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ECU Athletic Director Terry Holland said that they would support a minor league team but they would not permit them to use Clark LeClair Stadium so they would for sure have to build a new ballpark
Last edited by ecufootball; 04-19-2012 at 07:33 PM..
Reason: misspell
I can just imagine what downtown/uptown (your preference) could become with a minor baseball stadium in the area of the tobacco factory that recently burned, an upscale hotel on the old bus station lot, and a refurbished Dickinson Ave. I would like to see the north side of Dickinson Ave. demolished making way for widening the street with wide brick sidewalks, really nice landscaping with retro two story (or the appearance of) shops, offices & restaurants with the whole project blended in with the baseball stadium. It would need two rows of parking in front, one facing the street & the other facing the businesses. The south side of Dickinson would start getting upscale tenants & some of the vacant areas could become small parks if the north side was first developed. A parking deck (with reserved areas for police department employees) accross from the police department would really be a plus & the science center, theater restoration, art museum, and the proposed intermodal center at Reade St./ Dickinson Ave are all in this area. Think what the view would be like coming across the new railroad overpass of the Farmville Blvd./10 St. connector. I've been to a Five Guys in a shopping center in Cary similar to what I am envisioning, but cannot remember the name of the center. It is landscaped beautifully. I have the vision, just wish some developers could share this vision.
I can just imagine what downtown/uptown (your preference) could become with a minor baseball stadium in the area of the tobacco factory that recently burned, an upscale hotel on the old bus station lot, and a refurbished Dickinson Ave. I would like to see the north side of Dickinson Ave. demolished making way for widening the street with wide brick sidewalks, really nice landscaping with retro two story (or the appearance of) shops, offices & restaurants with the whole project blended in with the baseball stadium. It would need two rows of parking in front, one facing the street & the other facing the businesses. The south side of Dickinson would start getting upscale tenants & some of the vacant areas could become small parks if the north side was first developed. A parking deck (with reserved areas for police department employees) accross from the police department would really be a plus & the science center, theater restoration, art museum, and the proposed intermodal center at Reade St./ Dickinson Ave are all in this area. Think what the view would be like coming across the new railroad overpass of the Farmville Blvd./10 St. connector. I've been to a Five Guys in a shopping center in Cary similar to what I am envisioning, but cannot remember the name of the center. It is landscaped beautifully. I have the vision, just wish some developers could share this vision.
I think you're thinking of Stone Creek Village in Cary off of High House Rd. And you're right, it is very well done.
Ah I forgot all about that part of downtown. They could turn some of those warehouses into art studios, lofts, and etc. while building a beautiful stadium to compliment the area.
That's basically what I've had in mind, definitely a mix-use plan. Sometimes I walk around down there and I just can't believe all of those great buildings are going to seed. As far as a stadium I have a notion it could fit on Dickinson behind the abandoned storefronts, in between the RR tracks and Pitt St, with the elimination of Clark St. on that side of the street. There's a minimal number of buildings/homes that have to razed and possibly one or two could be incorporated into the park itself (The rest would prosper with the addition of the stadium.). As sad as it is that the Imperial warehouse is gone, it could be a blessing. We ought to take advantage of it. As much as I love baseball, I don't want Greenville pro baseball stuck out on the highway surrounded by Bojangles, WilcoHess, etc. Also, the downtown loses a lot of business in the summer because of the dramatic decrease of students. Things like this would make downtown Greenville a little less dependant on students and bars. With the ever-growing number of medical jobs, there's plenty of money (and more to come) to be spent right here in Greenville. We just have to give people somewhere in Greenville to spend that money.
I believe in the ideas I have for west downtown Greenville I actually bought lottery tickets (something I rarely do) when the jackpot was a brazillion dollars or wahtever it was! Oh, I wish I was rich sometimes!
I can just imagine what downtown/uptown (your preference) could become with a minor baseball stadium in the area of the tobacco factory that recently burned, an upscale hotel on the old bus station lot, and a refurbished Dickinson Ave. I would like to see the north side of Dickinson Ave. demolished making way for widening the street with wide brick sidewalks, really nice landscaping with retro two story (or the appearance of) shops, offices & restaurants with the whole project blended in with the baseball stadium. It would need two rows of parking in front, one facing the street & the other facing the businesses. The south side of Dickinson would start getting upscale tenants & some of the vacant areas could become small parks if the north side was first developed. A parking deck (with reserved areas for police department employees) accross from the police department would really be a plus & the science center, theater restoration, art museum, and the proposed intermodal center at Reade St./ Dickinson Ave are all in this area. Think what the view would be like coming across the new railroad overpass of the Farmville Blvd./10 St. connector. I've been to a Five Guys in a shopping center in Cary similar to what I am envisioning, but cannot remember the name of the center. It is landscaped beautifully. I have the vision, just wish some developers could share this vision.
