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140 West Franklin: What Will it Mean for Downtown?
Parking Lot No. 5 is closed and construction on 140 West has finally, officially, begun. So what does that mean for the future of downtown Chapel Hill?
The speakers at Wednesday’s groundbreaking ceremony came not to bury 140 West, but to praise it; and everyone at the event had only the best things to say about the massive development project and the impact it’s expected to have on the town.
Ram Realty chairman Peter Cummings believes 140 West represents a major improvement to the existing space. “It will help to stitch together East and West, by removing a surface parking lot and replacing it with residences, shops, and a public space,” he said.
But of course, the loss of the parking lot is exactly what critics have been identifying as one of the worst features of the project; and it’s still yet to be seen whether there’s enough demand to sustain another large mixed-use development in the midst of an economic slowdown.
Those and other concerns have made 140 West a controversial project from the beginning. On Wednesday, though, Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt called 140 West an “inspiration” that has already brought excitement—and new investment—to the downtown.
“Folks around the country talk about Chapel Hill as a very special place,” he said, “but it takes constant work and energy to make sure it stays that way.”
As for parking, the Town has taken steps to offset the loss of Lot No. 5—and when it’s done, the project itself will include 337 new parking spaces, far more than Lot 5 ever offered.
“It’s been a number-one concern,” says Ram Realty project manager, Jon Keener, “and I think the Town’s done a fantastic job…and once the project is built, those gains in parking are just going to make the town better.”
And in a year that saw the town’s commitment to the downtown called publicly into question, there’s no denying that 140 West has the potential to get people interested in Franklin Street again—even before the first brick has been laid.
Future 140 West resident Bill Spiegel says he’s excited already. “I live in the country,” he says, “and I have not focused on downtown for many years. So I’m happy to be contemplating a move into the city, where I can…go back to my college years, of being downtown all the time.”
That’s exactly the response developers and town officials are looking for. Whether that will translate to the community as a whole remains to be seen, but the outlook is good for the long-term impact of 140 West—and it’s certainly an honorable effort.
via 1360 WCHL
