Harris Teeter construction to start late summer; lots of other development to follow

The yesterday's Herald Sun has a good summary of all of the new development coming to Ninth Street, from the new Harris Teeter (which has undergone significant design changes in response to the neighborhood concerns) to renovating the space formerly occupied by George's Garage, and the shops along the west side of Ninth Street, including "Duck Shop" and 701 Ninth Street.

Much of this has been covered by this bog previously, but one significant piece of news is that the developers have secured all of the financing and now seem primed to begin renovations in late summer/early fall.

1. The look of the new Harris Teeter on Ninth Street
2. Redesign drawings for the former George's Garage Building
3. Suggestions for improving Harris Teeter parking lot 

For a look at the proposed designs, see my previous posts above. The full article is reprinted after the break.

Harris Teeter Development - plans for the old George's Garage

In the past four posts about redevelopment of the grassy field behind what used to be George's garage, I spoke at length about the perils of car-dependent suburban development championed by the Harris Teeter developers and the deleterious effect it could have on the entire Ninth Street Shopping District. And while the developer has recently indicated that it would be open to some compromise regarding adding windows on the side of the Harris Teeter itself and making changes to the internal layout of the store, the core part of the design - a big box store surrounded by the sea of parking remains unchanged.

But not all is bad. Unlike the Harris Teeter itself, the site plans for the former George's Garage building on the corner of Ninth Street and Hillsborough show real promise. According to the site plans, the developers will transform a poorly designed, internally oriented and forbidding building into a far more open, inviting and pedestrian-friendly space, replacing the infamous blank wall facing Hillsborough with a patio and large windows. The new "Erwin Square Restaurant & Retail Center" is designed to house one or two restaurants and a small retail shop.

The  parking lot facing side of the building is much improved, with more windows, tree canopy and increased roof articulation. Compare the new design with the current design, featuring a huge blank wall on the south-west side of the building and ugly green yawing  throughout the rest.

  

 The east side is likewise much more inviting. As it stands now, it is a blank wall facing Ninth Street.

 Even the long suffering  Hillsborough side will get get some sprucing up. In particularly, the corner of Ninth and Hillsborough is gaining an attractive brick patio, which go a long way toward connecting visually Ninth Street to Vin Rouge and other businesses across the street on W. Markham.

Finally, the west side, which will be facing the new Harris Teeter, will also have some attractive windows and front-facing retail space. While this side will be overlooking parking, it is a huge improvement over another forbidding blank wall.

The Rumors Are True: Harris Teeter is Coming to Ninth Street (updated)

After the closing of George's Garage in 2009, the former site languished as the rumor mill swirled. What was known at the time was that the developers,Terry Sanford Jr. and Clay Hammer, had grand designs for the space, including a wholesale redevelopment of the property. But in the wake of the financial crisis these plans did not materialize, and the former site of the restaurant sat vacant and unused. One persistent rumor (aside from an amusing episode when the neighborhood listservs lit up at the prankster's mention of Hooters coming to that location) was that a new Harris Teeter was going to take up the space.

With the spate of new development in the area, it appears the coming of Harris Teeter to Ninth Street is now imminent, at least judging by a large sign erected behind the former George's Garage's building on the corner of W. Markham and Ninth Street. Little else is known beyond that:  the square footage of the new store, whether the old building is going to be razed and -- if so -- how this new development is going to be integrated into the existing cityscape of Ninth Street.

**UPDATE: OWD neighbors indicate that the new Harris Teeter is going to be around 48,000 square feet and will feature exactly the same floor plan as the other Harris Teeter in Durham at Willowhaven Shopping Center.  It is an ugly, car-orinted building, just as I had feared. Far more preferable, although apparently not likely, is the urban design of the new Harris Teeter on Jenkins Row (Potomac), in Washington DC, a rapidly gentrifying community to the South East of the Capital.

Harris Teeter on 1505 Horton Road in Durham

Harris Teeter in Washington, DC

Likely location of our new Harris Teeter

As Reyn Bowman points out in his excellent piece on the dangers of Harris Teeter in this location, large chain grocery store with its car-centric culture and parking-lot oriented architecture is hardly the best tenant for  "a funky, gritty, organic, indigenous district." Not only the typical square footage of Harris Teeter far exceeds that of any other Ninth Street business, but, as Reyon correctly notes, the corporatization of Ninth Street can take away much of its charm and uniqueness. Let's hope that the developers are conscious of the unique character of this neighborhood and design a store that fits the mold of Ninth Street rather than attempts to change it into a bland version of Erwin Terrace.