By Fran Daniel | Journal Reporter
Published: May 8, 2010
MIXED USE: MEDICAL, OFFICE, RETAIL, RESIDENTIAL
A mixed-use development near Hanes Mall that stalled with the economy three years ago is coming out of hibernation.
Developer Granite/Broyhill LLC expects to start construction on Silas Pointe in 12 to 18 months, building in phases over the next three to five years, said Rick Vaughn, a managing member of the company and Granite Development LLC, both based in Mount Airy.
“We will develop the phases based on market demand,” he said in an e-mail interview.
The project could be the first major mixed-use development built in Winston-Salem since the recession.
The cost could exceed $100 million, depending on density, Vaughn said.
A preliminary site plan shows medical, office, retail and residential uses on about 20 acres.
A proposed 244 residential units may be developed as upscale rental apartments.
Vaughn said that the ultimate size of the project in terms of square footage should be finishedthis summer.
The exact boundaries will not be known until the developer has assembled all the properties it wants to use for Silas Pointe, but the general area is between Silas Creek Parkway, Stratford Road and Hanes Mall. The development would include the former Elks Lodge on Silas Creek Parkway, the McDonald’s building on Healy Drive and the Rapers building on Mooney Street, all of which Granite/Broyhill owns. But not all properties in that area will be included in the development.
Granite/Broyhill started working on Silas Pointe three years ago, with the aim of creating an upscale, mixed-use project for Winston-Salem that would be similar to Birkdale Village in Huntersville and Streets at Southpoint in Durham.
“The property is very unique due to its proximity to one of the largest malls and hospitals in the Southeast,” Vaughn said. “Stratford Road is a primary retail corridor in Winston-Salem and the link to Country Club Road via Healy Drive provides good access to our target market.”
Vaughn said that the project originally stalled because of the economic downturn and challenging credit and lending markets. He said that Granite/Broyhill does not have financing for the entire project.
“For each phase of the project, a combination of project equity and adequate preleasing is vital to secure financing,” he said. Still, he said, there is demand for this type of project, particularly in this area.
“The medical sector is growing. Many retailers want to be close to the mall but are being pushed down Stratford and Hanes Mall Boulevard because of limited space.”
He declined to give names of interested parties until he has signed letters of intent or leases.
Local retail experts said that the local retail market is starting to stabilize.
“A lot of small businesses are looking again, both chains and local, regional enterprises,” said Ray Collins, the president of Collins Commercial Properties Inc.
According to a recent shopping-center survey released by Michael S. Clapp & Associates, the rapid decline in the retail-space market in Winston-Salem for the past two years is beginning to level off.
The vacancy rate for non-anchor stores in 57 shopping centers in the Winston-Salem area increased to 21 percent in April. That’s up just 0.5 percent since October.
Paul Carter, who compiled the survey, said that his research indicates that asking rents are also finally starting to stabilize.
For the same six-month period, the average asking rents for non-anchor stores in the overall Winston-Salem area market rose slightly to $13.57 a square foot from $13.47, but that was primarily because two centers, Towers on South Stratford Road and Village at Robinhood on Robinhood Road, were added to the survey.
Paul Norby, the director of the City-County Planning Department, said that because the site where Silas Pointe will be developed is already zoned commercial Granite/Broyhill will just need to go through the City-County Inspections Department, not the planning department.
“It’s great, having something in that area where you can have a mixture of offices and commercial and residential in a very pedestrian-oriented environment,” he said. “If and when PART gets the regional rail system there, it will be right near a stop for the rail line.”
George Stabolitis, the owner of Carriage House Restaurant off of Stratford Road, said he is concerned that construction might interfere in the short term with access to his restaurant. But, overall, he is pleased that Granite/Broyhill wants to go ahead with Silas Pointe.
“In the long-term, we feel like it would be a tremendous help, bringing more traffic to the area,” he said.
Silas Pointe (Ed Broyhill News)
