Envisioning multi-use space for entrepreneurs, designers, and developers, and additional ground floor retail, the new 215,000-square-foot Center of Developing Entrepreneurs will act as a connective ligature between the institutional, commercial, and historic avenues of Main Street. The facade, via a repeating pattern, will ensure consistency throughout the various tenant spaces enclosed within. The building will negotiate the difference in scales of the surrounding environment by employing a stepped elevation pattern, exposing rooftop courtyard areas and panoramic views of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

At the ground floor, the brick will be lifted, replaced by a glazed first story to expose a unique public space intended to enliven the street and promote connectivity. This interior plaza will also serves to extend the terminus of the main thoroughfare, Main Street, with a direct connection to adjacent Water Street. The move will facilitate access between the adjoining areas and allowing further retail space to be integrated into the surrounding pedestrian mall. The project is targeting ambitious sustainability goals, with completion set for 2022.

EskewDumezRipple Project Team:
Jose Alvarez, AIA, Principal-in-Charge
Steve Dumez, FAIA, Principal-in-Charge
Tyler Guidroz, AIA, Design Staff 
Jill Traylor, NCIDQ, IIDA, Interior Designer
Max Katz, AIA, Design Staff
Noah Marble, AIA, Design Staff
Tom Gibbons, AIA, Design Staff