Charlotte NC Real Estate News

The bank disclosed plans last week for a mixed-use project combining a 30- to 35-story office tower with condos, a park, museum and theater on 4 acres, including the 500 block and part of the 400 block.

Uptown insiders now predict that development dominoes will begin to fall as other nearby properties come into play.

More condos, more green space, more restaurants and more shops could be in the offing for a stretch of the financial district that has played second fiddle for a decade to North Tryon 's vibrant cultural and entertainment facilities.

The next big thing in South Tryon development might be just around the corner from Wachovia's new project.

The Tryon-and-Third-streets block between the Latta Arcade and the 230 South Tryon condo conversion project could be one of the first to benefit from the excitement the bank generates.

The property has been vacant since Cornerstone Real Estate Advisers cleared it six years ago and announced plans for a 28-story office tower.

"I've got to believe that this new momentum makes it much more attractive," said Michael Smith, president of Charlotte Center City Partners.

Charlotte 's Spectrum Properties represents Hartford, Conn.-based Cornerstone, which also owns the Church Street block directly behind the property, now used for parking.

Spectrum Chairman Jim Dulin confirmed the owner is thinking about more than an office building in light of what's occurring near the site.

"We're looking at the South Tryon block and the block behind it as office mixed-used with retail on Tryon and residential overlooking the (future) Third Ward park," he said.

"We haven't designed the project, but I think we're getting ready to work on it," Dulin said. "Once we believe Third Ward is really cooking, we'll get started on it."

That might happen sooner than most people anticipated.

County Parks Director Wayne Weston said his department expects to finalize an agreement within 30 days with LandDesign Inc. to begin designing the 8-acre park, bounded by Second, Mint, Graham and Fourth streets.

Site clearing could begin by early summer, and park land could be ready for "rudimentary leisure use" by the time the Carolinas Panthers start their regular season in the fall, he said.

"We're following the model of (8-acre) Bryant Park in New York ," Weston said. "In 10 years we will be like Bryant Park, with housing around the edges and tremendous opportunities for mixed use."

Uptown watchers also believe the Power Building , across First Street from Duke Energy Corp.'s headquarters and across Church from the Wachovia development block, will attract attention because of its proximity to the Third Ward park and the new buildings.

The office building, built in 1927, is owned by The Dilweg Cos., which bought it for $8 million last year knowing that anchor tenant Duke planned to vacate by early 2006.

Duke spokesman Randy Wheeless said Duke has enough leased space in the 400 S. Tryon building to accommodate the relocating workers.

Anthony Dilweg, chairman of the Durham commercial real estate investment firm, referred to the purchase last year as an investment play in an area on the verge of revitalization.

The block on the other side of Tryon from Wachovia's project at Stonewall also likely will get some serious looks, thanks to its strategic location.

"If you look at that site, it's pinned between Wachovia's tower and the proposed NASCAR hall of fame," Smith said. "I've got to believe that will be an attractive piece."

A subsidiary of Eastern Federal owns a substantial portion of that block.

"We certainly have been watching uptown development with interest and are looking forward to finding the highest and best use," Eastern Federal CEO Carter Meiselman said without disclosing details.

The high-rise condo craze -- seven residential towers announced in the past year -- has attracted site-seeking developers from across the country.

One of the key things they're looking for is a location with a view that can't be blocked by another building, said commercial real estate broker Steve Harris of Harris, Murr & Vermillion.

He and his partners might have just the property for them: the parking lot directly across from the Observer building in the 600 block of South Tryon .

"The success of the urban high-rise structures we've had throughout downtown and this Wachovia announcement puts more of a bloom on South Tryon ," he said.

"One of the raps on South Tryon is its lack of dining, culture and things to walk to and see within a block or two," Harris said.

"That kind of goes away," he said, "with the condo conversion at 230 South Tryon, with what's happening on Wachovia's site and with the activity around the Ratcliffe condos and The Green on South Tryon ."

Developers have looked closely at the property owned in the 600 block by Harris' investors and Crescent Resources, a Duke Energy subsidiary. Most were looking for mixed-use projects, but that was before the recent wave of announcements.

When might something happen there?

"It's hard to say," Harris said. "I believe it's currently ready, but we purchased it in 1987 thinking it was going to be ready."

Activity hasn't been as intense on South Tryon as on North Tryon , but the street has been inching forward over the past five years.

Spectrum Properties renovated the old 15-story Barclays Building between Third and Fourth streets for offices, restaurants and shops.

McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurant will open a 300-seat restaurant May 13 on the ground level of the renovated 17-story building that once housed BB&T in the 200 block.

And, of course, the 1.5-acre Green, developed by Wachovia, has become a popular gathering spot in the 400 block near First Street .

Wachovia plans to design its mixed-use project, to open in 2008, with a park and condos that mesh with the Ratcliffe and The Green. A tunnel under Tryon is to connect the tower to the park, condos, restaurants and Overstreet Mall.

Smith at Center City Partners has worked in South Tryon offices since the late 1990s. He sees the latest resurgence as public investment paying off.

"The city has made enormous investments in its center city in both the commitments we've made to the new arena and transit," he said. "We've done great long-term planning."

The multi-millions in investment combined with a national trend toward urban living created the "turning point" the city is experiencing now, Smith said.

Wachovia Mixed-use Project

Here are key pieces of Wachovia Corp.'s plan for South Tryon Street . The bank's 4-acre site includes the 500 block, now occupied by a Firestone auto service center and a parking lot, and a half-block at South Tryon and West First streets.

30- TO 35-STORY TOWER:

Wachovia and Wake Forest 's business school would be major tenants in the 900,000-square-foot building.

CONDOS:

Condos would resemble the 57-unit, 10-story Ratcliffe on the Green on the other side of South Tryon .

THEATER:

The 1,200-seat performing arts theater would relieve a space crunch at North Carolina Blumenthal Performing Arts Center.

ANOTHER PARK:

An urban park would run through the development, essentially extending The Green park.

MUSEUM:

A new museum would showcase some of the Bechtler family's private art, including works of Pablo Picasso, Edgar Degas and Andy Warhol.

Got, Alotta, Charlotte!

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