📋 The numbers:
🔹 5% year-over-year increase in downtown visitors, per the Downtown Raleigh Alliance
🔹 40% spike in visitors on nights the Hurricanes played in the Stanley Cup Final 🔹 ~80,000 additional visitors across the six Cup Final nights combined
🔹 Watch parties at Smoky Hollow, Moore Square, and downtown bars/restaurants drove much of the activity
🔹 Net gain in storefront businesses compared to last year
🏢 Why it matters for building owners and business owners: Sustained visitor growth — even from a temporary sports moment — signals real momentum for downtown Raleigh’s retail, hospitality, and mixed-use foot traffic. Combined with a net increase in storefront occupancy, this points to strengthening fundamentals for ground-floor retail and F&B space in the urban core.
📅 A full breakdown is expected at the Downtown Raleigh Alliance’s State of Downtown event next month.
📍 Another data point supporting continued investment and leasing interest in downtown Raleigh.
#CommercialRealEstate #DowntownRaleigh #Raleigh #RetailRealEstate #NorthCarolina #CRE #UrbanCore #EconomicDevelopment #CarolinaHurricanes
