Community has big plans for ex-DMV site. Now Raleigh wants to see what’s possible.
A grocery store. Affordable housing. A food hall and restaurants. A co-op and food incubator.
Community members have spent the last year outlining what they’d like to see at the former N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles headquarters on New Bern Avenue.
The city of Raleigh bought the nearly 6 acres for $20 million after the state moved the DMV to Rocky Mount.
Now, the city wants to manage community members’ expectations and see which of their ideas are feasible.
“We understand everything can’t be done, but of the promises that were made, [what] can be done and be kept?” said Tolulope Omokaiye, one of the members of the city group that sought input. “This whole process is a covenant the city is marking with New Bern Avenue and its residents.”
The city plans to vet the public’s ideas and report the results this fall. Staff hope to name the developers of the project next year after a detailed search.
Jobs lost in Southeast Raleigh
“We lost 300 jobs on this site,” said City Council member Corey Branch, who represents Southeast Raleigh.
“And as we need housing, we also need to make sure that when people wake up in the morning to go to work they don’t always have to leave their community,” Branch said. “So I’m really going to be focused on how we balance the housing and the development of potential jobs on this site.”
Residents also want the city to recognize the cultural significance of the corridor and keep the site accessible for everyone as a community space.
Desmond Dunn, a member of the city’s group, is a Raleigh native who grew up in the area. The group has had to temper expectations because “we can’t solve all of Southeast Raleigh’s problems with this one particular site,” he said.
While no one lives on the old DMV property, public investment like revitalization of the site and a new bus rapid transit route planned for New Bern Avenue could cause gentrification and displacement to surrounding areas.
“What we know is the taxes are going to go up, right?” said Dunn. “There’s nothing we can do about that. That’s capitalism. That’s how it works. And so since we know that to be a fact, then we can help mitigate that before it even comes down the line.”
This story was originally published June 17, 2025 at 4:22 PM.