Don't worry. When I become a billionaire I'll invitie most of you to help me revitalize The West End.
But on the serious note Greenville City leaders should begin a campaign to revitalize the West End. The campaign could be named "Imagine West End"; part of the process could be just planning what should be done to the West End. If the city were to initiate a campaign like that I would be on board and willing to give up time to help because I don't believe our leaders know how lead Greenville in the right direction.
Here are some of the ideas I envision for the West End:
1. Repaving Dickinson Avenue & level it's sidewalks because they are very crooked right now.
2. Build a minor league stadium complete with lofts adjacent, that will include a few businesses including a "Greenville Visitors Office" or something of that nature at the base level.
3. The streets surrounding the Minor League Stadium are to be turned into cobblestone long as its kept well maintained.
4. Create a special-tax zone. This will help bring innovators, and hopefully local retailers. (I would not like to see Chains in The West End)
5. Brand a part of the area with abandon warehouses as "The Innovative District". This will be for innovators ranging from the medical field to electronics. If ECU & Vidant (I doesn't sound so bad anymore to me) jump on board then this area could truly be a district like no other in our part of NC and may be even NC.
6. Although I'm for preserving most of the buildings "some" will need to be demolished to have a healthy blend of Modern & Older architecture,
7. If the Downtown can support another Grocery Store open a small one in the district.
8. Make part of the district a small (and I mean small) strip for Jazz Clubs, local coffee shops, and etc. NO NIGHT CLUBS WILL BE ALLOWED IN THIS DISTRICT
9. Gentrificate surrounding neighborhoods especially those along Dickinson Avenue
Seems like you and I have been thinking about the same kind of things, BMOREBOY! We should be contacting the city council, and maybe start our own movement on certain social networking sites. There's a plethora of ideas to consider. I just don't think you can have a plan for downtown Greenville, or even the entire town for that matter, without taking care of the west end. The only thing I've noticed from the council is that they want to redirect incoming traffic into downtown towards Evans and away from Dickinson because of the condition of the west end. What are we doing, pretending the problem doesn't exist? Why not just turn it into the Museum of Rot then?
I agree that to be a true downtown there will need to be a hotel(s), but there will also need to be more retail and other services: a true grocery/market; dry cleaners; real estate offices; etc. There also needs to be a functional and trust-worthy policing strategy, make downtown a little more adult - in the true sense of the word.
Also: In my mind the other side of 10th (the old Bostic Sugg and the warehouses next to it) should be considered in the west end revitalization process; not at first, but eventually. Some smart person back about six years ago had an idea to convert those warehouses into the ECU Science Department, equipped with a planetarium. But that was back when university expansion was in full fury, and I don't know whatever happened to that smart person. I'm not sure if that would work, but it's those kinds of ideas that's needed to get things happening. We need things to DO here in Greenville. There's plenty of food and beer, so enough of adding just that. Greenville has grown out and now it needs to grow up! A pro baseball park is a great way to start because of all the love for local sports, which should be the common denominator in pushing this idea through fruition.
Should the dopey slogan be something along the lines of: Uptown Greenville West End Revitalization Is A Grand Slam For Everyone!?
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"48 years in MD, 18 in NC"
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Location: Greenville, NC
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BMOREBOY
Yeah I think there will be more stores, but I believe they should make the remaining of the development mixed-use. I honestly did t know the development was going to back as far it is now, I thought the buildings currently standing were all that we're going to be built. But if I remember correctly it is a 2-phase project.
The plan for phases went bye-bye when the real estate market crashed in 2008, taking the economy and easy financing with it.
Commercial real estate has been crushed since then.
You may see some commercial going up in spits and sputters. Large scale, mall type construction is dead. There is only one indoor mall under construction, in the entire country, and that is an attempt to finish a project that was started in 2004. It was supposed to have an opening in 2006 and now they're shooting for phase 1 completion in 2013. The mall is located in NJ and is somewhat of a joke in those parts. It has been called by local officials and residents alike "The ugliest building in New Jersey".
I would like to nominate BMOREBOY & Phil A. Delphia for the city council...there have been better ideas posted on this board in the last day than I've heard out of the current city council in years.
I too wish I would win the lotto so I could invest some $ into downtown. Maybe Walter Williams could invest some instead of giving it all to ECU.
We should pursue the minor league team that wants to build a stadium in Charlotte. I know it would never happen but its crazy to see a story like this. Some attorney has been blocking the building of a stadium for AAA Charlotte knights because he wants a MLB team.
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Oh, I wish I was rich sometimes!
