Raleigh hosting public meetings to discuss Hillsborough Street 'art piers'

Residents are invited to bring photos, clippings and stories about Hillsborough Street that could be integrated into the concept designs. 

A lunchtime meeting will be held at noon at the Pullen Arts Center at 105 Pullen Road, and an evening meeting will be held at 6 p.m. at the Hillsborough Street Community Services Corporation at 2416 Hillsborough St.

Project artists David Dahlquist and Justin Platts, of RDG Dahlquist Art Studio, will be on hand to discuss their previous projects and answer questions regarding their concept designs for a series of public art piers to be integrated within the Hillsborough Street corridor.

"We are excited by the opportunity to integrate artwork within the design of the Hillsborough streetscape and to get to know the community and the City of Raleigh,” Dahlquist in a statement. “It's not every day that our work becomes part of a living history that dates back to 1792."

The City Council on Tuesday approved the second phase of the Hillsborough Street project, which will include the construction of a raised median, marked bike lanes and some on-street parking along a half-mile stretch of the busy road. 

The work will take place between Gardner Street and the intersection of Rosemary and Shepherd streets, along the northern edge of the North Carolina State University campus. 

Design plans on the $12.9 million construction project are about 65 percent complete. A contract will likely be awarded for the work in 2016, and the project is expected to be completed by the summer of 2017.