Quick Hits: The Rise of the Golden Belt
Quick hits are posts about development news as I hear about them! If you have feedback on the format, please share in the comments below!
This looks like the real deal. After a few false starts it looks like the Golden Belt redevelopment is finally going to take off.
Neighborhood:
Size:
Purchase Price:
Estimated Renovation Cost:
Developer:
Not only is Asheville based Hi-Wire Brewing opening up a location there, but software agency, WillowTree is moving into over 29,000 square feet of space. Combined with the artists space that is already there and the residential space available, this has the potential to be a great mixed use area.
Mixed use is important in cities because it means that people are making use of an area at all times of day (a concept popularized by Jane Jacobs). You have energetic, lively streets from workers at lunch hour and happy hour. Young people are out at the bars at night. Tourists are checking out the art, and of course, residents are in and out and walking around the neighborhood when they are home from work.
I am calling it now, we have finally reached the tipping point for the Golden Belt.
This looks like the real deal. After a few false starts it looks like the Golden Belt redevelopment is finally going to take off.
 |
| Rendering of the Hi-Wire Space |
| Rendering of the renovated Golden Belt |
Neighborhood:
Golden Belt
Size:
7 Buildings (37 Loft Apartments, 150,000 sq ft of Office Space, 190,000 sq ft of space in Mill No. 1)
Purchase Price:
Mill No. 1 Building (2016) - $4.5m / Other 6 buildings (2017) $19.5m
Estimated Renovation Cost:
$32 million
Developer:
LRC Properties
Not only is Asheville based Hi-Wire Brewing opening up a location there, but software agency, WillowTree is moving into over 29,000 square feet of space. Combined with the artists space that is already there and the residential space available, this has the potential to be a great mixed use area.
Mixed use is important in cities because it means that people are making use of an area at all times of day (a concept popularized by Jane Jacobs). You have energetic, lively streets from workers at lunch hour and happy hour. Young people are out at the bars at night. Tourists are checking out the art, and of course, residents are in and out and walking around the neighborhood when they are home from work.
I am calling it now, we have finally reached the tipping point for the Golden Belt.
Hi-Wire Brewing Details
This is an outpost of an Asheville brewery (I have actually watched this brewery grow and mature as my parents live in Asheville). While I would rather have seen a Durham-based brewery* go in here, the plans for Hi-Wire and its "Fun Zone" seem, well, fun!- 8,844 square feet of interior space
- 1,678 square foot outdoor covered patio and beer garden
- 24 taps
- Full-sized shuffleboard courts, soccer pool tables, and table tennis (more games possible in the future)
- Potential game leagues (e.g. shuffleboard league)
Conspicuously missing is food as Hi-Wire won't have a kitchen. Remember the article that mentioned Scott Howell (Nanataco) purchasing a warehouse near Ponysaurus and bringing a food and outdoor music venue to Durham? The Golden Belt is certainly near Ponysaurus, and while you would think that Howell would mention Golden Belt specifically if that were the location, perhaps he has his reasons for keeping the exact location a secret. This is purely speculation, however this article from 2017 states:
The new owners of the Golden Belt campus east of downtown Durham have an ambitious plan to transform the former textile factory into an arts and community destination – with an outdoor music venue and brewery.
We will have to wait and see!
*note: a brewery called Dueling Sloths was supposed to be located in the Golden Belt, but has gone silent - I can only guess that the Hi-Wire news means the Golden Belt will not be seeing Dueling Sloths locate there any time soon. I hope they find a location in Durham at some point.
