Hue Installs Slightly Sane Signage

This may sound a bit harsh, but the colors on the Hue building are horrendous. I know I’ve said this before and we did see it coming with the cheesy commercial and with the mock-up. But, when scaled up to the size of almost a full block, the primary colors are a bit annoying to look at, especially when viewed from just West of downtown. The steel skeleton’s transparency and honesty was much nicer than the soon-to-be-regretted primary colors.

On a lighter note, there are a few pieces of the Hue building that look as good in person as they did on paper, including the square concrete blocks and the newly installed signage. Very unassuming and simple; the Hue’s name has been placed just above the main corner entrance in a modern font that does have some of the style that the developers have continually marketed. I guess I’m mostly speaking about the font and not the carelessly detailed canopy/vestibule structure it hangs from. So maybe, I take some of that back.

Unfortunately, I’ve heard (but have yet to tour) that the units are poorly constructed and look like college dorm rooms. Again, just hearsay until I have proof of my own. The building may just finish in the two year time window, but it could (and should) be repainted in less than that.

John06/04 12:21 AM

Don’t worry, the sun will fade the colors in no time.

liza06/04 01:40 AM

What is wrong with Blue and Yellow?
I think it adds to the new vibrancy that downtown Raleigh is striving for. The shimmer wall has colors… do you have a problem with that too?

dbd06/04 08:04 AM

I like the colors. I don’t know how well they will age, but for now I think they add liveliness and interest to a strip otherwise dominated by drab gray 1970s office buildings and muddy construction sites.

hackles1006/04 08:20 AM

I really don’t mind the colors on the building, but for some reason the way they painted the parking deck bugs the hell out of me. Its just too much!

T-Plain06/04 08:30 AM

The mockups have always looked to me like the building’s not quite done, with a bunch of exposed Celotex.

Dale06/04 08:43 AM

This building’s color scheme adds diversity to the downtown scene. It’s OK to dislike it. It’s OK to like it. Either way, it will be part of our downtown fabric. Ergo, it’s good.

jim06/04 08:58 AM

it’s the parking deck that’s so awful- it just switches from blue to yellow without any barrier, and the yellow is on the diagonal.

it might look like cheaper apartments, but i’d be happy to have some cheaper apartments downtown. i could also see a lot of law students living there.

arthurb306/04 09:12 AM

Well, for $300,000 one bedroom, I guess it is ok. Of course, you have Dawson Street with the noise and then the clubs until 3am…..and then there is the $300 a month HOA fees on top of your deed of trust cost.

gd06/04 09:17 AM

I like the Hue. I am actually going to look at them soon as I am trying to move into a condo. I think the exterior color is interesting and different and not tan and boring like most other places. Also a friend of mine who is a real estate agent said you can get a place in The Hue for MUCH CHEAPER than any other place. I have never heard 300,000 for 1 bedroom there. I actually heard that for 300K you can get a 2 bedroom there…

adam!!06/04 09:23 AM

just the facts, please. keep the editorials for….the editorial page (comment section?). we all already know newraleigh is not a fan of hue.

nate06/04 09:54 AM

i think it’s great to have some color downtown. everything is so boring and plain. the hue is going to be a great place for grad students, law students, young couples and young professionals to live on a somewhat decent budget, considering the website states they start in the mid $100,000’s. i am looking forward to more places like this. maybe it will bring enough people downtown that our chik-fil-a will stay open longer than 2:30, which is simply pathetic.

tc06/04 10:23 AM

I agree, horrendous colors. Whenever I see it in the skyline of our downtown, I throw up in my mouth a little bit.

You can bring vibrancy and contrast to our downtown without feeling the need to break out your easter pastels.

kg06/04 11:13 AM

what grad or law student can afford a $219k 1bed/1bath + hoa?

guess i need to be a professional law student…

lw06/04 11:16 AM

eh. the colors are horrible. lived right next door in Park Dev for a few years. The new condo owners at the Hue are in for a huge surprise… the yelling and screaming and bass rattling from CC’s & Legends right next door at 3am gets old quick. real quick.

gd06/04 11:34 AM

if you can’t handle noise, don’t live downtown…

lee06/04 11:41 AM

original.

btw - thats why i moved. living dt is one thing, living next door to two retarded clubs is another.

Micah06/04 11:49 AM

retarded?

Andy S.06/04 04:04 PM

And here I was under the impression that the CC and Legends catered predominantly to the GLBT crowd. I had no idea that we had clubs intended especially for special needs patrons.

And they say Raleigh isn’t progressive.

matt06/04 04:22 PM

The “throw up in my mouth a little” meme is over. Spit it out already!

It’s bad for your teeth to do it, and bad for our souls to keep hearing it.

Whither its ubiquity? Is it always to be 1995 here?

tc06/04 04:54 PM

“Whither”, “Is it always to be”, really?

I’m surprised you didn’t throw in a “thou art”. And you’re busting on me for using an aged phrase?

It hurts my soul to hear people talk, in 2009, like they’re in a Bronte novel.

ninstaller06/04 11:12 PM

I wonder if anyone crabbed about the “horrendous” colors of the recently lamented Garland Jones building when it was being built?

nate06/04 11:26 PM

i am sure most grad students won’t be paying the $219k, i would imagine people will rent them out. i also have heard that the price range or $200k and up are the more comfortable and slightly more spacious ones to buy, like the 2bed/1bath or 2bed/2bath units.

but really, the hoa fee? is this true??

