Affordable condos in downtown Chapel Hill? Developer says a high rise is necessary.

Tammy Grubb
·5 min read

More families could live downtown, including in more than a dozen affordable, for-sale condos on East Rosemary Street, if Chapel Hill approves plans for its tallest building yet.

Raleigh-based TJ Capital II LLC is proposing 56 for-sale condos with roughly 3,000 square feet of commercial space on the ground floor of the 157-foot-tall building. Only 22 parking spaces are planned under the 12-story high rise, but Bill Jackson, owner of TJ Capital II, has offered to work with the town on a long-term lease in its new parking deck.

Fourteen condos could be designated for individuals earning up to $56,650 a year or a two-income family earning about $80,900.

The $80 million building would replace a two-story building that’s housed a variety of dive bars over the last 50-plus years. The current tenants include Vibez nightclub and The Gathering Place, a table-top game store and bar. The 100 block of East Rosemary Street parallels the East Franklin Street business district near UNC’s campus.

A 12-story condo building at 157 E. Rosemary St. would be taller than surrounding structures planned or under construction in Chapel Hill, but it could meet town goals to have more people living and working downtown.
A 12-story condo building at 157 E. Rosemary St. would be taller than surrounding structures planned or under construction in Chapel Hill, but it could meet town goals to have more people living and working downtown.

At 157 feet tall, 157 East Rosemary could be the tallest building downtown if approved. It would be roughly 17 feet taller than the Grubb Properties office and wet lab building slated to replace the Wallace Parking Deck across the road at 150 E. Rosemary St.

The top two floors would be clad with clear glass and set back from the street, the application noted.

Other tall buildings downtown include 140 West Franklin, 105 feet; Greenbridge, 135 feet; and Carolina Square, 138 feet. The new apartment building at 101 E. Rosemary St. is supposed to be 90 feet tall but is at the top of a hill overlooking East Rosemary Street.

The Chapel Hill Town Council would have to rezone the 0.32-acre lot at 157 East Rosemary to allow a taller building. While that’s twice what the town has planned for the north side of East Rosemary Street, project documents say the additional height is necessary to make the financing work for an apartment building with affordable units.

The inclusion of 25% affordable housing also qualifies the development for the town’s new community priority review process, cutting the timeline for approval to less than six months. The typical approval process takes 12 to 18 months.

Slightly shorter high rises and a parking deck are underway or pending construction in the 100 block of East Rosemary Street, marking a dramatic change from mostly low-rise commercial buildings and parking decks that lined the street for years.

The council will get its first look at plans for 157 E. Rosemary St. on Sept. 27. The meeting begins at 7 p.m.

A 12-story condo building proposed for roughly a third of an acre would have a slim profile as seen in this architect’s view of the building from Henderson Street in downtown Chapel Hill, NC.
A 12-story condo building proposed for roughly a third of an acre would have a slim profile as seen in this architect’s view of the building from Henderson Street in downtown Chapel Hill, NC.

Project details

▪ Developer: TJ Capital II LLC

▪ Location: 157 E. Rosemary St.

▪ Height: 157 feet

▪ Current use: Two-story commercial building and parking lot

▪ Proposed use: 56 for-sale condos and 3,000 square feet of ground-floor restaurant space with a patio in a 12-story building.

▪ Affordable housing: 14 condos for households earning up to 80% of the area median income for 99 years. The current AMI in Chapel Hill is $116,200 — a single person earning roughly $56,650 a year or a two-income family earning about $80,900 a year.

▪ Parking: 22 spaces under the building

Roughly 3,000 square feet of restaurant space with an outdoor patio is part of the proposed condo building at 157 E. Rosemary St. in Chapel Hill.
Roughly 3,000 square feet of restaurant space with an outdoor patio is part of the proposed condo building at 157 E. Rosemary St. in Chapel Hill.

Taller buildings, shared parking

The plan for 157 East Rosemary is a bit larger than a concept plan that the council reviewed last year. That plan called for a 120-foot building with 50 for-rent apartments. Only five apartments were expected to be leased at a more affordable rate.

Developers have planned for housing there since 2016, when longtime property owner Paliourus Enterprises LLC proposed an eight-story apartment building with limited parking. A revised plan for a five-story apartment building foundered in 2017.

Two major concerns for those projects were the limited parking and the building heights. Owners of adjacent commercial buildings, members of Phi Mu sorority, and residents of the nearby Franklin-Rosemary Historic District asked the council to reject both projects.

The height of a proposed condo building at 157 E. Rosemary St. in downtown Chapel Hill could be a concern for members of the Phi Mu sorority, which is located behind the redevelopment site (at right) on Henderson Street.
The height of a proposed condo building at 157 E. Rosemary St. in downtown Chapel Hill could be a concern for members of the Phi Mu sorority, which is located behind the redevelopment site (at right) on Henderson Street.

While a taller building might have seemed out of place among the one- and two-story buildings and mid-rise parking decks that previously lined East Rosemary Street, the town’s partnership with Cary-based Grubb Properties is already changing the landscape.

The partnership’s goal is creating a district that attracts high-tech and research companies with workers who could live downtown, adding to the vitality of the business district and bringing in year-round customers for existing shops and restaurants.

Grubb Properties recently completed a modern renovation of the decades-old CVS building at 136 E. Rosemary St. and 137 E. Franklin St. — the cornerstone of a partnership between the developer, town and university to create an Innovation District.

Columns and a public portico are shown along East Rosemary Street at the site of a proposed condo project in downtown Chapel Hill.
Columns and a public portico are shown along East Rosemary Street at the site of a proposed condo project in downtown Chapel Hill.

The town also is building a new, 1,100-space parking deck at 125 E. Rosemary St. When that deck opens, Grubb Properties will demolish the Wallace Parking Deck at 150 E. Rosemary St. and replace it with a seven-story office and wet lab building.

The new Grubb Properties building, at the corner of East Rosemary and Henderson streets, will also include three underground parking levels and ground-floor space for shops, restaurants and a public plaza.

The 101 E. Rosemary St. project will be the first residential building on the block. The plan does not include on-site parking.

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