Metrolina Warehouse, also known as the Linden Cotton Mill.

By DAVID BORAKS
DavidsonNews.net

A Raleigh developer is considering buying the former Metrolina Warehouse at Jackson and Depot streets downtown for conversion into a mixed-use project that could include a commuter rail station, retail stores, residences and offices.

GreenHawk Partners LLC, of Raleigh, has an option to buy the old warehouse, which at various times has been a cotton mill and an asbestos factory.

Town officials and others familiar with the project have hinted about the possible development for weeks. At a planning workshop Friday at Town Hall for the proposed Jackson Street commuter rail station (see related story), developer Brian Goray of GreenHawk, spoke publicly about the proposal for the first time.

“We really have not gone into any detail yet,” Mr. Goray told citizens, planners, consultants and others at Friday’s workshop. But he said the downtown Davidson market appears able to support a development on the 5.5-acre site that could include restaurant, retail, and residential uses, and possibly offices. A “boutique hotel” is also a possibility, he said.

“We can come up with a lot of different programs that can be successful here,” Mr. Goray said.

GreenHawk is a six-year-old company that specializes in urban infill developments, according to its website. It is a partner in several projects around the Charlotte area, including a mixed-use development at the Scaleybark light-rail station on South Boulevard in Charlotte.

JULY WORKSHOP POSSIBLE

Town officials and Mr. Goray’s planning consultant said Friday GreenHawk could bring the proposal before a public planning workshop as early as late July.

Friday’s planning session on the commuter rail station was a key ingredient needed before the developers complete work on their initial plans, said Tim Keane, principal with Keane & Co., of Charleston, S.C., who is working with the GreenHawk. (Mr. Keane is also a former Davidson town planner.)

“It’s great that this is going on now (the station area planning), because it allows us to get some direction,” Mr. Keane said.

GreenHawk’s plans are still in development and the company has not purchased the property yet, so there is no guarantee the project will happen. GreenHawk will wait until it has approval for a master plan before it buys the land and completes final designs.

Kris Krider, Davidson’s planning director, said Friday a renovated mill complex could become an important part of the downtown transit area. He said planners would encourage the developer to look at incorporating commuter parking behind the warehouse. And the development could include a train station.

“If there’s parking at the mill, with an incredible market hall in the restored building, you would actually have to walk through the building to get to the train,” Mr. Krider said. That could create a vibrant facility with traffic to support retail businesses there, he said.

One speaker Friday suggested the old mill building might qualify for tax credits as a historic property, which could help the developer. The oldest building on the site, once the Linden Cotton Mill, was built in 1891.

Sandy Lemons, executive director of Downtown Davidson Inc., which represents local business owners, said the mill project could be the centerpiece of an expanded downtown.

“I think it’s a wonderful proposal,” she said, of the mill project.

At Friday’s workshop, Ms. Lemons suggested Jackson Street could become a second major retail corridor parallel to Main Street. And she envisioned a future in which commuters and people coming to downtown could support additional retail stores.

“We can’t lose sight, in my opinion, of the retail opportunities on Jackson Street,” she said. “The potential is unbelievable for downtown Davidson.