Raleigh Downtown Living Advocates

Page 38 of 51

Don’t Let the Train Pass You By: Public Workshop Coming Up, and This Time It’s Not About High-Speed Rail

September 11, 2010 /

Join me in the vision: commuter rail carrying workers from Downtown Raleigh to RTP and government workers from their homes in Cary/Apex to Downtown Raleigh; and light rail taking shoppers from Downtown Raleigh to Triangle Town Center, and transporting visitors from Cary/Apex to Downtown Raleigh.

With all the press lately about high-speed rail, it’s easy to get confused about the various transit initiatives.  (See Buses,Trains and Automobiles.. All Aboard Raleigh’s Public Transport Network for a review of the different transport initiatives underway in Raleigh.)

There’s a  Public Workshop coming up on Tuesday, but no talk about high-speed rail pathways here.  Instead, this workshop will be about the Triangle Regional Transit Program (TRTP) that focuses on the vision for enhanced bus services (in separate, dedicated lanes), commuter rail corridors (on existing freight tracks), and light rail (on new tracks) that will serve residents in Wake, Durham and Orange Counties.  Click here for more information on the various types of transit technologies.

The Downtown Raleigh workshop will be held on Tuesday (September 14th, from 4:00-7:00pm at the Chavis Community Center, 505 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, Raleigh (map).

Why so much discussion about new mass transit options?

With all the transit projects  designed to support our area’s growth, there is a critical need to coordinate these efforts. .  Commuter and light rail will share some portion of the rail corridor with the Southeast High Speed Rail Project and this is also where Union Station plays an important role as a multi-modal center for bringing together all forms of public transportation.

Click to enlargeThe TRTP study views the area as three corridors: 

1. Wake County Corridor

2. Durham/Orange County Corridor

3. Durham/Wake County Corridor

 

Wake County Corridor

Click to enlarge

The Wake County Corridor begins in the vicinity of the Triangle Metro Center in Research Triangle Park (RTP) and follows the existing North Carolina Railroad (NCRR) corridor to Downtown Raleigh where it turns northward, continuing on the CSX corridor to near Triangle Town Center.

The Wake County Corridor could also include future extensions from Triangle Town Center to Wake Forest and from Downtown Cary to Apex.

 

Durham/Orange County Corridor

Click to enlargeThe Durham/Orange County Corridor begins in Chapel Hill in the vicinity of the University of North Carolina Campus and roughly follows the US 15/501 corridor north to the City of Durham, where it turns eastward to follow the existing NCRR corridor to approximately the Triangle Metro Center in RTP.


 


Durham/Wake County Corridor

Click to enlargeThe Durham/Wake County Corridor would involve a study of transit corridor options that follow the existing NCRR corridor from Durham through RTP and Downtown Raleigh toward the Wake-Johnston County line.

There are lots of decisions to be made, including transit modes, routes and station locations.  All our critically important.  So become educated about the various options by attending workshops like the one coming up on Tuesday.

Your input can make a real difference, and help shape our city for years to come.  I look forward to seeing you there!

Hamlin Drug Store, Then and Now

September 8, 2010 /

If you live or work Downtown, you might have noticed the Hamlin Drug Store Segway buzzing by on its way to deliver medicine to a nearby resident.  Hamlin Drug Store at 126 East Hargett Street (map) has never been one to follow the trend.  This is something that has long delivered not just pride, but success to the Dr. John Johnson family, whose generations continue to work together to meet the needs of their customers.

Dr. John JohnsonLast week as Brian Reece and I collected stories to capture the history of this Downtown landmark,  Dr. Johnson’s daughter Mischelle, announced proudly that her father had never sold tobacco products.  Her father smiled at that.  His daughter’s memory didn’t go back far enough to cover the full 53 years that he’d been in business.

At one time he had sold tobacco, he told us.  But  one day over 45 years ago, when one of his customers was buying medicine for her lung cancer, he noticed she was also purchasing two cartons of cigarettes.  That day he decided to draw the line, seeing as he described it, “the incongruence of being in the healthcare business.” Dr. Johnson declares that he “will never put profit before one’s healthcare.”  

 

 

It’s clear he cares deeply about his customers, sometimes 3-4 generations, who are deeply loyal and appreciate the personal service that a family owned drug store can provide.  Dr. Johnson says he is proud to be an independent pharmacist, not driven by a model, but part of a culture of being a healthcare delivery service. 

As his other daughter Kimberley explains, “We are aware of our community. We have an ear on the ground and are always looking to strengthen our community.”  And Hamlin Drug Store has been part of the Downtown community for 106 years, the oldest drug store in Raleigh, and the oldest African-American owned pharmacy in North Carolina.  

