Author: Amanda Abrams

Amanda Abrams is a freelance business writer who has relocated to North Carolina, her home state, from Washington, D.C. Her work has appeared in Bloomberg's CityLab, the Washington Post, the Daily Beast, and the Christian Science Monitor.

Articles by Amanda Abrams

• Six Developments Changing the Landscape for the Carolinas in 2023
  Published on March 23, 2023 in Development
  At the 2023 ULI Carolinas Meeting in February, six developers working on complex projects in North and South Carolina talked about their work and plans for the future. In varied ways, they’re all taking advantage of current environments: they’re tuning into the natural world, connecting with existing popular amenities, or highlighting the region’s rich history.
• Popularizing Mass Timber Construction in the Southeast
  Published on March 17, 2023 in Planning & Design
  Development experts gathered to discuss the growth in popularity of mass timber at the 2023 ULI Carolinas Meeting in February.
• Leveraging Federal Funds to Reduce Car-Dependence in North Carolina’s Growing Cities
  Published on March 16, 2023 in Sustainability
  City planners across North Carolina’s rural, suburban, and urban environments assert that a vibrant walkable downtown is their goal. They’re aiming to put that value into practice using a broad range of transportation options with help from the funding in the 2022 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
• Few Signs of a Pullback in Life Sciences in North Carolina’s Research Triangle
  Published on March 01, 2023 in Development
  Occupancy rates for life-sciences buildings remain around 98 percent in the top markets, and North Carolina's Research Triangle continues to attract startups and development.
• Northwood Investors’ $1.2 Billion Bet on a North Carolina Office Park
  Published on December 11, 2019 in Development
  In 2017, the New York–based Northwood Investors spent $1.2 billion to purchase Ballantyne Corporate Park, a highly successful office property in Charlotte—the single-largest real estate transaction in North Carolina’s history at the time.
• Three Private-Sector Approaches to Preserving Affordable Housing in the Carolinas
  Published on December 09, 2019 in Capital Markets
  At ULI South Carolina's Capital Markets Conference, panelists outlined strategies that are leveraging the strengths of the private sector to create and preserve affordable housing in areas experiencing rapid growth.
• Opportunities and Advantages: Looking Back on a Real Estate Career with Bob Lowe
  Published on November 27, 2019 in Development
  In 2018, Los Angeles-based real estate firm LOWE, sold its hotel operating subsidiary to Hyatt Hotels for $480 million. That kind of exit was not part of some original projection, said Robert "Bob" S. Lowe Sr., the company's founder and a ULI Foundation Governor, speaking at a ULI event in South Carolina in mid-November.
• Aiming for Equitable Development while Focusing on Genuine Citizen Participation
  Published on March 25, 2019 in Economy, Market & Trends
  As cities across the U.S. Southeast are attracting investment, the resulting growth can bring with it a downside, with only a limited number of perspectives being heard and represented in the planning. Panelists speaking at ULI’s 2019 Carolinas Meeting in February discussed how to solicit genuine participation from the full range of groups affected by development.
• Lenders See Capital Waiting in the Wings in U.S. Southeast
  Published on March 04, 2019 in Capital Markets
  While many real estate investors and lenders seem to be holding their breath in anticipation of the next recession, there are nonetheless some promising new opportunities on the horizon. That was the collective opinion of four lenders who served as panelists at the recent 2019 ULI Carolinas Meeting in Raleigh.
• Crane Watch: Six Cutting-Edge Developments across the Carolinas
  Published on February 25, 2019 in Development
  Attendees at the ULI Carolinas Meeting heard about six projects that highlight the patience, hard work, and serendipity needed for a complex project to come to fruition.
• Revitalizing a Venerable Shopping Street in Boston
  Published on September 04, 2018 in Economy, Market & Trends
  Boston’s Newbury Street, sometimes referred to as “Boston’s Rodeo Drive,” has adopted the Open Streets Project strategy, hosting parklets and car-free days, to bring consumers back to the neighborhood.
