Happy Black History Month! I hope the start of the New Year has treated you right. The Urban Connector monthly newsletter looks back on the best of the previous month as well as ways to get involved in the coming month.
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January Content

Jan 1st – January Newsletter

Jan 7th – Atlanta Beltline Night Ride

Ride along as I cruise the Atlanta Beltline after dark.

Jan 13th – Eastside Atlanta 2023 Drone Compilation

A collection of drone imagery shot through 2023 from Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward neighborhood.

Jan 15th – TBJ Feature: Raleigh Needs to Pass the TOD Rezoning

Opinion piece with Eric Braun of Raleigh Forward on the importance of implementing Transit Oriented Development (TOD) along the forthcoming BRT line.

Jan 20th – Downtown Atlanta 2023 Drone Compilation

A collection of drone imagery shot through 2023 from Downtown Atlanta.

Influential Black Urbanists

In honor of Black History Month, here are 11 influential Black Urbanists we all should know.

Things to Know – Raleigh

Date	Event	Notes
Feb 6th	City Council Meeting	1:00 PM & 7:00 PM
Feb 10th	Western BRT Pop Up – Food Lion – 3926 Western	10:00 AM
Feb 13th	Planning Commission	9:00 AM
Feb 13th	City Council Meeting	4:00 PM & 7:00 PM
Feb 15th	South BRT Open House – 2615 Fitzgerald Dr	4:00 PM
Feb 17th	South BRT Open House – 2305 Lake Wheeler Rd	9:30 AM
Feb 19th	City Council Budget Work Session	4:00 PM
Feb 19th	BPAC Meeting	6:00 PM
Feb 20th	City Council Meeting	1:00 PM & 7:00 PM
Feb 20th	Western BRT Open House – 740 Powell Dr	4:00 PM
Feb 21st	Oaks and Spokes Advocacy Meeting	6:00 PM
Feb 27th	Planning Commission	9:00 AM

Things to Know – Atlanta

Date	Event	Notes
2/5	City Council Meeting	1:00 PM
2/12	Zoning Committee	11:00 AM
2/14	Transportation Committee	10:00 AM
2/19	City Council Meeting	1:00 PM
2/23	Critical Mass Ride	6:00 PM – Woodruff Park
2/26	Zoning Committee	11:00 AM
2/28	Transportation Committee	11:00 AM

Developments that excited me

• Phase Two of the Weld overlooking Dix Park released plans for a 20-story building. The best thing that Raleigh can do is build as much dense housing in the core and around Dix as possible.

• The City of Raleigh held a public hearing for TOD along the New Bern / East BRT corridor and there were nearly as many speakers who spoke in favor of the rezoning as opposed. This is a huge win compared to how things usually go here and is a huge testament to the outreach and education efforts around this issue from Raleigh Forward and WakeUP. The text change was approved but the rezoning will be analyzed further, as expected.
• City of Atlanta is considering banning Right Turn on Red within Downtown. City of Raleigh successfully implemented this in 2022. Hopefully the measure will pass.
• Citing urbanist pushback, a City of Atlanta Councilmember has hit the brakes on a measure that would require ADUs (and other small housing units under 750 sqft) to receive a Special Use Permit in the name of “preserving neighborhood character”. I could write a novel on why this would be a terrible thing in a City facing an affordability crisis.
• Yet another car smashed through the Beltline barriers at the end of the Bill Kennedy Way off-ramp. Thankfully, this time the house was not slammed in to. Unfortunately, the barriers were left smashed and blocking the Beltline for an entire day forcing countless pedestrians and bicyclists to navigate a dangerous situation in the roadway. It is beyond time for some changes at the dangerous interchange. I plan to develop these ideas further at some point but here are some starter ideas beyond simply closing the ramp.

• New section of Beltline near Piedmont Park should open soon!
• The Southside finally sees some Mixed-Use in the middle of suburbia. It’s far from perfect, but a lot better than most of the development we’ve seen down there.
• Summerhill continues to rise.
• Affordable housing to rise in Downtown Atlanta adjacent to the Stitch.
• Unique and affordable infill coming to the Westside.
• I love Atlantic Station more than most. Microsoft is planning the next phase of their portion and it looks great!
• High-rise fire station?!

• The MLK Bike Lane project was named one of the best new bike lanes in America. I had the pleasure of working on this project.

I’m sure this newsletter will evolve as time goes on. Comments or suggestions? Let me know!

Phil Veasley is a Professional Engineer working to design safer multimodal infrastructure in cities throughout the US.  My goal is to create cites that are safe and effective for all people to move about outside of cars. To achieve that we have to focus on creating equitable, dense, and vibrant cities full of walkable neighborhoods with a various mix of housing choices, schools, restaurants, and services. We cannot have safe multimodal infrastructure without the density to support it and we cannot have equitable density without safe multimodal infrastructure. Outside of designing safe streets, my passions are sketching ideas for infill neighborhoods, floor plans, urban photography, and exploring our cities on foot or bike. Please check out the menus above for all of my ideas and also check out my YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter accounts.

Opinions and insights are my own and are not representative of my employer or any organization.

NOTE: I NO LONGER LIVE IN THE AREA AND THIS INFORMATION IS OUTDATED. THINGS HAVE CHANGED – ESPECIALLY REGARDING THE COLLECTIVE. PLEASE VISIT THE TOWN’S DEVELOPMENT WEBSITE OR WENDELLFALLS.COM

Please check out the menus above for all of my ideas and also check out my YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter accounts.

Please like and subscribe to the video format as well.

Photos / drone imagery created by me. All site plans from Town of Wendell Development Map unless otherwise noted.

Treelight Square

This year has finally seen the opening of the highly anticipated shops, services, and restaurants in Treelight Square. From sit down restaurants like Don Beto’s and Parkside, to services, to even something for the dogs, there’s something for everyone – and still more to come.

