Morning View 032811
Morning View 032811
Driving up Wilmington St. you’ll find an old Hardees that’s been turned into a Chinese restaurant. I’ve traveled to a lot of small towns across NC and this is the 4th Hardees I’ve seen turned into a Chinese restaurant. Not sure what the connection is … this is the only one I’ve seen with a gift shop “Dragon Gift Store”.
I think Wilmington St. has been overlooked with the revitalization of downtown Raleigh. It’s lined with an odd assortment of visually interesting businesses. You have Kings Motel next to a church and the burned out Snap Shot Video with a backdrop of the Cargil/Purina plant. Across the street you have the Bain Water Plant and the Hallelujah Soup Kitchen painted yellow and purple. Up the road is American Pawn and the Chinese-Hardees and an assortment of check cashing places, car lots and cheap motels. If you get a chance take a drive down Wilmington St.
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03/30/2011
Many years ago, I remember when the default route to get to the beach (Atlantic Beach, before it was called the foofy “Crystal Coast”) went down Wilmington St and not South Saunders. As a kid, I always loved the Purina plant with its checkerboard silos. Now, you have to make a deliberate effort to turn off onto Wilmington when either leaving or entering Raleigh to/from the South, but sometimes I still do, to travel this (sadly dilapidated) stretch.
03/31/2011
South Wilmington Street definitely is a neglected corridor. (Makes a great detour to avoid the traffic on Saunders though!)
About five years ago, some major work was done on it—better crosswalks, medians, etc–plus the bridge replaced. Just this past month, it looks like the city is finally doing some landscaping along the sides and in the middle median, probably in conjunction with the roadwork that was done recently on South Fayetteville Street.
So this area is certainly on the city’s radar screen, with what little money they have to work with. What it really needs is some private investment to finally come in. (But I’ve also said the same about Saunders for years, and little has come of that, either.)
03/31/2011
I too try to ride down this corridor every now and then, just to see what has changed. The streetscape improvements have definitely been a signal that the city is interested in this corridor and recognizes that there needs to be changes. I believe there are also improvements being made to Penmarc Drive and S. Fayettville Street in that area. I agree RaleighRob that private investment is needed. I’m sure the land is cheap enough for some nice affordable apartments and condos. I wish the Walnut Terrace redesign was more aspiring.