Bryan Murphy/Archive
A red car drives through the traffic circle at the intersection of Pullen Rd and Hillsborough St on January 20, 2016.
Hillsborough Street has officially begun the second phase of renovation, which will take about a year and a half to complete. The second phase is a construction project that will add new bike lanes, street lanes, crosswalks and lights, and it is intended to make the street more attractive.
Jeff Murison, the executive director of the Hillsborough Street Community Service Corporation, says the process will be complicated.
“The street will be under construction for about a year and a half,” Murison said. “During that time there will be disruptions to the normal flow of traffic, normal use of the street, residents, students, faculty, staff and people who use our street on a regular basis.”
The first phase helped boost the economy of Hillsborough Street and added a couple of features to the area. The roundabout and the addition of street lanes made the street more accessible to people who are usually on Hillsborough, but unlike phase two, the first phase didn’t include many ideas for a safer street.
The second phase hopes to bury overhead wires to reduce the clutter that people see on the street. Phase two will also widen crosswalks, add more lighting and add bike lanes to increase safety and ease of access.
The renovations may potentially help businesses after the construction is done, but with the blocked-off areas and detours some businesses on Hillsborough may see less traffic to their stores.
Reader’s Corner, a Hillsborough Street bookstore, will permanently convert half of its parking lot into a new bike lane, which will be separate from the street lanes in order to give people riding a bike more safety.
Irv Coats, the store’s owner, feels the construction will be helpful when completed, but it will hurt business in the short term.
“The stuff they did before was further down the street, it did hurt us a little bit but we survived,” Coats said. “This time we’re going to be right in the middle of it, so we’re not looking forward to that, the main reason it’s hurting my business is because it’s taking up half my parking lot.”
The renovations will affect students traveling to and from NC State’s campus who plan on crossing or driving on Hillsborough Street. With certain streets and areas blocked off, students may have to find new routes to make it to campus in a timely manner.
“During construction, obviously sidewalks and parts of the street will be closed,” Murison said. “Whether you’re walking or driving to campus, there will be some disruptions, and some of your normal patterns will probably be altered.”
The renovations are also expected to be good for businesses because a main focus is to attract more people to Hillsborough Street, according to Murison. The first phase of the renewal project brought a $3 million additional commercial investment to the street, and phase two hopes to accomplish the same by showing investors that Raleigh takes care of one of it’s most important streets.
“The street at the very least needs a facelift,” Murison said. “A new appearance and a more presenting street we believe will help attract more customers and make for a better customer experience, but the way it really helps over the long term is that it’ll signal to the development community investors that this is an area that the city invested in, that they’re committed too.”
The roundabout on Hillsborough will be receiving a fix as well. It has caused accidents in the past and isn’t favored much by the community, according to Coats.
“It’ll be much more attractive and safer, and I’m all for that,” Coats said. “In the long run, I don’t think it’ll hurt us that much.”
Many businesses will see less traffic to the street because lanes will be closed off and there will be more detours, but when the renovations are finished, the street will add more public art and imagery, hopefully bringing an increase in traffic.
Murison believes the long-term benefits will outweigh the short-term losses, because once the construction is done, he believes it will attract new customers, investments and businesses onto Hillsborough.
“I describe it as the city filling up the gas tanks of the economic engine for Hillsborough Street,” Murison said. “Thus the engine can run and churn for another few years which will help attract new business and customers.”