Cary’s Waverly Place shopping center to get makeover: What’s in the plan?
A popular outdoor shopping center in Cary could be in store for a massive makeover.
Houston-based Hines, the developer behind the town’s newly opened Fenton development, has submitted a rezoning request to turn a portion of Waverly Place into a mixed-used development. The plan was first reported by the Triangle Business Journal.
Among its proposals: up to 750 apartments and an additional 30,000 square feet of commercial space with buildings up to seven stories.
The redevelopment would largely focus on 6.5 acres of the property at 2001 Kildaire Farm Road, including two parking lots and the CMX CinéBistro. It’s unclear if the project would include any affordable housing for households making certain percentages of the area’s median income.
Hines declined to comment on its application.
A neighborhood meeting to discuss the proposal will be held Sept. 6, and it could take months before the project comes before Cary Town Council.
Whole Foods Market anchors shopping center
Waverly Place, which opened in 1988, is anchored by Whole Foods Market and features a lawn for concerts and other events. Hines bought the 22.5-acre property from Dallas-based Northwood Retail for $88 million in 2022.
The acquisition was influenced, in part, by the company’s “positive” experience developing Fenton, Hines’ managing director, Paul Zarian, said at the time.
“The prospect of continuing to invest in Cary was compelling,” he said, describing the shopping center as a “core asset” surrounded by “excellent demographics.”
As malls struggle nationwide amid the rise of e-commerce, Waverly Place joins a growing list of malls across the Triangle that are being redeveloped to survive.
Northgate Mall in Durham closed in 2020 and is now being redeveloped. In 2021, Cary-based Epic Games purchased Cary Towne Center for $95 million, then demolished it to make room for its new headquarters. University Place in Chapel Hill and The Streets at Southpoint are also being transformed into mixed-use developments with residential, office and retail components.
Hines, meanwhile, is growing its presence in the Triangle.
It opened Fenton last year, its 92-acre mixed-use district featuring retail, office, restaurants, a hotel and apartments.
The firm is also behind the expansion of American Tobacco campus in Durham, a 782,000-square-foot mixed-use project including a 14-story residential high-rise with 350 units, two office buildings and retail space.
This story was originally published August 21, 2023 at 12:26 PM with the headline "Cary’s Waverly Place shopping center to get makeover: What’s in the plan?."
