I'm very excited about the streetcar and would love to see some of Winston-Salem's proposed light rail (LRT) projects (with dedicated ROW) move forward soon. I'm guessing the streetcar could begin construction next year? There are some nice projects in the South right now.
This week's BIG update adds another building to our list of projects to follow!
Science and Office Building:
This 7 storey, 210,000 square foot, building is proposed near Union Station and the southern end of the IQ District. The proposed cost is around $55 million. They will seek LEED Silver certification on completion.
Source: Design Collective Architects
Armed Forces Institute for Regenerative Medicine:
Major Gen. Joseph Caravalho Jr., who oversees the operation, will speak in downtown Winston-Salem's IQ District tomorrow on the new $75 million in federal funding approved in the defense budget for Winston-Salem's AFIRM. Downtown Winston-Salem is the headquarters for AFIRM and is expected to gain new research jobs from this funding. Possibly new construction too? $24 million in federal defense money will be used for the "Body on a Chip" project. Body on a Chip is a miniaturized system of human organs to model the body's response to harmful agents and develop potential therapies. Yes, they will use 3D printing to make small organs on chip. Winston-Salem is home to a massive 3D printing center for life sciences, paid for by federal defense money, and another massive 3D printing center for other uses.
National Center for Design Innovation:
The massive 3D printing center for other uses in Winston-Salem was recently in the news for its use in the movie Death and the Robot. That was the first movie to use all 3D printing. The 3D printing center used in the movie is currently constructing a new building in the IQ District, as part of the design center, for their operations. I don't know where Winston-Salem ranks in 3D printing nationally, but I'm guessing Winston-Salem is near the top of the list?
Inmar Headquarters:
Tech company Inmar is moving into their new IQ District headquarters downtown. I found this photograph through a DWSP update.
Source: Jason Thiel
Class A Vacancy:
Vacancy for Class A office space in Winston-Salem is at 6.5%. The vacancy rate for Class A downtown is still around 4%. This is the lowest vacancy rate since the city's office boom of the 1990s, when Winston-Salem's tallest office tower was built. It would be great to see another new tallest from this boom!
Semans Arts Library:
Our first photographic update on this project!
Source: UNCSA
New Indie Weekly?
It appears as if Cleary is starting another indie paper covering Winston-Salem and the region.
Chopin Birthday Festival:
I like to share some of the unusual, creative, and fun festivals in this city.
Februrary 28th and March 1st.
Presented by world-renown pianist Pamela Howland and also featuring paintings by Wendell Myers.
The film Remembering Frederic: The Genius of Chopin will be shown at this event.
Performances by Ann Guill's Dancing Classrooms and Gary Taylor & The Winston-Salem Festival Ballet.
You will also want to stay around for the birthday cake and champagne toast. There is much more, but it would fill the page. You may want to attend just to see the atrium in the new downtown conference center.
New Downtown Conference Center Atrium
Source: WFU Magazine
TEDx in Winston-Salem:
The leader of the IQ District was speaking at this event on Saturday. They said videos of all of the speakers would be uploaded shortly after the event, but I couldn't find Eric's. They had last year's TEDx Winston-Salem videos, but not this year's. If you find Eric's TEDx speech, please share it.
Winston-Salem Voted South's Most Overlooked Foodie City:
Recently, the South's overlooked foodie cities were ranked and Winston-Salem was #1, as the most overlooked foodie city in the South! Yes, #1 on the list! Winston-Salem ranks as the overall 7th best foodie city in the South, behind places like New Orleans, Miami, and Austin. I agree with this. On all of my visits to Winston-Salem, I love the restaurants in this city and prefer to stop at the awesome local establishments. One of the highlights of Winston-Salem is the city's downtown Restaurant Row, which is a regional attraction. Winston-Salem is also one of the nation's top metro area's for barbecue, with one of the nation's largest barbecue festivals, along with it's own style of barbecue and a unique slaw I can't find anywhere else.
West End Mill Works:
A few great photographs of the complex. It's becoming a great success.
Source: West End Mill Works
The Porch Restaurant
Source: Yes! Weekly
Source: West End Mill Works
Source: Field Guide to Winston-Salem