Downtown Wilmington's latest housing draw
Bordered by the Cape Fear River and seeped in more than 250 years of history, downtown Wilmington has blossomed into a dynamic and colorful place to live for people of all ages. Its neighborhoods are diverse, from districts on the National Register of Historic Places to blocks of sleek condo and apartment developments in or near the central business district.
“I love being downtown,” said Margaret Haynes, a longtime Wilmington resident who traded her 3,000-square-foot home for a River Place condo in September 2020.
Centrally located River Place, which contains 171 residential units, 32,000 square feet of retail space and garage parking, has proved popular with others as well: Both its condos and its retail spaces are fully occupied. Wilmington’s Ruth’s Chris restaurant recently relocated to River Place.
“There is a bunch of sociable people in our building, and now that COVID is waning we enjoy getting together for happy hours and other occasions,” Haynes said.
She also likes the convenience of being able to walk to the many restaurants, performing arts, visual arts and educational events downtown Wilmington has to offer. She is steps from the Cape Fear Riverwalk, a nearly 2-mile boardwalk connecting Riverfront Park and the marina to the north with development near Cape Fear Memorial Bridge to the south.
“It’s great for people-watching; you see a little bit of everything,” Haynes says of living downtown. She also enjoys the view from her river-facing windows, a panorama that includes Cape Fear Memorial Bridge and the Battleship North Carolina, moored across the water from River Place.
In less than a decade, downtown Wilmington has welcomed several large apartment and condo developments.
More than $650 million of private capital has been invested over the past six years in apartments, condos and hotels throughout the central business district, according to Wilmington Downtown iNC (WDI).
In addition to River Place, there is Pier 33, a fully occupied complex of 275 residential units and retail space, and Flats on Front, another fully occupied development of 273 apartments. In October, developers broke ground on The Metropolitan at the Riverwalk, which will contain 293 apartments, 4,500 square feet of retail space and a 490-stall parking garage.
“Downtown has added more than 1,100 new housing units (primarily apartments and condos), and more than 300 additional units are currently under construction,” said Holly Childs, who until recently served as WDI’s president and CEO.
Investment of public and private dollars in Wilmington’s downtown has not been funneled only into housing and infrastructure.
Cape Fear Community College’s Wilson Center, funded through private gifts and a New Hanover County bond sale, took glittering shape as a 1,500-seat performance venue, with a smaller studio theater and 26 instructional spaces.
Across the street, but part of the complex, is the Wilma W. Daniels Gallery, one of a large mix of downtown area art galleries.
“In 2016, $45 million was invested in the Wilson Center, and just last summer we celebrated the opening of the city’s $35 million Riverfront Park, which includes Live Oak Bank Pavilion – downtown Wilmington’s second Live Nation venue to attract nationally-touring music acts,” Childs said.
Music and other performing arts flourish in a variety of downtown venues, while the visual arts are on display everywhere, from private galleries to public sculpture installations.
Downtown is also a place to shop and work. The downtown office occupancy rate is at 96.2%, and there is currently 17,000 square feet more in development, according to a report Childs cited from SVN Efird Commercial Real Estate. The report stated that retail occupancy downtown is at nearly 100%, with rents rising as a result of demand.
