The downtown Raleigh development project that was supposed to be a blueprint for the city’s future affordable housing efforts quietly fell through late last year. The collapse of the Moore Square-adjacent redevelopment and revitalization project that included 160 affordable apartment units on city-owned property raises questions about the city’s ability to successfully execute on its long-term housing strategy.
In 2022, the city of Raleigh partnered with two development firms, Loden Properties and Harmony Housing Affordable Development, to build a mixed-use development on two city-owned parcels near Moore Square. Together, the Moore Square South and East sites were originally supposed to include a hotel, shops, restaurants, a grocery store, and a 160-unit affordable apartment complex.
The project hit financial headwinds last year, but the Triangle Business Journal reported at the time that the affordable housing component, for which Harmony Housing was responsible, was still on track. In May 2025, city staff told the council that construction would begin on the apartments in January 2026. In October, the city approved $32 million in financing to help pay for the development.
But in November, a city spokesperson told the INDY this week, the entire development proposal fell apart…