The original two phases are leased out but there’s some question if Romeo’s Pizza is still coming.

Plans originally called for an office building for the 3rd phase of Treelight Square but that has shifted to more restaurant and retail space along with a medical building. No tenants have been released but it’s expected to be similar to the first few phases.

As for the Treelight Square outparcels, all are either Under Contract or under Letter of Intent except for the parcel across from the Firehouse.

It’s unknown what will occupy the large parcel between Publix and Phase 3.

The age targeted apartments next to Publix should break ground soon.

5/3 Bank is making quick progress on their building.

Culvers will occupy the corner of Taylor Rd and Wendell Falls Pkwy next to the Firehouse.

Bojangles (finally!) opened and WingStop has as well.

Chipotle, City BBQ, and a multi-tenant building will make up the rest of the frontage along Wendell Falls Pkwy.

The Collective

Wendell Valley Blvd has fully opened and lot survey lines have been established. This new road will eventually provide seamless and direct access to Rolesville Road and enhance connectivity between Wendell Falls and the Wake Tech / Wendell Commerce area. As of now, there’s no timeline available for the two sides to actually connect due complexities of the railroad crossing.

JLL had put out new marketing material that paints a picture of what may be to come for the Collective Lifestyle District. Plans could include another grocery store, pharmacy, movies, hotel, apartments, retail, restaurants and office. Be sure to check out the fly-through video on Youtube. Shortly after the listing went live though, it seemingly disappeared. Given market conditions, it may be years before we actually see much of anything actually happen to this land.

There’s also some plots of land that are not affiliated with Wendell Falls for sale adjacent to the Collective but are priced way above market value and have seen no movement since being listed nearly a year ago at this point.

Wake Med is getting set for their grand opening. The 12 bed Emergency Room only hospital will be the first phase of a two building complex.

Behind there will be the Collective Office District where grading was complete and is now being used as a construction staging area. I would be shocked if this ever actually develops into the envisioned mega corporate campus. Given the office market, my bet would be that this eventually turns into more housing or mixed use sections.

Phase 10 has opened and at least 50 homes are under construction. This section features some new collections and builders as well as the departure of mainstays Mattamy, Dan Ryan, and Ashton Woods (formerly Capitol City).

Phase 11 has been paved. Together, these phases will include roughly 500 residential lots as well as a new pool and playground. It’s important to note that there is no connection between Phase 9 and 10/11 so travel on Wendell Falls Pkwy will be necessary. It is also not golf cart accessible as golf carts are not allowed on the Wendell Falls Pkwy side path. It is roughly 2 miles from the Farmhouse. My hope is that a trail along the sewer easement is at least constructed or future development will provide some future connections.

Even further out, toward Knightdale-Eagle Rock Rd a phase of townhomes will be built. Past Knightdale-Eagle Rock Rd, will be another Residential phase that is in the initial stage of clearing and even perhaps some industrial on the NW side of Knightdale-Eagle Rock. Plans for this residential phase can be found here.

Neuse River Vet and Martin Pond Apartments / Outparcels

This phase of Apartments and Townhomes is also underway and making quick progress.

The outparcels have been purchased by a large-scale car wash company.

Residential Phases
Work continues in phases 9B and 9C. In between, work has started on Acorn Creek, which connects the two stubs between the phases and convert the current driveway to a trail.

A new playground has finally been added to phase 9C and something is being added to big hill in phase 9B.

Adjacent Development

While not officially Wendell Falls, a major development opposite of the vet will be breaking ground soon. This project will add to the commercial and retail offerings of the area as well as adding another dense mixed-use node that will help lead the area in the right direction. Plans can be found here.

A large subdivision which will connect phase 11 to Martin Pond Road has also been approved.

In the future there may be another mixed use development coming soon adjacent to the Richardson tract. Plans still need to be approved by council.

Elsewhere, I still hope we can get other bike / ped improvements to enhance the safety for all in the neighborhood. https://philveasley.com/2022/01/26/wendell-falls-bike-lanes-and-street-calming/. The recently approved bond referendum may allow for some additional safety measures around Town.

PDF plans are from the Town’s interactive development map which is here.

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Illustrative graphics courtesy of JLL and the Town of Wendell’s development portal.

Phil Veasley is a Professional Engineer working to design safer multimodal infrastructure in cities throughout the US.  My goal is to create cites that are safe and effective for all people to move about outside of cars. To achieve that we have to focus on creating equitable, dense, and vibrant cities full of walkable neighborhoods with a various mix of housing choices, schools, restaurants, and services. We can not have safe multimodal infrastructure without the density to support it and we can not have equitable density without safe multimodal infrastructure. Outside of designing safe streets, my passions are sketching ideas for infill neighborhoods, floor plans, urban photography, and exploring our cities on foot or bike. Please check out the menus above for all of my ideas and also check out my YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter accounts.

Opinions and insights are my own and are not representative of my employer or any organization.

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel

Subscribe to receive email notifications for new articles

Thoughts and insights from my first visit to Houston, Texas.

Phil Veasley is a Professional Engineer working to design safer multimodal infrastructure in cities throughout the US.  My goal is to create cites that are safe and effective for all people to move about outside of cars. To achieve that we have to focus on creating equitable, dense, and vibrant cities full of walkable neighborhoods with a various mix of housing choices, schools, restaurants, and services. We can not have safe multimodal infrastructure without the density to support it and we can not have equitable density without safe multimodal infrastructure. Outside of designing safe streets, my passions are sketching ideas for infill neighborhoods, floor plans, urban photography, and exploring our cities on foot or bike. Please check out the menus above for all of my ideas and also check out my YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter accounts.

Opinions and insights are my own and are not representative of my employer or any organization.