• Revitalizing a Historic Mill Town in North Carolina
  Published on June 18, 2018 in Development
  At a ULI Triangle event in April, representatives of North Carolina’s Capitol Broadcasting Company shared the firm’s plans to redevelop a historic cotton mill, ultimately shifting the fortunes of the town of Rocky Mount.
• Fighting for Affordable Housing in Washington, D.C.
  Published on May 15, 2018 in Development
  The District's government, a private developer, and community activists agree on the need to preserve affordable housing. But the details sparked a multiyear battle.
• Three Emerging Technologies Shaping the Future of Cities
  Published on April 16, 2018 in Economy, Market & Trends
  Speaking at the ULI Carolinas Meeting in February, consultant Paul Doherty of The Digit Group described how 3-D printing, building information modeling, and piezoelectricity are reshaping the built environment.
• Attracting Younger Consumers with Connective Experiences across Property Types
  Published on April 09, 2018 in Economy, Market & Trends
  Today’s young professionals with discretionary income are asking for deeper engagement with their surroundings, a greater sense of ownership, and fewer barriers between work and play, connecting on a personal and emotional level with their environment. Panelists speaking at ULI’s 2018 Carolinas Meeting in February discussed what that might mean for the marketing and design of retail, office, and residential projects.
• Three Mayors Highlight How the Southeast Is Building for Growth
  Published on April 02, 2018 in Economy, Market & Trends
  Urbanizing cities of the U.S. Southeast, such as Columbia and Greenville, South Carolina, and Asheville, North Carolina, are facing the trade-offs of continued growth. Speaking at the 2018 ULI Carolinas Meeting, the mayors of those three cities discussed how and where their cities invest to attract job growth, while attempting to avoid displacement of longtime residents.
• Six Complex Projects Reshaping the Skylines of the Carolinas
  Published on March 26, 2018 in Planning & Design
  “Real estate development is a high-stakes gamble,” said Michael Maher of the WestEdge Foundation. Maher joined five other developers in discussing their current projects at the ULI Carolinas Meeting in Greenville, South Carolina.
• As Amazon Enters the Market, U.S. Grocers Focus on One-Stop Shopping
  Published on August 28, 2017 in Development
  In addition to Amazon's purchase of Whole Foods, an enormous amount of movement has occurred in the grocery sector in the past year, as regional chains expand into new markets and European brands enter the United States.
• Raleigh’s Cameron Village Shifting with the Times on Retail
  Published on June 12, 2017 in Economy, Market & Trends
  Built in 1949, the Cameron Village shopping center of Raleigh, North Carolina, was one of the first in the Southeast. Decades later, Cameron Village is still thriving, with several new mixed-use developments adding increased density and energy.
• Crane Watch: Five Transformative Mixed-Use Projects in the U.S. Southeast
  Published on April 14, 2017 in Development
  A panel at the ULI Carolinas Meeting in Charlotte, North Carolina, featured five developers describing some of the most dynamic mixed-use developments in the Southeast.
• Six Forces Transforming the Business Environment
  Published on April 14, 2017 in Economy, Market & Trends
  Panelists at ULI’s 2017 Carolinas Meeting in Charlotte shared some of the technology trends they are seeing in North America and abroad, some of which are not yet popularly known, with the potential to massively transform the way land is used.
• Urban Infrastructure: The Growing Influence of Atlanta’s BeltLine
  Published on April 10, 2017 in Infrastructure
  “The story of people can be told through infrastructure,” said author Ryan Gravel at the 2017 Carolinas Meeting in Charlotte. An urban planner by training, Gravel initially proposed the concept of the BeltLine in his Georgia Tech master’s thesis.
• Three Cities Tapping into the U.S. Brewery Boom
  Published on April 07, 2017 in Development
  Breweries have an almost magical ability to revitalize neighborhoods and even entire towns, according to panelists speaking at ULI’s 2017 Carolinas Meeting.