New Visitor Developments

Listed below are some changes and renovations expected with existing visitor-related features in Durham as well as new items currently under development or in the planning stages. If you have any questions or would like more information about any of these visitor developments, contact Reyn Bowman, President & CEO, at reyn@durham-cvb.com or (919) 680-8300 (primary), or Jennifer Mallory, Marketing Coordinator, at jennifer@durham-cvb.com or (919) 680-8307.

Developments Under Consideration

Alston Avenue Expansion
$19.2 million widening of one-mile stretch of Alston Avenue from the Durham Freeway north to Holloway Street. North Carolina Department of Transportation plans to make Alston Avenue a four-lane road divded by a median.

Asiatic Garden Pavilion at Sarah P. Duke Gardens
The Sister Cities of Durham Toyama Committee has worked with the Gardens to reach a preliminary agreement on structure/location; Derek Jones Architect preparing additional material for further consideration/fundraising.

Bethpage Office Park
Proposed office park to be developed by Tri Properties. Plan to develop 55 acres off Chin Page Rd in southeastern Durham. Initial plans call for 3-5 office buildings ranging from 100,000 to 150,000 sq.-ft—to total 1 million sq.-ft. of office space.

Bristol Court
$75 million redevelopment project that would replace existing apartment buildings with two mulitystory buildings also to be called Bristol Court. Up to 370 units on a four-acre site would feature mainly one-bedroom apartments and the eventual conversion to condos is possible. Construction unlikely to begin until June 2009.

City Park and Athletic Field Complex
Snow Hill Rd, just southwest of Little River Reservoir, opposite Northwood Forest neighborhood - proposed $9 million, 105-acre complex featuring 8 athletic fields and adjacent to a planned middle school. Once funding is in place, site development could take 2 years.

Duke University Health System Cancer Treatment Facility
Multi-million dollar expansion of Duke's Morris Cancer Clinics. Expansion would include 300-bed patient tower and an integrated cancer-treatment facility. Construction to begin in the next 18 months, though the facilities may not open until 2011 or 2012.

East End Connector
$100 million highway to link the Durham Freeway and US 70, creating a stoplight-free route from I-40 in South Durham to I-85 in Northeast Durham (estimated to start: 2012; completion 2016-17).

Hayti Museum Project
Former Mechanics & Farmers Bank building on Fayetteville St becomes an artifacts museum including Blues History.

Heritage Square Redevelopment
Current Heritage Square shopping center in the historic Hayti business district to become an 800,000-square-foot collection of shops, offices and residential units. $125 million dollar project would need both private and government investment. Rezoning of district has been approved. Timelines and funding have not been established.

Holton School/Community Center
104,000-sq.-ft. former Holton Middle School to be rehabilitated into a community center housing arts, crafts, sports, and GED classes, a wellness clinic, and a vocational high school (barbering, small-engine repair, computer technology, and culinary arts—with a public café where students could sell their creations); city and county seeking cost estimates and funding sources; could be opened in 2007.

Hope Valley Commons Shopping Center
26 acres at the southeastern corner of NC Hwy 751 and NC Hwy 54 rezoned in 2000 for shopping center and apartments; in Early 2005, developers submitted new rezoning application for 160,800-sq.-ft. shopping center only.

Horton Grove Cultural Park
76-acre cultural park to protect, preserve, and interpret the area around Horton Grove near Historic Stagville; both the proposed park and surrounding neighborhood are under development by Bryan Properties. Charrettes held September 2003 and February 2004; company could break ground on park and neighborhood within 3 years.

Joven Northeast Creek
188-acre project at the northeast corner of Ellis Rd and NC 147 to develop 209 single-family homes, 207 townhouses, 260 apartments, 235,000 sq. ft. of commercial space, and 89,000 sq. ft. of office/other space; Planning Commission postponed rezoning decision until March 2006.

NC 147 Bicycle/Pedestrian Bridge Replacement
$2 million project to replace the currently unusable Durham Freeway bridge connecting Lakewood Dr and Lakeland St with a new bridge offering better lighting and visibility; design presented for approval February 2006; bidding anticipated December 2006; construction could begin in April 2007 with completion by April 2008.

NC DOT Replacement of Duke East Campus Bridge
Transportation officials are considering two alternatives for the project; acquisition of property for widening begins in 2005, and construction is expected to begin in 2006.

New Main Library Branch
Proposed $8.5 million redesign and expansion to the Durham County Library on North Roxboro Street. Will either renovate current building or consider a move to a new location.

