Plans have been released for a complete overhaul of the common and public areas of The Wells Fargo Center that encompasses most of a city block at South Main and East Washington streets in downtown Greenville.
The building’s owner, Caprocq, plans to invest $1.2 million in the renovations geared toward improving tenant and resident experience, as well as providing a more inviting environment for the general public, making it more consistent with current downtown structures and amenities. Construction should begin in late August and be completed around Thanksgiving.
Caprocq, an Arkansas-based real estate partnership, purchased the Wells Fargo Center on Dec. 1, 2016, from FRI Investors for $33.25 million and retained Colliers International for the leasing, property management, and project management for the building.
Caprocq has hired DP3 Architects to design innovative, modern, and sought-after spaces throughout the entire building. DP3 Architects will work alongside Colliers International’s project management team, LCK, to make this vision a reality.
“Our goal is to create an environment where tenants and downtown visitors can sit and fully enjoy the Center and its onsite restaurants and retail,” said Dewitt Smith of Caprocq. “We look forward to seeing the collaboration between LCK and DP3 Architects as they make these innovative ideas come to life.”
The Wells Fargo Center is the first of the partnership’s ventures into Greenville, and the lobby and floor renovations will be part of a larger plan to revitalize and reenergize this central feature in Greenville’s business district.
“These new renovations will bring the building to the 21st century and make it the most in-demand location in Greenville,” said David Feild, market president of Colliers International’s office in Greenville.
The redevelopment will include a modern facelift to the main lobby and each floor elevator lobby, including updated lighting and furniture.
Meg Terry of DP3 Architects and principal in charge of the project said the renovations involve removing the 1990s-era wood paneling and transforming the design aesthetic to a “sleek, monolithic feel.”
“We were given quite a bit of artistic freedom,” Terry said, noting that DP3 Architect’s and Caprocq’s visions for the redesign aligned.
New glass storefront entrances will be revealed from the lobby to three of the onsite businesses — Pink Azalea, Ivy Salon, and Port City Java. Additional features include a proposed “news stand” that will feature daily conveniences for tenants and a catering counter. These lobby features and entrances will be open to the public and allow customers of Port City Java, in particular, to spill out in the additional seating areas along with the existing exterior courtyard.
Taylor Allen of Colliers said the goal of the renovations is to activate the lobby. “There’s a huge gallery that doesn’t make sense,” he said. “It’s a wasted lobby.” The redesign will solve that problem.
Feild said the changes will be visible from Main Street, and may even serve as a space that could be used for public events. He said the line between the businesses and lobby will be less defined as a way of drawing the public in.
The mixed-use building was constructed in 1974 and expanded and renovated in 1996, 2004, and 2013-14. It has 200,652 total square feet, including 154,273 square feet of office, 20,138 of retail, and 26,241 of residential.
The center currently houses tenants such as Wells Fargo, Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., Jackson Lewis P.C., and McCallum Sweeney. Additional tenants who have recently signed leases include DP3 Architects, which will occupy suite 400 after renovations of the shell space are completed, and GreerWalker CPAs and advisors from Charlotte, N.C.
The center’s restaurant and retail tenants also include Charles Schwab, Sticky Fingers, Sully’s Steamers, and the soon-to-open Tropical Grille in the former Pita Pit location facing Main Street.
Currently, the building, which includes 22 residential apartments, is at 95 percent occupancy with a 4,000-5,000-square-foot shell space available on the sixth floor facing Carolina Ale House.
