As office market shifts, Durham co-working hub returns to American Tobacco Campus
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- AU consolidated main operations into a newly built 40,000‑sq‑ft space at ATC.
- AU will continue to operate roughly 25,000 square feet across Main Street locations.
- ATC is now more than 93% occupied, CBC said.
American Underground (AU) — the coworking and startup hub long branded as Durham’s “Startup Hub of the South” — has returned to the American Tobacco Campus (ATC).
The move comes after AU’s 10‑year lease inside Self‑Help Credit Union’s building expired, leaving behind roughly 52,000 square feet of office space on West Main Street at a time when vacancies in downtown Durham remain at record highs.
AU, which now supports more than 275 companies across three locations, will consolidate its main operations into a new 40,000‑square‑foot space at ATC’s Washington Building — the same campus where it first launched in a basement in 2010.
“Sixteen years ago, we took a bet on Durham’s entrepreneurial spirit, and Durham paid it back tenfold,” said Michael Goodmon, executive vice president at Capitol Broadcasting Company (CBC), which owns both AU and ATC. “Coming back feels less like a return and more like an arrival.”
AU continues to operate roughly 25,000 square feet across its remaining Main Street locations: S.H. Kress & Co. Building (103 W Main St) and Trust Building (212 W Main St). It’s now “more than 93% occupied.”
Goodmon noted that AU’s original basement space at ATC is now home to Cristo Rey High School, which serves students from limited‑income families.
“How cool would it be if a Cristo Rey alum went on to start a new business out of American Underground one day?” he said. “That’s my dream.”
‘Smaller footprint, bigger platform’
AU’s new headquarters at 324 Blackwell Street, Suite 900, is about 10,000 square feet smaller than its former Main Street home. But AU leaders say the location, amenities, and growth potential outweigh the reduction.
“We’re actually going to be activating more of the campus,” said AU executive director Laura Zabinski.
“This is also an opportunity for some of our largest tenants to graduate into other spaces.”
The new space — designed by Little Diversified Architectural Consulting and built by Consigli Construction — includes open coworking areas, customizable private offices, a “botanical” library, a podcast studio, meeting rooms and flexible membership options.
Programming begins June 18 with a Free Coworking Day and a Juneteenth celebration in partnership with Code the Dream. AU will host events year‑round with partners including Google and the Fidelity Center for Advanced Technology.
While AU remains a Google for Startups partner and a home for early‑stage companies, leaders say the community has broadened.
“Designers, consultants, remote employees, and makers are finding that AU gives them the community and energy they’d otherwise be missing,” said Amanda Dozier, AU’s strategic growth manager.
“We made sure the new ATC space was designed for all of them.”
Since 2004, CBC has been repurposing ATC, a once-abandoned tobacco factory, into a massive mixed-use campus with offices, retail, and entertainment spaces. CBC also owns WRAL and the Durham Bulls.
Neighbors include WUNC, Chamber Orchestra of the Triangle, Parker & Otis and Yoga Off East. McKinney and GSK are just across the lawn, and Burt’s Bees just around the corner.
