Durham may pause old police HQ plans. Here are 4 other downtown projects on hold
As redevelopment of the old police headquarters in downtown Durham faces another potential delay, four other major projects in the area are also behind schedule.
On Thursday, the Durham City Council will consider ending negotiations with The Peebles Corp. on the police headquarters project.
“Construction costs continued to increase, outpacing the growth of rent in Downtown Durham,” Jina Propst, director of Durham’s General Services Department, said in city documents. “Potential tariffs threaten to further increase the cost of raw materials and interest rates remain at elevated rates in response to broader economic uncertainty.”
The following projects were also expected to play a major role in downtown Durham’s continued transformation, but now their futures are uncertain.
American Tobacco Campus Phase II
The American Tobacco Campus, perhaps more than any other project, has transformed downtown Durham.
Capitol Broadcasting Co., based in Raleigh, redeveloped the former tobacco factory complex and announced plans in 2021 to add a skyscraper, two mass timber buildings, and a parking deck on the west side of the campus. It teamed with Hines, the group behind Cary’s Fenton development, and financial investor Affinius Capital to bring the expansion to life.
Their plans include
A 19-story apartment tower
343 rental apartments
353,000 square feet of office space in two buildings standing six and seven stories tall
104,000 square feet of retail space
A grocery store (the first in downtown Durham)
A plaza for events
Despite the promise of the new expansion expected to be delivered this year, plans are on hold.
According to city documents, Capitol Broadcasting Co. is “waiting for further progress in office pre-leasing before beginning the project.”
Downtown YMCA
The redevelopment of the downtown Durham YMCA is years behind schedule, with no announcement on when it may move forward.
East West Partners, the firm behind other mixed-use projects like Liberty Warehouse in Durham and East 54 in Chapel Hill, was selected by the YMCA of the Greater Triangle to revamp the property with two pools, an indoor track, a two-court gym, and other new amenities.
The proposal also planned to add
A 27-story tower with 300 apartments
A 12-story building with 120,000 square feet of office space
A 600-space parking garage
The current building was opened in 1996 and serves about 16,000 people each year, according to the YMCA’s website. There are three other YMCAs in Durham, but the downtown Y is the only one with an indoor pool.
Durham Centre parking garage
In 2022, the Durham City Council received pushback from residents for considering a $5 million offer from Craig Davis Properties to transform the 719-space Durham Centre parking garage at 300 W. Morgan St.
The garage would become “The James”
A 32-story building with over 300 market-rate apartments
82 parking spaces available 24/7
300 parking spaces available to the public at night and on weekends
The Durham City Council didn’t vote on the plan and, since the 2022 presentation, there have been no updates.
GeerHouse, Phase II
Originally set to open in 2024, plans for a second high-rise in one of Durham’s oldest neighborhoods have been delayed.
The first building of the GeerHouse apartments, at Foster and West Geer streets, has been completed and is leasing one, two and three-bedroom units from $1,553 and up. That building includes 220 apartments and more than 13,000 square feet of commercial space for retailers and restaurants.
The second building would have
15 stories
108 apartments
3,300 square feet of commercial space
This story was originally published June 4, 2025 at 10:09 AM.