Downtown Raleigh skyline | Photo via @a_jgregory on Instagram
You asked, we’re answering. A new and improved RALtoday events calendar is here.
Or maybe you didn’t realize we even had an events calendar — consider this your ticket to the most fun and relevant events in Raleigh, including:
Treasures of the Earth | Fri., Sept. 2-Mon., Sept. 5 | Times vary | NC State Fairgrounds, 4285 Trinity Rd. | $8 | Explore precious gemstones + jewelry, get appraisals from a gemologist, and have experts repair or remount jewelry.
Hopscotch Music Festival | Thurs., Sept. 8-Sat., Sept. 10 | Times vary | City Plaza + Moore Square | $39+ | 40+ acts including headliners Courtney Barnett, Perfume Genius, Kim Gordon + Charley Crockett will perform.
NC Vintage Bazaar | Sat., Sept. 10 | 12-6 p.m. | NC State Fairgrounds, 4285 Trinity Rd. | $5+ | Shop from thousands of vintage items curated by NC vendors.
NC State vs. Charleston Southern | Sat., Sept. 10 | 12:30 p.m. | Carter Finley Stadium, 4600 Trinity Rd. | $35+ | Cheer on the Pack during its first home football game of the season.
Oberlin Village BBQ Dinner | Sat., Sept. 17 | 5-8 p.m. | 815 Oberlin Rd. | $20 | Enjoy dinner catered by City Barbeque, a jazz performance by John Brown Band + a historic Trolley Tour.
As Raleighites ourselves, we love making sure that Raleigh has access to the most robust, relevant, and hyperlocal events calendar possible. In part, we rely on readers like you to keep us in the loop — start submitting your events now. (Just like before, you can add your event to our calendar for free but we’ve also added a few new paid promotional opportunities to take advantage of as well, starting at just $15.)
In addition to the hundreds of events that you can discover each month on our website, each issue of our newsletter features a dedicated events section, with our curated editorial picks for the upcoming week, organized by day. Keep scrolling just a little bit and you’ll see what we mean. Pro tip: click the link below to see our full calendar if you want to start planning ahead.
Want to know which events we’re most excited about? Your friendly neighborhood City Editors (👋 that’s us, Anne + Cat) can often be found out and about at the newest restaurant openings, hockey games, festivals, and fairs — see what we’re up to in the Wrap section at the bottom of each newsletter or by following us on Instagram @RALtoday.
First Friday Night Market | Fri., Sept. 2 | 5-9 p.m. | Moore Square | Free | Shop from local vendors, grab snacks from food trucks, and watch High School Musical at sundown. 🛍️
Saturday
Birding with a Ranger | Sat., Sept. 3 | 8:30 a.m. | Museum Park, Ellipse, NCMA | Free | Join resident birding enthusiast Park Ranger Chantal Taunton on a short walk to search for migratory and native birds.
NC State vs. ECU Football Watch Party | Sat., Sept. 3 | 11 a.m.-2 p.m. | Lonerider at Five Points, 1626 Glenwood Ave. | Free | Kick off the Pack’s football season with local fans. 🏈
Sunday
African American Cultural Festival Concert | Sun., Sept. 4 | 7 p.m. | Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts | $5+ | Kim Person, Nitto, DJ Skillz + Jus Once Band will perform. 🎶
We have amonthly guide filled with events + activities you can plan for in advance. Click the button below to bookmark ideas for upcoming date nights, family outings, and time with friends.
For tickets to local and regional events, check out our 6AM Tickets resale marketplace.*
Kick off the 13th African American Cultural Festivaltonight at the NCMA with performances by Grammy Award-winning singer Stephanie Mills + Will Downing. The festival is tomorrow, Sept. 3 + Sun., Sept. 4 on Fayetteville Street. During the event, celebrate African American Culture with art + music. 🎶
BugFest is back on Sat., Sept. 17 at the NC Museum of Natural Sciences, and there’s a sweet deal to go along with it. From Sat., Sept. 3-Sat., Sept. 17, Raleighites will get a free BugFest T-shirt when they purchase or renew their NCMNS membership — just use code BugFest22 at checkout. 🪲 *
Wake County is launching a survey on Wed., Sept. 13 to hear from residents about their quality of life and issues facing the community. The data collected from ~2,000 residents will help the county identify top priorities to build a strategic plan for 2023. The survey vendor will reach out to people directly.
Cause
Wake County’s second annual book drive benefiting Wake Up and Read runs now through the end of September. Drop off new and gently used books to one of 23 Wake County Public Libraries to help a child read proficiently by the end of third grade.
Today Is
First Friday. Head downtown to explore art galleries, studios, retailers, and restaurants. We’re especially looking forward to the kombucha tasting from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at Current Wellness. Create your full itinerary. 🛍️
Content marked with an * is brought to you by our advertising partners and helps make this newsletter free.
Development
How $6.7 billion is transforming downtown
How $6.7 billion is transforming downtown Raleigh
Downtown Raleigh has $6.7 billion in its development pipeline. | Photo courtesy of the Downtown Raleigh Alliance
On Wednesday, the Downtown Raleigh Alliance released its State of Downtown report — a detailed overview of downtown Raleigh’s current status, highlighting growth and development. With $6.7 billion in downtown’s development pipeline, the city skyline could look significantly different in the near future due to an acceleration of real estate projects.
A new visual graphic shows the downtown projects completed since 2015, projects currently or soon-to-be under construction + planned and proposed projects. The buildings will primarily house office and retail spaces, residential units, and hotels.
🏗️ Let’s break down some key takeaways:
More than $4.5 billion in new construction is planned + $1.9 billion has already been invested.
Currently, downtown’s apartments are 94.9% occupied, but 8,300+ residential units are planned or under construction. This would more than double downtown’s current amount (7,914 units).
Right now, more than 150,000 sqft of office space is under construction or in site preparation.
The 184,045 sqft of retail space under construction or in site preparation will soon make way for new shops and restaurants.
More than 400 hotel rooms are under construction or in site preparation.
Two new outdoor spaces are coming soon: NC Freedom Park is under construction + the Gipson Play Plaza at Dix Park has broken ground.
The specific timelines for many of these projects are currently unknown (but stay tuned for updates).
The Wrap
Today’s edition was written by City Editor Anne.
Editor’s pick: Notice anything new? We’rerefreshing the look of our newsletter and website. Thank you for your patience while we’re under construction. Don’t worry — we’ll still be in your inbox at 6 a.m. each day with local conversations we know you’ll love.
Content marked with an * was created in partnership with 6AM City’s advertising partners. Paid content helps keep this newsletter free. 6AM City may also receive a commission on purchases made through affiliate links in this newsletter.
Content marked with an * is paid advertising. Content marked with an ^ is created by our content studio. The company may also generate commission from affiliate links in the newsletter.
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