Three reasons you need to visit Fenton

There are so many reasons to check out Fenton, Cary’s new 92-acre mixed-use community for dining, shopping, playing and living. In fact, attempting to limit the reasons to only 3 is a task as gigantic as the screens at Paragon’s Axis15 Extreme Theater! But, for visitors that have not been by, here are three reasons that Fenton should be on every Triangle resident’s ‘must-visit’ list.

While many mixed-use shopping, dining, and living spaces are beginning to pop up in the Triangle, Fenton’s focus is on the guests’ experience. Time and again, Jaime Nolan, marketing communications manager for Fenton, expressed how their goal is for Fentonians, both residents and guests, to know that they are part of a community.

And, as part of that community, Fenton wants to be part of creating beautiful memories.

Over the course of a year, Fenton has more than 300 activations; whether it’s a new product launch, a chef demo, a special shopping event or entertainment, that means that there is literally something new almost every single day of the year at Fenton.

And while focusing on new and unique experiences is important, the classics, like a great dinner and movie, never go out of style.

The Paragon luxury movie theater has 4K Laser Projection, the ultimate in sound experience and a screen that tilts, yes, physically tilts, for optimum viewing. And while dining within the Paragon is always an option, there are plenty of additional choices.

The restaurants at Fenton have been curated specifically to bring the best of the area’s chefs to Cary.

For the first time, chef Mike Lee has opened a restaurant, M Sushi, outside a big city. Chef Ford Fry, originally from Texas, runs Superrica that serves Tex-Mex cuisine in a casual and lively atmosphere. And chef Steve Palmer, a James Beard nominee and semifinalist offers Colletta with its handmade Italian cuisine. Executive Chef, Oscar Gnapi leads Fenton’s Colletta.

For drinks afterward, Dram and Draught offers 400 whiskeys from around the world and CRÚ is considered the best wine bar in the world, according to a Moodie Davitt Report ranking.

While you’re strolling from place to place, pause to take in the art installations that are carefully curated to uplift every Fentonian’s visit.

Other restaurants at Fenton include CRU, Honeysuckle Gelato, and the Agency Bar and Social.

From Sephora and Bailey’s Fine Jewelry to home & interior stores like Pottery Barn, Williams Sonoma, and Arhaus, the shopping opportunities at Fenton are hard to beat.

"Our chef-driven restaurants are one of the reasons people come out, but then they come and see this is an amazing Arhaus, a very high-end interior store," said Jaime Nolan, marketing communications manager for Fenton. "We have one of the most amazing Williams Sonomas."

As for clothing store options, there are a few of those as well, including:

Best of all, the parking is centrally located. Fenton was designed with many things in mind but two of the top goals were sustainability and providing the visitor with the most pleasant experience. Park once, stay all day to shop, dine, play and even exercise.

These offerings are part of phase one of the community, which will soon see 357 luxury apartment homes, according to Paul Zarian, managing director for real estate development and investment firm Hines.

"They will range from studios to one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom units," said Zarian. "All will be integrated into the Fenton project, where residents will be able to take the elevator and the stairs down to Main Street to access the events and the chef-driven residents."

Amenities at The Allison apartments include a resort-style pool, a resident library, a pet spa, cold storage for grocery and flower deliveries, a fitness center, and an app-controlled building entry intercom with video capability.

"The pool that is exclusive to the residents is on the second level," said Zarian. "It’s elevated above Main Street and has an incredible view of Fenton square, so when there are events, the apartment residents will have a front row seat to that. The real attraction there is being able to participate in everything that Fenton has to offer."

The first phase also includes 200,000 square feet of office space on Main Street, above the ground floor retail.

"The office space is new, with all of the technological benefits and capabilities that our office customers would expect," said Zarian. "So, a person who’s working here doesn’t have to get out of their car to go to lunch, or to take a client to dinner. There are some office spaces that have private outdoor terraces that look out on Main Street, so they can participate in those events as well."

Sustainability is baked into the community: Fenton will have electric vehicle charging stations, and all of the buildings will be Energy Star-rated for energy efficiency, said Zarian. Additionally, the community is walkable.

"We call that concept internal capture, where instead of having to drive to lunch, you can just walk," said Zarian. "Car trips are reduced, compared to if this were a single-use project instead of mixed use. Along with the town of Cary, we built our part of the creek greenway, which provides opportunities for exercise and also connects to WakeMed Soccer Park and trails."