A 60-year-old NC State hangout eyes new home as redevelopment looms
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Owner seeks rezoning to replace three‑story strip with seven‑story student housing.
- Amedeo’s says sale explored as parking lost for planned road expansion.
- Founded 1963; redevelopment possible if rezoning OK, no immediate closure.
Amedeo’s Italian restaurant has been a fixture on Western Boulevard since 1963 and one of N.C. State’s most enduring hangouts.
But a new rezoning bid suggests its days there may be numbered.
The property’s owner, Wolfgang Investment Properties LLC, is seeking permission to rezone the three-story retail strip at 3911 Western Blvd. for a seven-story student housing project.
The move signals big changes ahead, Amedeo’s owner David Harris acknowledged in a Facebook post on Wednesday.
“The building now requires significant updates to operate long-term,” he wrote. “Upcoming road expansion plans will impact the property, including the loss of critical parking. We’ve begun exploring the potential sale of the site for future redevelopment.”
If the rezoning is approved, he stressed that any redevelopment would take place “over several years.”
“There are no immediate changes to our operations,” he said.
Triangle Business Journal first reported the rezoning request.
Dozens of fans posted messages of support tinged with nostalgia.
“I’ve been going to Amedeo’s since going to Peace College in the mid 1980s,” wrote Donna Fowler Walton. “I introduced my husband and children to the iconic location. Please keep us posted!”
“All for progress,” added Evan Peed. “Would be sad to see this go away.”
Wolfgang Investment Properties, owned by Rodney Byrd, bought the 1.5-acre site for $2.3 million in 2015, according to Wake County property records. Boyd is a minority owner in the restaurant.
The site is also home to Mecca Market and Akhenaten Palace, and has assessed at $2.9 million.
A shrine to NC State fandom
Amedeo’s was founded by Amedeo “Dick” DeAngelis, a former NC State football player who brought his family’s recipes to Raleigh after missing home‑cooked Italian food. He died in 2021 at 88.
It’s now owned by Harris, Byrd and DeAngelis’ daughter and son-in-law, Jill and Dave Parker.
Over the decades, it has stood as one of the city’s centers of N.C. State fandom: football bowl game banners hang down from the restaurant’s rafters. Hundreds of black-and-white photos and framed jerseys line the walls. Booths in the dining room are named after Wolfpack greats, including basketball coach James “Jimmy V” Valvano and N.C. State basketball player and N.C. Sports Hall of Fame member Lou Pucillo.
“Amedeo’s is a staple for N.C. State fans,” said former Wolfpack Club executive director Bobby Purcell told The N&O in 2021. “It’s kind of a museum for Wolfpack athletics.”
Drew Jackson contributed to this report.
This story was originally published March 18, 2026 at 1:09 PM.
