State of Downtown Greensboro spotlights new apartment projects, parking, housing plans

Downtown Greensboro Incorporated told a packed room at The Pyrle that downtown has roughly an $800 million development pipeline and named several headline projects, including plans to demolish the Davie Street parking deck for a seven-story apartment complex, a new Residence Inn by Marriott, and the Carroll at Parkside mixed-use development. The organization said more than 250 community, business, education and elected leaders attended the annual State of Downtown on March 4, 2026.

City and project officials said the Davie Street parking deck will soon be demolished and that demolition is expected to take about three months, with construction of the new apartment development planned to follow. DGI presenters highlighted the Davie Street site as a priority for adding residential capacity downtown, but did not provide a unit count or construction start date at the event.

Carroll Companies provided the most detailed project specs for Carroll at Parkside, saying groundbreaking has commenced on a mixed-use complex that will include a nine-story, 159-room AC Hotel with a rooftop restaurant called The Bristol offering indoor and outdoor seating, 337 upscale apartments, 16,000 square feet of retail space, and 4,500 square feet of event space with seating for up to 300. Carroll Companies described Parkside as overlooking First National Bank Field and called it the largest development in downtown Greensboro’s history.

Zack Matheny, president and CEO of Downtown Greensboro Incorporated, framed the announcements with recent growth metrics and longer-term goals. “The State of Downtown is strong, and getting stronger,” he said in DGI materials, and he told attendees, “We have 4,200 residents now. When I started we had about 1,800 — so we’ve more than doubled.” DGI also highlighted that 31 new businesses opened downtown in 2023, that downtown drew 1.8 million unique visitors that year, and that the annual economic impact of revenues generated downtown “tops $90 million in public benefit.” DGI said 63 percent of the 31 new businesses were Minority and Women Owned Business Enterprises.

Panelists and business owners on stage emphasized both optimism and ongoing challenges. Will Stewart, managing partner at The Pyrle, said, “With this location, specifically, it’s a bit of chicken and egg. The south end has got a great kind of cultural hub… We’ve got Tanger north of us, and we’ve got killer restaurants in this area … We’re taking a leap on filling in the space in between.” Tanya Dickens, owner of Savor the Moment Dessert Bar, urged more community engagement: “I want people to see downtown as a place to be, as a place to bring your family, your kids and want to support.” Event leaders acknowledged that several downtown businesses have recently announced closures and said panelists discussed lingering pandemic impacts and elevated supply costs.

Organizers presented long-term targets under plans referenced at the event, including GSO 35 goals to add 5,000 new residents, 3,000 jobs and more than 100 new or expanded ground-floor businesses over a 10-year horizon; presenters also referenced a Road to 10k Plan to strengthen the local economy and bring more visitors. Event materials and developers did not supply an opening date for the Residence Inn by Marriott, a unit count for the planned seven-story Davie Street building, or full permitting and contractor schedules; those timelines and permit details remain to be confirmed by DGI, the city and the developers as projects move from planning to construction.