Large development promises to give downtown Holly Springs a modern look

I'd been intrigued with the Holly Springs town name ever since Lee Ann and I started looking for a place in the Raleigh metropolitan area a few years ago. Realtors sent us a few tips of homes for sale there, in fact.

Since moving here, we have had only a few occasions to go to Holly Springs, and all of those were brief stops -- once to take Lee Ann's two dogs to a groomer, and another to visit the state motor vehicle licensed plate branch.

I made a more deliberate trip -- for photographs -- last week, and was struck by somewhat minimalist old town merchants' district where currently the classic architecture of the Town Hall (see photo leading off the post) dominates. Nothing wrong with that, for sure. West of Town Hall is an relatively new -- and architecturally striking -- community cultural center (below).

The cultural center, which houses the local library branch and a theater venue -- is nicely landscaped. Even nice is that there is ample free parking there.

Under construction in midst of all this -- and by "in the midst" I mean directly across West Ballentine Road from Town Hall -- is a massive modern building, to be called Town Hall Commons, that will divvy 52,000 square feet of space into sundry shops and dining. The development already has its own Facebook page. This project, combined with the new look of the cultural center, promises to give "old town" Holly Springs a modern face-lift ... and possibly deliver more economic and aesthetic appeal.

The photo above is a look at the three-level Town Hall Commons as of April 11; below is a look at the architect's rendering. They look very similar. Work there began in 2018, and completion is scheduled for this October. Among tenants already lined to fill space there are cell phone service provide Ting, Shoes and Brews, Uniquely.U bridal and formalwear, Body Shop Fitness and Osha Thai Kitchen and Sushi, according to Suburban Living,  which appears to be an online town news and promotions website.

Behind the main structure will be public parking facilities, including what appears to be garage space. Curiously, the Suburban Living article says Town Hall Commons promises to be "the first of two buildings to be built like this downtown," but there is no mention of where the other will be located.

As always, to view a larger, sharper version of a photo, simply click on the image. To view a full gallery of my shoot of old downtown Holly Springs, click on the link in this sentence.

Photo geek stuff: I shot the entire town profile with my Canon 6D using a Tamron 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 Di VC PZD lens equipped with a polarizing filter. I made three exposures of each composition to meld into one image during post-processing using Photomatix high-dynamic range (HDR) software.

The historic Leslie-Alford-Mims house (above and below), which is on Avent Ferry Road at Center Street, a block from Main Street. A landmark across the street (second below) in front of My Way Tavern explains its significance through the years. 

Above and below: Glimpses of old and new downtown commerce, with Dewar's Interiors, Antiques and Florists at Center and Main (above), one of the oldest retail shops still in use downtown, and a side slice of Mims Towne Square (below), a modern commercial development just south of Dewar's. 

Above: The rear entrance to the cultural center, as seen from a separate parking lot. Outside the center are sculptures shown in the first two photos below. In the median of a roundabout leading to the rear parking lot, the sculpture in the third photo below can be found. A closeup of one of the children in that display is shown in the fourth photo below.

Above and first two below: Various views of the lobby area just inside the front door to Town Hall, including a look upward toward the second floor (second photo below) to catch this interesting, triangle-shape cutout. 

Above: Looking down from Town Hall's second floor to the main lobby below, the receptionist's desk at left. 

Above and below: Opposite end views inside the Town Council Chambers on the second floor of Town Hall. 

Above: A look down the second floor corridor in Town Hall.

The Masonic Lodge on Raleigh Street (above) and the spring-blossomed-framed walk nearby (below).

Above: More Spring blooms adorn the north perimeter of this home along Raleigh Street.

A street intersection sign (above), the back side of Town Hall facing Avent Ferry Road (below) and a closeup of the Town Hall cupola (second blow). 

Holly Springs Barber Shop, at Avent Ferry and West Ballentine roads, formerly served as the town post office. The new post office (below) is at 112 3rd Street. 

The Holly Springs Police Department (above) sits along the south side of Holly Springs Road, east of downtown. Fire Station No. 1 (below) is north of Holly Springs Road, on Flint Point Lane, a short distance from the police station. 

Next up: Holly Springs Cemetery

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Carolina Brewing Company