As we’re all too familiar with, the pandemic has had a significant influence on schedules and business operations. Cline Design’s Charlotte office would not be immune. Moving in January of 2021, they would, out of an abundance of caution, put off inviting their staff, clients, and partners to celebrate their new home. Fast forward to May of 2022, the team found themselves celebrating their space alongside their neighbors.

Thank you to everyone who helped Cline Design celebrate the official opening of their new Charlotte office, along with their neighbors at SeamonWhiteside and Park Commercial Real Estate in the burgeoning Lower South Neighborhood dubbed Peterson Corners.

Originally built in 1969, Peterson Corners occupies 20,000-square-feet of space split between two, one-story buildings. The buildings have housed a diverse group of tenants over its history including warehouse facilities, a distillery, and a fitness gym to name a few. Cline Design wanted to stay true to Lower South End’s “warehouse distribution district” feel and create a space that would embrace its history as well as accommodate its future.

“We felt like the neighborhood embodied Cline Design in a way. Lower South End is this up-and-coming urban district with a lot of growth. We have been experiencing a tremendous amount of growth, so much so that we grew too big for our previous Charlotte office. We wanted somewhere that was very walkable, and was surrounded by other unique spaces, such as the Bowers Fibers adaptive reuse building we designed across the street from Peterson Corners,” said President, Michael Mesnard.

Cline Design’s Charlotte office occupies the entire building of 220 E. Peterson Drive, while Park Commercial Real Estate and SeamonWhiteside occupy 230 W. Peterson Drive. Their home-away-from-home is conveniently located a block away from Brewers at 4001 Yancey, Olde Mecklenburg Brewery, Queen Park Social, and more.

Cline Design’s integrated services of architecture, interior design, and landscape architecture designed the details of their two-parcel micro-community of architects, engineers, and real estate brokers, which originally opened its doors in February 2021.

“We had a great time catching up with old and new faces at the party, and hope everyone enjoyed it as much as we did. We could not think of a more perfect way to celebrate than with our neighbors who also share the same mutual contacts in the AEC industry. Our hope is that next time you visit us, the space will feel like home and you’ll be inclined to stay for a beer from our tap, play shuffleboard in our cafe, or relax out on our patio”, said Director of the Charlotte Office, Orlando Pizarro.

Before + After Photos of Peterson Corners

Cari Jones has been announced as the new Design Director and Managing Partner after fulfilling the role as the Director of Housing and Senior Principal for the last 11 years at Cline Design. In her new role, she will oversee the design direction and integrity of projects for the firm and operating in tandem with Michael Mesnard, who was recently announced the new President and Managing Partner for the firm in January of this year.

Jones has been a force to be reckoned with in Raleigh’s booming architecture industry since she joined what was then known as Cline Davis Architects immediately out of college in 1986. Since then, Jones has been an influencer in her industry, helping the firm secure a multitude of awards, including design recognitions for The Salvation Army’s Judy D. Zelnak Center of Hope in Raleigh, N.C., Berkshire Village District in Raleigh, N.C., The Residences at Renaissance funded through Hope VI in Charlotte, N.C., Van Alen in Durham, N.C., and Greenfield Commons and Greenfield Place in Durham, N.C.

“It has been an honor to work alongside Cari these last 20 plus years at Cline Design. Her influence and leadership has truly shaped the success and culture of our firm. Promoting her to Design Director and Managing Partner was the obvious next step for her career and our firm.”

Michael Mesnard, President and Managing Partner

With a passion for providing well-designed quality housing, Jones’ design philosophy is based on creating thoughtful and contextual communities for everyone. She is actively involved in promoting the presence of women in the AEC industry. Jones is a leader in the community as a committed Board Member for the Mosaic Development Group, a non-profit based out of Charlotte, with a mission of improving affordable housing across the state of North Carolina. In addition, she has held positions as a past Co-Chair for ULI Triangle Chapter’s Women Leadership Committee, a member of the City of Raleigh’s Appearance Commission, and a ULI Triangle Chapter Innovation Housing Council Committee member.

“I’m so excited for the opportunity to continue to develop design excellence at Cline Design and to further foster partnerships with clients who continue to provide us with great opportunities in North Carolina and elsewhere.”

Cari Jones, Director of Design and Managing Partner

We are excited to share and celebrate with you the achievements of our staff across our Raleigh and Charlotte offices. This year twelve of our staff celebrate major milestones including 5, 10, 15, and 20-year anniversaries. Additionally, 8 have earned promotions ranging from Associate to Principal, for their hard work, contributions, and leadership. Two staff members were named employee of the year by their fellow CDA staffers. Please join us in congratulating all on their achievements in 2020.

Dan Rider, senior designer and integral member of the Peace Raleigh Apartment’s design team, gives insight into how the development’s scale, human experience, and modern industrial aesthetic contributed to the overall design of the mixed-use project.

With a mixed-use development as significant as Peace Raleigh Apartments, what were some of the challenges you faced when designing at such a large scale?  

Elliot Buff, Landscape Architect for Peace Raleigh Apartments, discusses the design opportunities presented by this transformative mixed-use project, and how it resulted in the final design of Peace’s courtyards and outdoor spaces.

Landscape Architects design with a vision of how others will experience spaces. What was the vision for the courtyards and outdoor spaces at Peace?

Cline Design sat down with Lee Starke, one of the lead Interior Designers for Peace Raleigh Apartments, to discuss the evolution of the interior design over the last five years. The development – which includes 417 units and 55,000-square-foot of retail anchored by Downtown Raleigh’s first Publix – represents revitalization in a once underutilized and deteriorating neighborhood on the edge of Downtown Raleigh. On September 2nd, 2020, the Publix occupying the ground floor of the development opened marking the official completion of Smokey Hollow’s Phase I.