New Hope Creek Corridor Regional Park
43 acres of former Duke Forest land purchased in April 2005 by the City and County of Durham, Orange County, and Chapel Hill to be developed for recreational use; it is the first regional park partnership between the four local governments; inter-governmental agreement, grant funding, and plans approved.

Ninth Street North, Second Phase
54,000-sq.-ft., retail and office building on the east side of the street would look similar to the existing red-brick Phase One building to the west; if construction costs and leasing plans pan out, construction could begin in July 2005. Second phase to be complete and ready for tenants in early 2008.

Ninth Street Redevelopment
200,000-square-foot project that would include a mix of street-level retail, office space and multifamily units along the 600, 700 and  800 block of duplexes, parking lots and small commercial buildings.

North Carolina Central University Campus
Hospitality & Tourism Administration Program Building at Alston Ave and Lawson St; training kitchen and possibly a working lodging property.

Old Durham-Chapel Hill Rd Bicycle/Pedestrian Corridor
Plan for 5-foot-wide bicycle lanes from Garrett Rd to Sage Rd, plus multi-use paths for both cyclists and pedestrians; highlighted in 1993 Durham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization's comprehensive bicycle plan; feasibility studied in 2005; design could be completed in 2007, with land acquisition in 2008 and construction in 2009.

Ravenstone Shopping Center
Addition of 9,180 -sq.-ft. Family Dollar Store and 27,800-sq.-ft. of additional retail space.

Regional Rail Transit
The Triangle Transit Authority, Durham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro Metropolitan Planning Organization, Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, Triangle Council of Governments, NC Department of Transportation, and Regional Transportation Alliance are rethinking inter-city transit throughout the region and planning to present a new Vision for Transit in the Triangle in Fall 2007.

Ronald McDonald House
$15 million project to level the former Campus Arms Motel Apartments and construct a new, 15,000-sq.-ft., 7-story, 70-bedroom facility, thereby replacing the agency’s current 23-bedroom facility on Alexander Dr; fundraising campaign underway with goal of breaking ground in Fall 2007 with an expected completion date of 2008.

St. Barbara's Greek Orthodox Church
New $4 million church to be built in traditional Byzantine style on NC 751 near Massey Chapel Rd. The church will accomodate the growing congregation that currently meets at a small location Watts St.

Third Fork Creek Greenway
A trail that will run the length of Third Fork Creek from Garrett Rd Park northeast to the American Tobacco Trail.

Triangle Parkway
Proposed $69 million, 3.2-mile toll expressway connecting I-40 (between Davis Dr and S Miami Blvd) to the future I-540 north of Morrisville; endorsed by Durham City Council and County Commissioners; under review by NC Turnpike Authority in 2005.

Triangle Region Transit Consolidation Plan
A plan coordinated by the Triangle J Council of Governments and the Triangle Transit Authority (TTA) that would streamline the region’s 5 bus systems by jointly: undertaking regional marketing activities, preparing a Triangle seamless bus plan, developing a regional customer service program, developing a Triangle seamless service paratransit program, regionalizing the installation and maintenance of bus stops, signs, and shelters, centralizing specialized maintenance services, and implementing a regional information technology plan; DATA Board approved of the plan in October 2004; region’s mayors and TTA signed memorandum of understanding in September 2005; committees meeting through Late 2006.

US 15-501 Widening Project
NC DOT plan to widen US 15-501 from Mount Moriah Rd to Garrett Rd (0.9 miles, $10.8 million) and to relocate its service road near Garrett Rd (0.3 miles, $3.1 million). Scheduled to begin 2007.

Valley Creek Center
16.7 acres at the NW corner of Martin Luther King Jr Pkwy and S Roxboro Rd zoned and approved for up to 130,000 sq. ft. of retail (a 110,000-sq.-ft. section and a 20,000-sq.-ft. section); seeking purchaser or awaiting final development plan. New Wal-Mart will be the anchor store.

Walltown Recreation Center Renovation
12,180-sq.-ft. new gym and expansion of the existing Walltown center, a small concrete-block building that residents built for themselves in 1957. Initial plans include a large, high-school calibar basketball court, a pull-out stage for special events and a suspended jogging track that would form a balcony around the court.

Water Connection
Durham, Orange Water & Sewer Authority (Serving Chapel Hill and Carrboro), Chatham and Orange counties are considering joining in on the construction and operation of a water connection to provide extra reservoirs during future droughts. Construction of the intake would be more than five years down the road, but less than 10. It is roughly estimated to cost tens of millions of dollars.