elements and reactions:

First, to no one's surprise, the plan continues to address the need for better interconnection between downtown's districts, addressing both the Downtown Loop as well as pedestrian and bicycle interconnections. Mangum St. and the Loop are suggested for possible two-way conversion or re-creation of a more traditional steet plan, but the plan also notes that improved landscaping, the addition of elements like bike lanes, or in-fill residential projects along the loop could drastically improve the environment without eliminating the loop entirely.

The plan also recommends improvement to the railroad-track challenges in downtown, including improving connectivity between American Tobacco and the city center district and continuing to push to acquire the old Duke Beltline trail to provide better bike/ped connections between Ambacco and the Warehouse and Durham Central Park districts. The Chapel Hill St. railroad bridge is also identified as a major opportunity for becoming an improved "visible gateway" into downtown.

Many elements of the plan, as the H-S noted, are well-aligned with some of the topics that we discussed here earlier this week in terms of Greenfire's reported requests for downtown, including converting open-space lots at Church/Parrish and Corcoran into mixed-use or residential development projects. Other open parking lots, including the county's social services lots and the open parking lots between West Village and the Loop, are recommended for major development.

A major theme in the report is the need to dramatically increase the number of residential units downtown, in order to aid the growth of retail and ideally a downtown grocery store (for which 10,000 residents is the magic number); improving the number of moderate-to-longer stay tourists in place of today's briefer "visitors" is also a key aspect.

The DDI report importantly calls out six different possible "catalyst projects" for downtown development or redevelopment:

• The SouthBank site recently purchased by Greenfire; the plan suggests minimally adding on to the existing site with a 1-2 story building on Main St., along with a facade improvement to improve the bank building's "limited aesthetic value." The plan prefers a mid-rise or high-rise mixed-use project up to 12 stories with almost 500,000 net square feet of residential and hotel units.
• The Church/Parrish site, possibly to include the existing office building, is recommended for transformation into a mixed-use residential and office project with structured parking.
• Improving or removing the loop, including infill projects, as noted above.
• The redevelopment of the Elkins/Johnson car dealership site now owned by Scientific Properties as a signature/gateway design with a significant office/residential component.
• Redeveloping some of downtown's "accidental" open space, such as the Parrish/Main/Roxboro and Parrish/Main/Corcoran green spaces -- the latter of which is intended for Greenfire's signature office tower.
• Major redevelopment of the "We Want Oprah" building at 212 Corcoran St. in a way that maintains ground-floor retail and parking; a rehabilitation of the existing structure to fill-out the fourth floor and transform the old hotel area into office space is suggested, or alternatively, replacing the structure with a 10-story, 350,000 sq. ft. of leaseable space structure.

Comments

[JDC]

It's absolutely astounding that they tried to contrast the width of Durham's downtown loop to or Commonwealth Ave. in Boston. Comm. Ave, throughout the Back Bay, has a linear park that runs between the eastbound and westbound lanes. From Kenmore Square to points west in Allston and Brighton, the Green Line's B branch (two sets of tracks) separates the eastbound and westbound lanes. Roxboro Street has no promenades or streetcar lines. It's more like an interstate highway that forms an uncrossable boundary between downtown and East Durham. Bad comparison.

On a different note, why hasn't transit come up in all this planning? I've long hoped that the city would consider a simple 2.5-mile streetcar line along Main Street between Alston Ave. and the Ninth Street area. It would enhance the connectivity between areas in the city's urban core (Brightleaf, Golden Belt, East Campus, Five Points), plus it's no secret what streetcars and light rail does for nearby economic development.

[KH]

JDC,

I think the report was comparing Peabody, Pettigrew, and RR (PPR) tracks to the Commonwealth Ave. If you combine a boulevard greenway along PPR w/ two-way Roxboro at least to the edge of downtown, you are halfway done with fixing the loop. IMO, I see the loop as being more long-term (10-15 years) along with accompanying development to justify the investment.

I would like to see the City concentrate on extending the Main St. streetscape to Ninth St. to the west and Alston Ave. to the east. This would be more economical and feasible economic development wise. I wouldn't mind seeing a fully-funded trolley bus/van to connect the areas along Main St.

An improved Fayetteville St. corridor from Main St. to NCCU should be a priority also to accompany development in the Hayti area and Central's campus.