"The Addison" nears completion downtown as apartments, retail, office space

It's good to have the occasional good news to print about downtown development in the midst of the national (and, recently, local) real estate slowdown. A tip of the hat to the Herald-Sun for doing just that on Tuesday with Monica Chen's piece on the reclamation of 413 E. Chapel Hill St., an 18,000 sq. ft. building just down the street from the popular Rue Cler.

Cliff Zinner is finishing renovations to the structure, which will be known as The Addison after a former toy store at the location.

The Addison joins The Eleanor condos around the corner on Rigsbee Ave., where the John Warsalia project keeps its public face in a jar by the door in the form of events space Rigsbee Hall. (We doubt the much-maligned, mostly-mocked The Oprah 'round the corner on Corcoran is due for change anytime soon, though Warsalia reportedly hopes to get The Bargain [Furniture Bldg.] underway later this year.)

The H-S notes that The Addison will host ten apartments ranging from 533 to 1,190 sq. ft., or about $13-17/sq. ft./year, which ain't bad for rental space if you're a landlord. A rooftop deck, granite counters, and in-unit washer-dryers are among the amenities.

The Addison's had an interesting recent history. Bought by the Durham Regional Financial Center with money garnered from earmarks from U.S. Rep. David Price's office, the Center held on to the building and worked to renovate it for several years before itself falling into bankruptcy in 2003. An odd position for a non-profit whose specialties included debt counseling to find itself in, though it didn't stop the City from bringing in DRFC three years later to accept a proclamation from the City Council for -- wait for it -- Dollar Wi$e Week, as the N&O pointed out in 2006.

Anyway, here's hoping for a better turn under Zinner's management, especially since the builder sunk between $2 and $2.5 million in buying and renovating the structure. For the first floor, a renovated storefront greets retail space; downstairs is your typical subterranean office space, including what looks to be storage units for apartment-dwellers and bikes and 3,000+ sq. ft. of cube-ready work area. (More details are available at the Maverick Partners web site.)

Comments

[David Rollins]

Just a quick plug for BJ Lawson (since you mentioned Rep. Price and his odious earmarks). I never thought we'd get a "Ron Paul Republican" in my district!

[miles]

If you want some extra detail, the building has its own website, www.theaddisonbuilding.com.

(disclosure: I have been working with the project, so this is kind of a self-plug, but I think it's ok since people might be interested anyway.)