People’s Drug Store, 1907It all started in 1904, when James Edward Hamlin opened People’s Drug Store, which became Hamlin Drug company in 1907.  John Mitchell Johnson and his partner, Clarence Coolidge, purchased the store from the remaining Hamlin heirs in 1957 from the granddaughter of the original owner.  Dr. Johnson became the sole owner when his partner died 21 years ago.

Hamlin Drug store moved to its current location (126 East Hargett Street), in the heart of the Black commerce district in 1964, and endured the mass exodus of Downtown businesses, what Dr. Johnson calls the “tumult of the mid 60s”, as new malls were built in the suburbs.  But Dr. Johnson,  a self-described “congenial urban dweller” decided to stay Downtown, confident that “the urban dweller would resurface”.

It was a long wait, but today, the 81 year old Dr. Johnson says he is happy to see the arrival of new residents, adding to what he says is a good mix of people.  He believes people are more confident now that Downtown is seen as safe, though he retorts that crime problems were always a perception, and that people needed to “disabuse themselves of this misunderstanding!”

Dr. Johnson remarks that initial actions to revitalize the city were disjointed, consisting of fits and starts without any solid direction that he could identify.  But now the city is on the right track, and he is particularly pleased with the attention being given to redesigning Moore Square.  

Hamlin Drug Store is also bringing in new changes to their business, adding new product selections, including organic and all natural Health and Beauty products, offering adult vaccinations, and ushering in their new state-of-the-art Pharmacy Robot (robotic dispensing system).

Jamie, Kimberley, Dr. Johnson, Mischelle, NicholeBe sure the next time you need a pharmacist, or maybe just like being called by name, walk on over and say hello to Dr. Johnson, daughters Mischelle and Kimberley, and their new pharmacist, Jamie.  They’re open Monday-Friday: 9:00am – 5:00pm, and Saturday: 10:00am – 2:00pm. 




Considering Raleigh’s High Speed Rail Alternatives: The New NC4 Avoidance Alternative Needs to be Studied.

September 6, 2010 /

You probably notice the signs posted along Glenwood Avenue in the neighborhoods around Five Points that vehemently oppose the option of NC3, and if you talk to neighbors in Glenwood South, you’ll hear them just as emphatically speak in favor of it.  

Writing not as a DLA member, but as an interested and informed Downtowner, my main objective at this point is to say, let’s take time to consider an option that offers a livable alternative for both Five Points and Downtown.         

While we were all focused on the debate between the two alternatives for Raleigh as presented by the SEHSR Project Team at the public hearing back on July 26th, a new option suddenly surfaced.  This new option, initially identified as the ‘NC1&2 avoidance alternative’ at the more recent public hearing on August 31st, is now being called ‘NC4’.

New street connections enhance Downtown livabilityA group of citizen advocates and engineers first shared their maps and information on the NC4 option with me just 3 weeks ago.  I was skeptical at first that such an 11th hour option could possibly be seriously considered, particularly one that required a new set of elevated tracks to follow a new route from Capital Boulevard to West Street.  

 

 

But as I took more time to study the plans I became convinced that this option would address the principal concerns expressed by all residents, and could actually serve to enhance our Downtown livability. 

NC4 is simple in concept and would enhance Downtown Livability

Actually it’s not really a totally new option, but a hybrid of the NC1&2 option.  It is simple in concept and the new rail section only impacts an under-developed 4-block area on the northeast corner of Glenwood South.

The NC4 Avoidance Alternative has a long list of benefits and is likely to cost less than NC3, due to the dramatically reduced impact to homes and businesses.  Additional tax revenue would also accrue from the new redevelopment opportunities.

Please click the link below to see an illustration of an urban viaduct, maps and a satellite photo of the NC4 alignment, as well as an overview of the primary benefits. 

http://www.livingstreets.com/blog/20100904_sehsr_nc4/

The City Council will consider its recommendation on the rail pathways at their 1:00pm meeting tomorrow, September 7th.  They may decide to endorse one of the existing alternatives or request the NCDOT to study this new NC4 Avoidance Alternative.

Neither the public nor the City Council can vote on this new alternative until further study by the NCDOT has been completed.  I encourage you to contact the City Council and urge them to request the NCDOT to take the additional time now to study this new alternative.  

This decision is too important to rush.  




Faces of Downtown Raleigh:  Jerome and Luciano of Sosta Cafe

September 2, 2010 /

When I first began blogging, I talked about food. It’s what I know and love, and my first post was about Sosta Café.  At the time I was visiting them about once a week, and to this day I still go there quite frequently and order the Poulet (curried chicken salad sandwich), although the Piedmont (Prosciutto and taleggio cheese with tomato and lettuce on ciabatta bread) is a close second. I think Sosta is a true neighborhood hangout.  Spend any amount of time in there and you’ll hear Jerome or Luciano greet almost everyone by name.

