Developer aims to build new condos and retail space next to Durham Central Park
A developer and an architecture firm whose past projects include notable developments in Durham are planning to build a new condominium complex downtown next to Durham Central Park.
Lambert Development LLC, the New York-based firm whose developments include The Brannan luxury condos finished in 2017 on Hunt Street, bought the property on May 30 from Treasure Cave LLC. The “Vega 214 Hunt” condo complex also will be built on Hunt Street.
The mixed-use commercial and residential building is set to be six stories tall and will feature 59 condominium units, two levels of structured parking with 81 spaces, and 6,030 square feet reserved for retail space. The site plan is under review by the city.
Lambert Development LLC could not be reached for comment.
The company bought the property for nearly $3.3 million. The assessed value of the land according to Durham County property records is $1.4 million.
The established Durham site design firm Coulter Jewell Thames, which boasts the Durham Athletic Park among its projects, is handling landscape architecture and engineering for the Hunt Street complex.
The firm has filed a variance request with the City of Durham to permit the building to occupy more than 20 percent of the street frontage and be located within 20 feet of a building corner.
Emails included in the variance request between Jeremy Anderson of Coulter Jewell Thames and the engineering department of Duke Energy indicate that existing overhead lines on Hunt Street are not of the required size or capacity for the project’s construction.
Anderson wrote that upgrading the lines “would require significant tree removal” on either side of Hunt Street, including the Durham Central Park frontage.
The property was previously occupied by the Durham metal craft company Cricket Forge, first established as Vega Metals, which was located there for 20 years. The business moved to Operations Drive in July after the property was sold.
The property sits on the corner of Hunt and Rigsbee Avenue and is directly adjacent to the Durham Skate Park.