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Week of May 22, 2017
616 Oberlin residents forced to move
Shelton’s Furniture is moving back ITB
Rumors swirl over Village Subway
Work begins on Downtown Raleigh YMCA
Cary is getting an IKEA
BBQ planned for 510 Glenwood
Biscuitville set for upgrades
American Girl Store Will Return to Crabtree Valley Mall
616 Oberlin To Residents “You Don’t Have to Go Home, But You Can’t Stay Here”
616 At the Village is a new apartment complex on Oberlin Road located across the street from the Harris Teeter block of Cameron Village. Residents began to move in over the last few months, excited about being located next to the iconic Cameron Village. That excitement fizzled on Saturday when residents received an e-mail telling them they had until this Saturday to find a new place to live. Finley received an e-mail from a source who had moved into the building earlier this month. We called the now former resident to find out more.
“They terminated my lease completely, but promised to give me my application and administrative fee back. They say they’re offering up to $1,000 in moving expenses. They said the sprinkler system isn’t up to code so they have to tear out the ceiling, which means the people on the top floors have to move. Some people were allowed to move down to units in the lower floors, but I have no idea how they were chosen. They told us it would take 3 to 4 months. I don’t even understand how they got an occupancy permit to begin with. They started leasing in March and a good number of people had already moved in. There was a girl crying outside the building because she had moved in four days ago and was told she had to leave.”
This is the most amazing part:
“I walked by the office twice today and they were giving tours of the units. There was a mother with her college kids walking around touring the first floor. It was unbelievable.”
Oddly, the website is still listing a “Leasing Special” where people can “move-in today!”
According to our source, people living on the first and second floor are allowed to remain, but they received a notice that they’ll have to move up to the higher floors in November while work is done to their units. I guess the silver lining to all this is that the traffic on Oberlin won’t be AS bad since there are fewer people living there. But seriously, we feel terrible for the folks who’ve just been kicked out. We’ll keep you updated as the story develops.
Shelton’s Furniture Moving Back to Raleigh
In what can only be described as a “furniture miracle” Shelton’s Furniture is moving back to Raleigh. After saying goodbye to Shelton’s in March, we are pleased to report that they’ll be back in Five Points soon. According to their website they will be located at 233 Bickett Boulevard and will be open as soon as June 1.
Cary Is Actually Getting an IKEA
Although we don’t normally stray outside the city limits of Raleigh for this column, we did speculate back in January on the rumors of a new IKEA coming to Cary. It’s now been made official: a new IKEA will be moving into the space now occupied by the Sears and Macy’s department stores at the Cary Towne Center Mall.
The press release states that the Town Council will review the IKEA proposal for an approximately 359,000 square foot store and a two-level parking structure with 1,000 parking spaces. If approved, the IKEA could open as early as summer 2020.
As we wrote last time, Cary Towne Center has been struggling lately, and we hope this new store will serve as the shot in the arm the mall so desperately needed.
Work Begins on Fayetteville Street’s YMCA
Raleigh’s newest YMCA plans to open by the end of 2017 in the heart of downtown Raleigh in a 26,000 square-foot space in the recently renovated 227 Fayetteville. A press release issued last month noted that “LRC Properties acquired 227 Fayetteville in late 2012 and recently completed a $14.5 million renovation on the 10-story building. The developer received a 2016 Imprint Award from the Downtown Raleigh Alliance for its work.”
Permits issued last week indicate that in order to make way for the new gym, existing escalators and “abandoned stairs” will need to be torn out. There will reportedly be a ground-floor entrance from Fayetteville Street, although the YMCA itself will occupy two upper floors.
BBQ Planned for 510 Glenwood
Last week, we noted that the 17-year-old condominium 510 Glenwood was set for a serious face-lift. The N&O followed up later with news that Matt Kenner, owner of the Milk Bar, just a block away, will be opening a barbecue joint on the ground floor of 510. We’re just glad it won’t be another new Mexican restaurant.
Rumors Swirl Over Village Subway Plans
Last week, the Triangle Business Journal ran a “subscribers only” (as in, you gotta pay to play) article teasing a potential reopening of the famous Village Subway in Cameron Village. Other news outlets fell for it and ran some non-stories themselves. WNCN did some digging and reported: “A spokesperson for York Properties, the company that owns Cameron Village, says it’s too early in the process to discuss any details and there’s no master plan, but there have been discussions about bringing back Raleigh Underground.”
Discussions! No offense to the good folks over at TBJ, but if this is the kind of “exclusive content” they’re offering subscribers, I’m glad I saved myself the $97 annual fee. Also, to clarify WNCN’s report, Regency Centers actually owns Cameron Village. Finley knows what’s going in the Village Subway space, in fact he even mentioned it in the story that no one read about The Fresh Market reopening over a year ago. This project is very early on and we respect York Properties too much to start throwing out clickbait stories. We’ll provide updates in the next few months.
Raleigh’s Only Biscuitville Set for Upgrades
There are approximately 51 Biscuitville locations in the State of North Carolina, and only one of them resides in Raleigh. Situated at the corner of Wake Forest Road and Hodges Street, the restaurant is a popular breakfast spot, especially with local commuters.
In fact, I’ve never driven by a Biscuitville location in the morning that didn’t have a line of cars snaking into the street, although it doesn’t look like this project will do anything to expand the parking lot/drive-thru area. The exterior/interior renovations will cost $43,000 and be handled by Qualified Builders, a business name we imagine leads to a lot of “Who’s on First?” type-situations.
She Was An American Girl (Redux)
Last fall, we reported on the opening of a unique holiday store at the Crabtree Valley Mall: it wouldn’t be selling Halloween costumes or Christmas ornaments, but rather, the beloved American Girl dolls.
Originally, this pop-up location was set to be open from October 1, 2016-January 31, 2017. But as Amanda Hoyle over at TBJ reported last week, the store is set to reopen in the same location (the former home of Rack Room Shoes next to Sears) beginning in July, although it will reportedly close again in January 2018.
