Nearly two years ago I asked: “What’s the future of this building?“. Although readers expressed interest and offered some information, the question couldn’t be clearly answered. Now, I can tell you what the future is: a nightclub/restaurant the likes of which Raleigh has yet to see on the ground level, and office space on the upper levels.

Located at 309 North Dawson Street, this was the former home of the Melrose Knitting Mill, which was a local manufacturer of underwear. You can see some faded outlines of the ‘underwear’ part on the image above.

There are  lots of plans for the outdoor area: a grill, pizza oven, bar, and possibly other water features.

The new venue will be owned and operated by the same person that owns Mosaic Wine Lounge. You can expect some of the same Moroccan/North African style and influences in the establishment shown here, but to be on a more grand and luxurious scale.

At the risk of sounding coy, I can say there are larger plans than I’m outlining here. Because of the tentative nature of planned features for the new establishment, I was asked not share everything on the table, including the name.

The planned opening date is about six months from now, but that’s all subject to change based on various inspections and construction work completion. Because so much effort is concentrated on the outdoor aspect of the place, I’m guessing that there will be a big push to be complete around the time fall sets in.

The spaces above the ground floor will house offices. The plans for the outdoor area were described to me as “resembling the garden of Eden”, and should provide an interesting visual landscape for the folks lucky enough to work upstairs.

Where the future bar will be

Construction crews are working nearly around the clock, including weekends and evenings to get this place off the ground. It’s a welcome sign to see such a project in downtown Raleigh in the current economic climate.

We will continue to bring you information and developments of the new venue.