Downtown Greenville BB&T tower to transform into apartments

The BB&T tower stands as one of downtown Greenville's prime examples of reclusive, early 1970s architecture, positioned across from the Heritage Green cultural complex and at a key gateway into the urban core.

Now, a Charleston developer responsible for two modern residential projects in Greenville wants to transform the old, eight-story building into apartments and remake the corner that serves as an entrance from the west.

New: BB&T apartment plans coming soon as developer receives approval

The project, which makes its first stop through the city's design approval process on Thursday, would bring more change beyond the office building, which The Beach Company developer Dan Doyle says he hopes to embellish so that it better connects with updated architectural elements of the Heritage Green's three signature buildings built in a similar era.

The area across from the tower, currently a field of parking spaces, would be home to new construction of multifamily townhouses and apartments, which Doyle said would blend in with the nearby Hampton-Pinckney historic district.

Across from the corner where Buncombe and College streets meet at a point, a new mixed-use building would feature retail space possibly, Doyle said, for a small grocery store along the line of Trader Joe's.

And, he said, 80 to 100 apartments that would be created out of the tower building, while still upscale, would be priced below the typical luxury apartment projects that have emerged downtown in recent years.

The Beach Company has filed preliminary design renderings with the city for the new buildings on the other side of Buncombe Street, though none yet for the office building, which will come at a later time.

Ultimately, Doyle said, the project is an opportunity to give the BB&T building "a new identity" that would "respect" the efforts to put a modern touch on the buildings like those done with the Children's Museum of the Upstate, Greenville County Museum of Art and Greenville Little Theatre.

“No one’s giving out awards for that building, let’s be honest," he said. "So can we have some fun with it, breathe some new life to it? I know we can do it with the units. The question is, what do we do with the exterior?”

Last February, BB&T broke ground on a new, $30 million mortgage servicing complex in Mauldin that will house 600 employees.

Also, last December, the company announced 70 employees, some from the current tower, would relocate to a new presence a few blocks away in the ONE building on Main Street, part of what bank market president Jon Chilton said was a desire "to take part in the growth of Main Street."

The bank's drive-through teller location within the parking lot is being moved.

The Beach Company has developed two major apartment projects downtown over the past three years — South Ridge, on Church Street across from Greenville County Square, and Main + Stone on at the corner of East Stone Avenue and Main Street.

Those two projects have modeled a modern trend of development downtown that incorporates metal and glass and a conglomeration of shapes, but Doyle said the BB&T projects would less resemble those.

The new development would cover about 5 acres of current parking lots between Hampton Avenue and Whitner and Duncan streets. The project calls for 35 new, three-story townhouses with potential for five additional studio-style units that would be built above private parking garages.

Some parking will remain to accommodate the homes but much of it will be landscaped with open spaces and a dog park.

A 30,000-square-foot, mixed-use building would stand at the Buncombe Street gateway across the street from the BB&T building and could be home to the grocery store and other commercial uses. The area above the commercial space would be 54 small apartments.

“The west side of downtown doesn’t have a place where people can go and do their grocery shopping," Doyle said. "We think that’s an opportunity. We’ll see as we go down the road the level of interest.”

The new development requires approval by the city's Design Review Board. On Thursday, architecture firm SeamonWhiteside will present the plans to the board in an informal review, which allows early input before the final presentation.

The city's Planning Commission and City Council will have to approve the project under a "planned development" designation, which allows more flexibility with increased oversight. The Planning Commission is scheduled to consider the planned development aspect on Dec. 21.

Transforming the BB&T building into residential use doesn't require approval but future exterior changes would.

The eight-story building has 140,000-square-feet of space and offers views of the downtown skyline and Paris Mountain.

The project offers a unique opportunity to market the apartments at a different price point than what is common downtown, Doyle said.

The company will look to attract residents who want to live downtown but don't require common luxury amenities like a saltwater pool, he said. The higher reaches of the building offer prominent views of the downtown skyline and Paris Mountain.

The mix will result in rents that will be between $150 to $400 less than luxury projects downtown, Doyle said.

“When we have this conversation about affordability, you have to scale back somewhere, he said. "That is a trade-off for some people. They don’t need such a wide variety of amenities to still have a great place to live.”

The transformation will take square footage of out-of-date office space off the downtown market, making the office market stronger, he said.

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