After 30 years void of investment, N.C. A&T Real Estate Foundation announces a $60 million mixed-use project to further economic development in East Greensboro.
The developmental project called The Resurgent will be located on the corner of East Market Street and will feature more than 70 new studio, one and two-bedroom apartments with 20% reserved as affordable workforce housing, ground floor retail shops, restaurants, office space and a parking deck on 7.15 acres.
Located in the East Greensboro community, the project plans to focus on faculty and staff, graduate students and young professionals to provide housing and spaces for their pursuit of excellence.
“I’m excited to see the development because this is big for us, as the Black community in Greensboro, since it’s being made for us,” senior journalism student and small business owner Alexus Brown said. “I’m excited to see what businesses come about. Hopefully, I can be a part of it since I mainly serve the students of A&T.”
The N.C. A&T Real Estate Foundation was established in 2015, after previously being called The North Carolina A&T Foundation, Inc. The initial primary purpose was to reallocate grants, scholarships and miscellaneous funds for N.C. A&T; now, the foundation’s primary purpose is to obtain and manage real estate regarding the university.
The East Greensboro Renaissance Community Advisory Committee and the N.C. A&T Real Estate Foundation began strategizing a plan in 2019 to lead to the development of East Greensboro in the future years.
Resources such as public art locations, restaurants (not fast food), office spaces, apartments for young professionals and faculty nearby were discussed as needs for East Greensboro in October 2019.
Although this new project will bring new homes to the East Greensboro community, Executive Director of the N.C. A&T Real Estate Foundation Kimberly Cameron assures the public that the goal is deeper than that.
“Our goal is job creation. We want people in East Greensboro who have lived here for a while to take advantage of this new development and work in some of [the] jobs that have been created,” Cameron said.
The office building’s third floor will feature the East Greensboro Entrepreneurial Hub, a business innovation for new local businesses and startups. Local Black and minority businesses in the Greensboro community are prioritized as The Resurgent seeks to fill their marketplace area.
“[I want the community to] be able to shop there and enjoy the area. Be able to relish in this new development,” Cameron said. “[We want to] better the community so that everyone can enjoy it without going across town. For us, by us.”
After submitting a rezoning request on Nov. 5, 2021, the Greensboro Planning and Zoning Commission officially approved the project on Dec. 20, 2021, allowing the foundation to move forward with phase one of the project.
The funding for such an extensive project comes from a few different places to make it all possible.
The city of Greensboro contributes 3.2 million in forgivable loans, and another large portion of the money comes from equity from new market tax credits– nearly 5 million. The rest of the funding comes from leverage debt.
“This is a true real estate project, and all the numbers have to work in order to pay back the debt,” Cameron said.
The Resurgent has the prospective time frame of summer 2022 through the end of 2023 for construction. Other phases will be announced as phase one begins development.