RaleighRob06/05 07:24 AM

Eh, the colors will eventually be non-noticeable. It’s common for a different building to go up and people criticize it…but after a few years people stop noticing. Same thing here. At least it’s different.

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For price point, I’m glad it’s not as over-priced as most of the downtown condos are. But it’s still something I’ll probably never be able to afford unless I win the lottery, so whatever.

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As for noise…please, those clubs have been there decades now. Anyone moving into this part of downtown knows what that block is all about. If not, they haven’t done their research.
Besides…CC’s is completely indoors and the part of the condo closest to Legends’ patio is the parking deck. So I doubt it’ll be any worse than the condos along Glenwood South (or the Dawson with Borough underneath).

Isaac06/05 08:44 PM

My wife and I went on the Downtown Home Walk thing a couple of weekends ago for the 3rd straight year, and afterwards we both agreed that the Hue was the most disappointing building that we have ever been in over those 3 years. Everything to do with the place looked to be a bad decision. The units really DO look like dorm rooms, with the added bonus that a bunch of them have steps leading from the balconies into the street, which when I pointed out to one of the developers that people on the groundfloor will have club-goers pissing on their sliding doors on Saturday night, his answer was, “Oh, we’re going to put kneehigh gates up to keep people out.”
For the money, you just are not getting ANY value out of the place as far as I can see. The Dawson right next door is a HELLUVA lot nicer.

JRD06/07 12:01 PM

I didnt like the colors in the renderings. But now that its built, I kinda like it. It does bring a little more to the eye. Thats just me though.

//// Nathan ////06/08 02:15 AM

It’s great to see that a few comments on the aesthetic qualities of a downtown condo can spark a flurry of responses. In addition to revealing the strong or moderate opinions of the readership, it shows that there are a lot of people who want to see downtown flourish.

Although the Hue may not be a great or even good building aesthetically, it does provide a valuable service to all current and future architects designing residential buildings for downtown Raleigh by pushing the aesthetic envelope. Savvy architects could use it as a case study when attempting to sell cautious clients on more interesting, adventurous and ultimately more aesthetically pleasing designs.

revolu06/08 09:26 AM

yea i don’t like the sign or the color, but i think its better than some other stuff rising up downtown.

you’re right jed, the detailing on the sign(and most of the building for that matter) is horrendous, but most won’t notice it.

Betsy06/08 05:31 PM

Someone, by default or design, installed a three-foot-wide utility box smack in front of the entry area.
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The narrow end of it is just visible behind the utility pole at the right in the picture above.
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Someone at Hue must be pretty upset about this.

Aaron06/08 08:49 PM

I didn’t know blue and yellow could throw local blog readers in such a huge tizzy.

Like that guy above, I’m sure people were b%@!&g at the color and style of the late Garland Jones, and now we’re lamenting the loss of it. I’m definitely not saying we will all be crying and waaa waaaa’ing over Hue when its time is done, but I don’t think we should be so quick to criticize.

jandrews06/08 09:18 PM

YOU GUYS HAVE TO BITCH ABOUT SOMETHING ALL THE TIME DON’T YOU?

AT LEAST THIS PROJECT WILL HELP GET PEOPLE LIVING DOWNTOWN, CREATE A PLACE FOR RETAIL, AND ULTIMATELY ADD TO THE VIBRANCY OF RALEIGH.

JESUS CHRIST. QUIT WHINING. THERE IS NO LAW STATING RALEIGH’S BUILDING DECISIONS SHOULD ADHERE TO YOU PERSONAL TASTE.

aroomwithoutahue06/08 11:56 PM

JANDREWS ALL CAPS IS BAD NETIQUETTE. So obviously you know about taste.

amy h06/09 07:23 AM

I think the colors add a nice pop to downtown, even though the building may not look as upscale as the other condos downtown. I think we need more affordable condos downtown, so if these are less expensive than other condos we have, I’m all for it.

Cliff06/09 08:59 PM

I am just ready for it to open so I can move in. Anyone that says the place was designed the same way as a dorm has no clue about multi-family developement. It’s done very well, down to the acoustic mat under the flooring. Get a grip people, it’s going to be nice!

cb07/13 09:28 AM

Seriously people… complain complain complain… in one breath, it’s Raleigh doesn’t do enough for downtown…then it’s “stop building so much”...no one will be happy with everything.

First and foremost, the project isn’t even complete! It’s different and different is good! I think about all the artists that through the centuries were trashed for being terrible (ie Picasso) and then when they all died, oh now we love them.

If you don’t like Hue, don’t leave there. If you like a “lively” place, live there. As for condos, they are more inexpensive than most. Even if Hue isn’t perfect, PLEASE someone acknowledge the fact that a developer even got the city of Raleigh to APPROVE to build something “out of the box”! This is a HUGE step in the right direction! MAYBE, just maybe, this will open the door for the next designer/developer/architect to build what “you” would consider to be perfect…

(by the way, don’t be fooled, even stuff that looks “pretty and of good quality” could be fooling you… so don’t be so quick to judge quality)

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Jedidiah Wednesday, June 03, 2009