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Amazing; I was literally about to do a surprise Uptown construction photo shoot, but I checked here first. Thank you for saving me time as well as providing the community with an update.
Keep in mind a few other facets that are likely affecting the progress of the Hilton/Alumni project:
1) ECU is planning on utilizing the old Attic building for office relocation from the small building on the Hilton site...that will then be demolished. The renovation of that building on 5th St seems to be standing still.
2) I have opined in the past that ECU is not wanting to move forward with construction on Reade St until the parking deck at the Student Center is complete...as we can see above, it will be fall 2018. As we see with the Dickinson project, there needs to be extra space for materials to keep costs as low as possible. ECU is likely wanting to use its own land and the nearby parking lots can be utilized.
3) As we see with convention center hotels (public/private partnerships), there are a ton of agreements that have to be in place...and lawyers love to have long term projects to bill to. I'm betting Hilton attorneys and ECU attorneys are having fun going back and forth with the agreements.
4) Finally, I think it could be a good delay, because if ECU can load up on a few projects in a row on the Reade St corridor, it could complete the build out in a timely fashion rather than take decades. There are plans for a Performing Arts Center that the hotel would like to take advantage of, as well as the Alumni presence as well as other buildings.
HP91, I'll only add to this an attorney--it's the private firm (read: Hilton) that's enjoying the billable hours. ECU attorneys get the salary regardless of work hours, so going back and forth ain't their cup of tea!
Delaying transfer of the 210 4th St. site for completion of the renovations make sense with ECU administration starved for space anyhow. I'd still expect to see schematics for the hotel/alumni center released either by the university or Uptown Greenville, so perhaps it's a combination of the two.
Last edited by bikepedguy; 11-28-2017 at 04:57 PM..
Reason: clarifying
Keep in mind a few other facets that are likely affecting the progress of the Hilton/Alumni project:
1) ECU is planning on utilizing the old Attic building for office relocation from the small building on the Hilton site...that will then be demolished. The renovation of that building on 5th St seems to be standing still.
2) I have opined in the past that ECU is not wanting to move forward with construction on Reade St until the parking deck at the Student Center is complete...as we can see above, it will be fall 2018. As we see with the Dickinson project, there needs to be extra space for materials to keep costs as low as possible. ECU is likely wanting to use its own land and the nearby parking lots can be utilized.
3) As we see with convention center hotels (public/private partnerships), there are a ton of agreements that have to be in place...and lawyers love to have long term projects to bill to. I'm betting Hilton attorneys and ECU attorneys are having fun going back and forth with the agreements.
4) Finally, I think it could be a good delay, because if ECU can load up on a few projects in a row on the Reade St corridor, it could complete the build out in a timely fashion rather than take decades. There are plans for a Performing Arts Center that the hotel would like to take advantage of, as well as the Alumni presence as well as other buildings.
I love the idea of building out Reade Street in just a few years, especially the Performing Arts Center and would love to see it, but is there any evidence that that will happen other than the timeline that was in the ECU Master Plan? (please say yes ... and elaborate)
A special-use permit application has been filed with the city of Greenville seeking permission to build an athletic complex on a large piece of farmland near John Paul II Catholic High School on 14th Street, a city planner confirmed Wednesday.
The property is located in the 2800 block of East 14th St. between Quail Ridge and Planter’s Walk subdivisions. It is north of Fire Tower Road.
The site would be developed in conjunction with the high school, which purchased and renovated a church building next to the site. The permit application was filed in October, with additional information filed on Nov. 7, said Elizabeth Blount, a planner and staff liaison with the Greenville Board of Adjustment.
The application is currently being reviewed by the city attorney’s office for submittal to the board of adjustment, Blount said. Once the review is complete, the permit will go to the board which will hold a public hearing. Blount said the hearing is planned for Dec. 21.
Special-use permits are sought so landowners can pursue projects that don’t fall under the permitted zoning. According to Pitt County tax records, the land has a residential zoning.
Blount said athletic complexes are allowed as a special use if they are linked to a school campus. The 23.49-acre parcel was purchased in May for $1.3 million by RB4 Fourteenth Street, a limited liability company,whose registered agent is Jack Brock, an attorney with Colombo Kitchin.
Rich and Colleen Balot represent the company.
“JP2 has undergone major renovations. It looks like a high school,” Rich Balot said about work over the summer to rehab the old Unity Free Will Baptist Building. “The land next to it was purchased with the intent of building a full athletic complex with a football field with a track around it, a baseball field, a softball field, a soccer field and a full gymnasium; what’s required to provide students attending that school a proper athletic complex to make the school competitive and a leader in Pitt County education.”
The goal is to begin construction on the complex in early 2018 and completed by the beginning of the 2018-19 school year, he said.
The project started with an idea of Colleen Balot.
“My wife and I strongly believe in the benefits of a Catholic education and the good JP2 has been doing,” Rich Balot said.
The school and its students have flourished since it opened seven years ago, Balot said.
“The students there have done amazing. We want to give them the facilities to flourish,” he said. “It a challenge to get students to want to go someplace that doesn’t have a proper athletic complex.”
Balot is a graduate of the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, which had a small population but active athletics program.
“It was amazing we had all the smart kids there but also they were fantastic athletes. There’s no reason JP2 can’t be something similar in Greenville,” he said.
That's a great spot for an athletic complex. Looks like the cornfields inside the city limits both there and on the corner of Firetower and Charles, will finally look like the rest of the City.
The infill development and redevelopment is really important because the roads that run out into the county are severely inadequate to handle any growth. And it just encourages more sprawl.
That's a great spot for an athletic complex. Looks like the cornfields inside the city limits both there and on the corner of Firetower and Charles, will finally look like the rest of the City.
The infill development and redevelopment is really important because the roads that run out into the county are severely inadequate to handle any growth. And it just encourages more sprawl.
This is an old project, but I think they scrapped this project because of the Southeast and Northeast Bypass, but I would really agree that a beltline and widening other roads is needed badly. 4-lane divided, and add bike lanes, greenways, and sidewalks.
I love the development that Greenville is getting right now obviously.
Last edited by Slay The Great; 11-29-2017 at 05:19 PM..
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