Ground Broken for Main Street Square 4/09/07

Downtown transformation has taken an important step forward with the groundbreaking for Main Street Square, a mixture of homes, shops and offices along N.C. 55 Bypass at a gateway to Holly Springs.

As bulldozers cleared for a Wal-Mart across N.C. 55, Town leaders flung earth with gold-painted shovels April 5 to mark the start of the long-awaited mixed use development. By spring 2008, the first residents of Main Street Square should be moving in.

"This is a good example of the transformation people are seeing of Holly Springs," Town Manager Carl Dean said at the groundbreaking. "We are excited about this innovative project, one that will go very well here."

Plans for the 37-acre site at N.C. 55 and Main Street include 150 apartments, 100 townhomes and 15 single-family homes. The development will also have 80,000 square feet of commercial space, split evenly between office and retail uses. Some shops will have residences above them. The design includes a village green for concerts and other community gatherings.

See the site plan for Main Street Square and what the buildings will look like..

Main Street Square represents Town leaders' vision of a pedestrian-friendly downtown where people can live, work, shop and play. They envision a family-oriented downtown with a mixture of uses that bring people together.

"We're creating an identity for downtown," Dean said.

Through the Village District Area Plan, Town leaders want to improve the core of downtown while preserving its history. The plan calls for developing parks, increasing parking, and improving visual appeal.

Downtown Holly Springs received a big boost last December with the opening of Holly Springs Library & Cultural Center on West Ballentine Street, a block from Town Hall. Holly Springs' leaders had sought a county branch library for a decade. The Town cultural center attached to it brings people downtown for concerts, theater, movies, classes and other events.

In May, the Holly Springs Farmers Market is slated to open its inaugural season in the parking lot between Town Hall and Mims Towne Square. The market will be open on Saturday mornings until October, drawing people downtown for local fruits, vegetables and baked goods.

Home page

Town of Holly Springs - PO Box 8 - 128 South Main Street - Holly Springs, NC 27540 - (919) 552-6221 - Holly.Springs@hollyspringsnc.us