DURHAM — The Bull City is getting bigger, and some say better, as it enjoys a new development explosion. That's a big change for a city that's been plagued with a reputation for crime and vacant buildings.

Among others, there's the Diamond View office building going up downtown, next to Durham Bulls Athletic Park.

In the past four hears, $70 million in private development funds has come into downtown Durham. The office occupancy rate over the same time frame has increased from less than 70 percent to more than 90 percent.

Durham economic developerment officials say they've seen an upsurge in interest in downtown in the past several months. Many of those dollars have come in the form of bricks and mortar as building after building is erected or refurbished.

Bill Kalkhof of Downtown Durham, Inc. says some older buildings have new life.

Blue Devil Ventures, a company started by a group of former Duke University athletes interested in investing in downtown Durham, will soon begin work on a project that includes 238 apartments, 30,000 square feet of commercial space and about 12,000 square feet of retail space.