Luciano behind the counterLuciano hails from Southern Italy and Jerome from southern France, so it’s not too uncommon to hear multiple languages spoken in the café, quickly transporting you to another place. Sosta Café gives downtown Raleigh an exciting taste of Europe – in our own back yard.

I took some time to interview Jerome and Luciano the other day to learn more about what they think of downtown Raleigh now that they have been open for almost 5 years.

 

Why Downtown Raleigh?

We had both been in the restaurant business for a long time, so when we met (we were neighbors in Oakwood), we would talk about things like quality of food and quality of life. Restaurants take a lot out of you and demand a lot of time.   We thought there was an opportunity to open a small café downtown that would serve the kind of food that we were used to eating in our native countries.  The product would have to be good and we wanted to do it ourselves, because that is what we love. We didn’t want to be a huge restaurant with lots of staff where we only came in once a week to check on things. We love being involved day to day, meeting people, and serving great food.

You’re coming up on 5 years, so you seem to be doing well. 

We are doing well and appreciate all of our regular customers. We have regulars from the local law firms, architecture firms, ArtSpace, banks, and Progress Energy, of course.

Jerome in the dining area, just before lunch time

We have all kinds of ideas of how to expand our hours and menu to serve more residents, but the timing hasn’t been right. Back in 2006 the economy was strong, so when this space became available we jumped on it. Right now I wouldn’t describe Davie Street as a hotbed of activity, but most people seem to be willing to walk the extra block or two for a great lunch experience.

 

 

 

What has been the best thing about being downtown?

Being downtown! Sidewalks.  Buildings. People walking by.  You feel like you’re in the middle of things.  People live here – they don’t just sleep.  They’re out and about. There is activity. Life. The suburbs can be isolating, we’ve both lived there before.  In the city you’re more connected.

Who does all the cooking? Where do the recipes come from?

We use product that we know – pestos, cheese.  Our menu is what we would eat at home.  Most of our cheeses are very distinct.  Sometimes it can be harder when you try to be original, either people don’t understand or aren’t familiar with the menu item, so we have made a few modifications for this market. 

What do you see as downtown Raleigh’s next important step?  Do you think they are going in the right direction?

Raleigh is still developing and has a way to go.  Connecting all the neighborhoods is important for a unified downtown. As a merchant, we’d like to see more events that don’t close off streets, but encourage visitors to wander around downtown to support the local businesses. Raleigh Wide Open, for example, brings in food vendors, and that limits the business for small cafes like ours that would serve lunch or a snack.  We have so many ideas that we’d like to try, but right now the bulk of the traffic is over lunch during the weekday.  For us, we’re looking forward to the development of the Edison which will be right across the street.  We think it will link this part of downtown to Martin and Hargett St.

Final question – what is your favorite menu item and what would you suggest to a newcomer to your café?

Jerome’s favorite menu item is the Ultimate Cheese Sandwich and Luciano’s favorite is the Alpine.  They would both recommend the Riviera to a newcomer, unless they were a meat-lover. In that case, Luciano suggests the Guido.

View the menu: http://sostacafe.com/



The No-Longer Hidden Cost of Parking in Downtown Raleigh

August 28, 2010 /

If you’re a visitor to the areas within Downtown Raleigh where parking meters have sprung up, you may be tempted to complain.  But let me give you a few things to consider that might change your viewpoint.

You are most likely accustomed to being able to park close to your destination and not pay a fee.  This is of course what most drivers experience in the suburbs, where big-box stores, retail strip centers and indoor malls come surrounded with loads of free parking spaces.  

Yet we need to appreciate that parking associated with suburban pattern living has a hidden cost, and one that is ultimately paid by everyone in the form of traffic congestion, negative consequences on the environment, and the poor use of available land.  A NYT article makes some good points about how Free Parking Comes at a Price.

Urban centers by their very nature encourage a more efficient use of space, and these costs are gradually becoming more visible, as with the recent expanded use of metered on-street parking on many of our Downtown streets.  If the existing city owned parking decks become better utilized as a result, then that’s a good thing, and we save taxpayer money.

One unfortunate reality today in Downtown Raleigh is the abundance of privately owned surface parking lots that in most cases are used as “space holders” by land owners waiting all too patiently to cash in at a future time when there are better development opportunities for their parcels of land.

Consequently, open land used in its simplest form as parking lots, dot the Downtown landscape and discourage pedestrian activity as the adjacent sidewalks are often unkept and overgrown with vegetation . . and there’s nothing interesting about walking by a parking lot!

My friend Leo recently posted a very informative article on his Raleigh Connoisseur blog that led me to write this post.  He makes an excellent case for just how inefficient our Downtown land use has become when he points out, “you may be surprised to know that your Downtown parking lot is worth more than the cars that sit on them!”  

Read on . . . 

« Older posts Newer posts »

© 2025 Raleigh Downtown Living Advocates

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