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Also, what state regulations are in place that restrict or make it difficult to build fiber lines in cities?
A state law was passed in 2011 that prevents municipalities from building and operating their own fiber services. Since Wilson's Greenlight service was already up and running before the law was passed, they were allowed to keep it, but they could not expand. Wilson appealed to the FCC and the FCC ruled in favor of the city. The state then filed a lawsuit against the FCC. The state won. Here's the full story:
Are we ever going to get an update on the Hilton uptown / alumni center project?
i am wondering the same thing. Discussion of this has really fallen off. The new building at the corner of 10th / Cotanche seemed to jump in front. The One Stop building design is nearing completion, which would be across the street from that. That has been rather quiet as well, so I'm sure the hotel is still in the works one way or the other, but would love to have an update on that. Probably one of the most anticipated projects in uptown I'm looking forward to.
A state law was passed in 2011 that prevents municipalities from building and operating their own fiber services. Since Wilson's Greenlight service was already up and running before the law was passed, they were allowed to keep it, but they could not expand. Wilson appealed to the FCC and the FCC ruled in favor of the city. The state then filed a lawsuit against the FCC. The state won. Here's the full story:
I had to do my research. It’s ridiculous how the State ruled in favor of cable companies. I also did my research on the fiscal cost to build ‘Greenlight’ and it cost a minimum of $28m; this lead me to think: what is the debt capacity of Greenville? How much fiscal resistance would there be to my programs.
Club's rooftop expansion caters to changes downtown
Owners of a downtown nightclub who lobbied for an amendment to expand their facility expect forthcoming renovations to provide a draw for the district’s growing customer base.
Stilllife, located at 511 Cotanche St., is adding 8,000 square feet to the club in a vertical expansion owners hope to have open in October — the unveiling has been delayed due to weather and other construction holdups.
“I think that’s it’s really going to raise the bar for the area,” said Tom Hixon, one of the owners. “The project itself is going to be beautiful when it’s all said and done. It’s really going to set the standard down there. Greenville deserves nice things, and we want the district to come up with us, with everyone together.”
The construction of market-rate apartment complexes and other accommodations are expected to increase the number of young professionals living in the downtown area, and Hixon said Stilllife is looking to serve that population in addition to the college-based crowd that has been its foundation.
“Greenville needs something that is going to branch that in-between college and older gap, something for everybody to do and have a place, because we really need to retain a lot of graduates and the younger crowd that does go out,” he said.
Sharif Hatoum, the club’s founder, requested a change to a city ordinance that prohibited night clubs from expanding unless they were 500 feet away from other public clubs, private clubs, residential or residential zoning districts. The separation requirement was adopted by the City Council in 2010 to address crime and other issues downtown.
An amendment was approved by the city council in September 2016 to allow open-air decks to be constructed atop club buildings provided building codes were met and owners acquired a special-use permit from the city Board of Adjustment.
Stilllife’s deck areas — planned to be upscale venues with covered seating — were set to be completed this month. Hixon said they are hoping to open both by October, and will be holding a grand-opening when that occurs.
Hatoum opened the club in 2006 and created a “high-energy, large-city like” nightclub that appealed to the college crowd. Hixon said they saw a lot of great success with that, and opened a second Stilllife in Raleigh. Hixon said they are currently scouting locations for a third location.
He said new portions of the building will entertainment options to other members, while the downstairs will continue to cater to a younger crowd, 18 and up.
The ground floor is being updated but will remain largely the same in design and atmosphere and will remain as “Stilllife Nightclub,” Hixon said.
An outdoor area adjacent to the club will be branded the “Tiki” and will be designed as a mix of Eastern North Carolina and Caribbean culture. Hixon said the venue will be more like a party bar than a club. He expected to have a soft opening in the next couple weeks.
The rooftop area will be divided into two sections as well. “Sky” will be directly above “Tiki” and is envisioned as a sports bar. Hixon said the area will have high top tables, lounge seating and televisions. He said they hope to keep local sports playing year ’round. Sky will be restricted to customers 21 years or older.
The area located above the main nightclub will be branded ‘The Loft’ and is themed as a lounge, with lots of dark wood, greenery and earth tones. Hixon said firepits and booth seating will be available in the area, helping create the lounge atmosphere.
The area will be covered to allow for many weather conditions. Hixon said the loft will be restricted to 21 and older during the week and 25 and older on Friday and Saturday to draw a non-college crowd.
“There just really is nowhere for them to feel comfortable where they don’t feel like they’re still in college. We’re trying to be the pioneer.”
He said the two upstairs areas will give the nightclub the ability to expand from its normal business model in other ways.
Because the lower part of the building lacked windows, people did not have a lot of interest visiting in the daytime. The upstairs portion will allow the business to expand hours to accommodate a daytime crowd. He said this was a natural progression, especially with ‘Sky’ for local sporting events.
In addition to opening during the day, Hixon said the nightclub will be partnering with local restaurants to provide food for guests. He said he envisions a limited menu offering utilizing food-runners to businesses nearby.
Hixon said that he and Hatoum have been talking about expanding into a rooftop bar for years, but have been slowly working with the city to get permits and approvals. Now, he said, it feels like a long time vision finally coming into reality.
All things considered, Greenville is definitely in a good spot as the hub of Eastern NC.
Just counting the county populations of. Greenville & all of the counties that border it have over 550,000 people. That doesn't even include counties like Nash, Bertie, & Washington (and others) that use Greenville as their closest option to retail, restaurants, and entertainment.
(2015 estimates)
Pitt 175,842
Beaufort 47,651
Craven 103,451
Lenoir 58,106
Greene 21,134
Wilson 81,714
Edgecombe 54,150
Martin 23,357
Total: 565,405
Absolutely no one in Edgecombe or Nash county, along with a limited number of people in Wilson or Craven county use Greenville as their closest option to retail, restaurants and entertainment.
^ While I'm not saying it is not true, I'll take it with a grain of salt since it is coming from the East Carolinian. Maybe this will get other news agencies to look into these allegations.
Absolutely no one in Edgecombe or Nash county, along with a limited number of people in Wilson or Craven county use Greenville as their closest option to retail, restaurants and entertainment.
Well my grandmother lives in Tarboro and comes to Greenville for everything so you sir, are wrong.
Does anyone know what is going on with the construction and huge dirt piles near/behind the new gym and charter school on Fire Tower? There appear to be multiple projects going on.
A sign indicating that a Souffe retailer is coming Spring 2018 next to the strip mall by Walmart on 10th and Portertown.
Now the only sites available will be the three large ones off Portertown that are likely well suited for larger franchise restaurants.
A new restaurant is supposed to be going into the last open suite of the neighboring Food Lion strip as well. Although they haven't done much work for a while and the inside is stripped and unfinished with huge holes in the concrete. They just put up some huge electrical boxes in the back and then stopped.
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