Dan Rider, LEED AP BD+C, GGP shares his insights on the design of Academy Park and its influence on the Town of Cary

The Town of Cary is seeing unprecedented growth.  It’s consistently ranked as one of the best places to raise a family, retire and start a business.  With over 163,000 residents and long list of accolades, the Town of Cary continues to transform, keeping up with their diverse population.  One of those transformations is the Academy Park project.  In the heart of downtown Cary, this development is comprised of 102,000-square-feet of office, 34,000-square-feet of retail and 153 residential units wrapping three sides of a 600-space parking deck shared with the new Cary Regional Library, Cary Arts Center and Downtown Cary Park.

Read More

Bryan Johnson, AIA talks about the rewards and challenges of serving as project manager for the first phase of the Peace Mixed-Use Development in Downtown Raleigh

If you travel anywhere near the North side of Downtown Raleigh, chances are you’ve seen the Peace development.  Standing twelve stories at its highest corner, the project boasts 417 apartment units with over 30 different unit plans across nine levels. There are 18,000-square-feet of amenities including an elevated pool and courtyard area with breathtaking views of downtown Raleigh, two parking structures, 55,000-square-feet of retail and the first grocery store in Downtown Raleigh. 

We sat down with Bryan Johnson, Associate Principal at Cline Design and Project Manager for Peace, and asked him what it’s like managing an over 900,000-gross-square-foot urban development that will serve as the new Northern Gateway for Downtown Raleigh.  Here’s what he had to share.

There is a long history of architects and designers breathing new life into vacant, neglected and underutilized buildings.  Adaptive reuse, the art of connecting the past with the future, is a practice that is rewarding for designers, clients, neighborhoods and communities alike.  It is a method that provides a new thriving project while still retaining much of the architectural character, history and memories of the existing structure.

The Boulevard apartments, formerly known as Third and Grand, has signed on Orange Theory Fitness as a tenant in its commercial space. The mixed-use project is on the corner of West Grand Boulevard and Third Avenue in Detroit, Michigan.

The development will include 231 apartments and 21,00 square feet of commercial space. Pre-leasing for studio, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom units begins next month, and range from 900 to 1,150 square feet.

Cline Design is the architect for the project. (Read More)

Blue Heron Asset Management’s project, Foster on the Park, a 164-unit apartment community overlooking Durham’s Central Park, has received a construction loan for its development. The space is expected to feature ground-floor retail and dining space and will be located at 545 Foster St., next to Durham’s Innovation District and Historic Durham Athletic Park.

Cline Design Associates is the architect for Foster on the Park. (read more)

No sooner had the developers of the Solis Ninth Street apartment project in Durham finished and sold the building in mid-June than construction crews are being prepped for another major project less than a mile away.

Charlotte apartment development firm Terwilliger Pappas on Wednesday confirmed that construction has started on the 194-unit Solis Brightleaf apartment building at 1005 W. Main St. in downtown Durham. The project is next to the landmark Brightleaf Square dining and retail destination, formerly the site of the now-shuttered Howerton-Bryan Funeral Home. (read more)

A former Walmart near the Lynx Blue Line will soon be converted into creative office space.

Atlanta commercial real estate firm White Oak Real Estate Advisors acquired the big box structure at 801 E. Arrowood Road for $3.8 million in a sale that closed April 20, according to Mecklenburg County real estate records. White Oak, a firm new to the Charlotte market, plans to upfit the former retail store at the intersection of Arrowood and Old Pineville roads into a 110,390-square-foot, high-density office building. (read more)

Crescent Ninth Street
2016 Golden Lead Award  |  Large Development Award

2016 Golden Leaf Award Winners

Parkside Town Commons
2015 Real Estate Award | Top Retail Development

Clouds Brewing
2015 Real Estate Award | Top Restaurant Development

Crescent Cameron Village
2015 Real Estate Award | Top Multifamily Development

http://www.bizjournals.com/triangle/blog/real-estate/2015/12/tbj-2016-space-awards-winners.html

Peter Cummings, the Detroit developer who brought Whole Foods to midtown and shepherded the deal for the Fisher Building, told Curbed that he plans to build a 230-unit midrise apartment building in New Center. This summer, rumors about Cummings’ plans to buy the parking lot at 3rd and Grand (pictured above) from Henry Ford Health System were met with a firm “no comment” from Cummings. Now, he says that there’s an agreement to purchase, and that architects have been selected for the project.
“The sale hasn’t happened yet,” Cummings explained, “But I do have a firm agreement with Henry Ford Helath system. I want to build 230 units,” Cummings added. Cummings has already tapped Chapel Hill, NC, Cline Design for the new development which will combine retail with residential units just steps away from the Fisher Building. “They did a great job for me on a similar scale project, housing over parking and retail in Chapel Hill,” Cummings said.

Cummings says there’s a timeline in place and that the sale should be finalized soon. “We would like to launch the project in summer 2016,” Cummings said.Cline Design built 140 West Franklin for Cummings’ former Florida venture, Ram Real Estate. The eight-story, $55 million, mixed-use building in Chapel Hill opened in 2013 after nearly a decade of work.

Trifecta: Crescent sells third Triangle luxury apartment complex, grosses $208M total
. The developer and owner of the new Crescent Main Street luxury apartment complex in Durham, Crescent Communities of Charlotte, has sold its third new property in the Triangle at another near-record-breaking price.
 (read more)

@DHICInc received tax credits for Greenfield Place in Chapel Hill @chapelhillgov and Pennington Grove in Garner @TownofGarner.