Walker Sanders, president of the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro, said historically, investment in downtown Greensboro has been focused west of Elm Street. He and fellow investors in the former News & Record site are hoping to develop a catalyst heading east.
Recent renderings for the 10-acre site at 200 E. Market St. show a mixed-use development that could be anchored by both a Downtown University/Innovation Hub and a Church Street Food Hall and public space.
Renderings also show a limited-service hotel, a boutique hotel, retail space and a mix of for-sale and for-rent housing. The for-sale housing would likely include moderate-density housing such as townhomes and stacked townhomes, while the for-rent housing would include what is referred to as tuck-under podium apartment buildings. Such designs include townhome-style apartments where units are stacked above parking that is “tucked” underneath.
People are also reading…
Sanders recently told Triad Business Journal that the property’s ownership group began planning the future development by talking with community leaders. That included chancellors and other leaders at both UNC Greensboro and N.C. A&T State University, in addition to business owners in downtown Greensboro and east Greensboro. He said the ownership group is also working with national consulting group RCL Co.
Through RCL, Sanders said the group learned that community members wanted to see a 24/7 development on the site. While previous visions for the property included a soccer stadium or similar project, that was not supported either by community feedback nor the projections of what such a development would cost.
Sanders said while the group is still working through what the innovation hub could entail, it could likely be a partnership between private companies, local universities and nonprofits.
“We’re trying to think through what would be the best fit for Greensboro that builds off our history, and also with an eye to the future of where we’re heading,” he said. “Perhaps there are opportunities we can pursue with new companies moving into town out by the airport and all the stuff that’s happening on the campuses of A&T, so we wanted to build on all that.”
Sanders said the group’s market research also concluded that the site would be well-suited to two hotels. He noted that the market research was based on the assumption that the Westin Hotel will still be built. There were plans for a Wyndham hotel there dating back to 2010, shifting by 2018 to a Westin that’s never been started.
“Based on the market in the downtown area, there is still a good market for those opportunities,” he said.
Sanders said the next step in the project is for the investment group to meet with developers in the next few weeks. The group will then invite several developers to submit formal proposals at the beginning of 2027, with the goal of deciding on a development partner in the first half of 2027.
Sanders told Greensboro City Council members last week that he believes a mixed-use development on the site could generate more than $160 million in private investment. He described that number as a “conservative estimate,” which would be in addition to the ownership group’s investment.
The investors who bought the former newspaper site include Durant Bell, Mary Katherine Bell, Megan Oglesby, Matt Penley, Mark Penley, George Hoyle and Kathleen Kelly along with the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro, the Joseph M. Bryan Foundation and the Cemala Foundation.
When the group bought the site for $10.18 million last year, Sanders called it the “chance of a generation” to revitalize downtown Greensboro.
The investment group paid about $1 million per acre for two sites that comprise the block formed by Market, Davie, Church and Washington streets. In addition to the 6.65-acre former News & Record property, the group also bought a smaller site from Landmark Media, one of the newspaper’s previous owners.
