Raleigh eyes Cameron Village manager to run Union Station

Longtime residents probably recognize the name of the company likely to manage Raleigh’s new transit hub.

The Raleigh City Council on Tuesday said it wants Union Station’s commercial and event space to be managed by York Properties, the company that manages Cameron Village and was once run by former mayor Smedes York.

Union Station is an $80 million train station the city plans to open next year on Martin Street downtown. On Tuesday, council instructed city staff to begin negotiations for York to manage the space for lease on the station’s three floors.

The city solicited offers from interested companies this spring and received bids from three companies: York, NAI Carolantic Realty in Raleigh and Chicago-based Cushman & Wakefield. York’s business plan most closely aligned with the city’s goals and offered the only detailed plan for marketing the station’s event space, said David Eatman, a city transit administrator.

“They showed a strong commitment to tenant mix goals, and that wasn’t true for everyone,” Eatman said.

Terms of the contract have yet to be finalized.

The station will have separate 2,100-square-foot and 1,700-square-foot spaces on the ground floor, a 6,200-square-foot space on the second floor and a 2,700-square-foot space on the third floor.

City leaders have said they want a “grab and go” food provider on the first floor, a company that works in the “creative” field on the second floor and a distinctive restaurant on the top floor. The council will retain final say over who occupies the spaces.

Union Station may host as many as 48 events in its event space during its first year in operation, city staff said.

This story was originally published June 14, 2017 at 8:32 AM with the headline "Raleigh eyes Cameron Village manager to run Union Station."