The Design Center of the Carolinas, one of the most historic and recognizable buildings in South End, was recently sold to Asana Properties for $42.7 million.
It was sold by Florida-based Ram Realty Services, according to a deed filed Nov. 18. The 4.5 acre package includes the main Design Center buildings at the southeast corner of Worthington Avenue and Camden Rd., as well as the office building at the southeast corner of Camden and West Boulevard.
Asana plans on renovating and re-branding the property into mostly retail and restaurant space (it’s now mostly office space).
According to their website, their recent experience includes “the execution of approximately $3 billion of retail-driven acquisitions and approximately $2 billion of retail-driven dispositions. We have developed deep relationships across the retail real estate industry that are critical to the identification and execution of investment opportunities.”
Thankfully, Asana’s current plans should preserve and highlight most of the history of the old textile complex (a rarity among most of Charlotte’s knock-down-and-rebuild developments).
The Design Center was originally built in In the late 1920s as Nebel Co’s first Knitting Mill. The water tower was erected around the same time, and now stands as the buildings trademark and a bold reminder of its heritage.