Check Out the New Developments in Greenville, NC

Courtesy of the City of Greenville

Since its 1968 construction, the Town Common has been the central park in Greenville, North Carolina, and soon, it will serve the community in an even greater way. A $15 million project slated for completion in late 2026 will shore up the park’s bulkhead to better protect it from Tar River floods and offer Greenville-Pitt County residents and visitors an enhanced riverside experience. 

“Everyone’s super excited,” says Mark Nottingham, a Greenville native and the city’s projects/development manager. “The goal and vision of the city has always been to further activate our riverfront.” 

The Town Common Bulkhead & Esplanade Project is just one example of a revitalization that is making Greenville-Pitt County more attractive and easier to navigate. Other examples are the BUILD Project, which includes three completed streetscape makeovers and four greenway/sidewalk renovations that are nearly complete, and the new Hilton Garden Inn, which now calls downtown home. 

Aaron Hines/City of Greenville

Function and Form 

Nottingham says a 2022 inspection revealed that the bulkhead, designed to mitigate damage to the park when the Tar River floods, was past its serviceable life. The renovation, underway since July 2025, will shore up that bulkhead and give visitors more options to enjoy the space. 

“We’re lowering one section of the bulkhead to get people closer to the water and installing a 160-foot dock for recreational boats,” he says. “We’re going to have an interactive water feature, something where kids can engage in water with their hands and feet.” 

Nottingham says that a new walkway and an elevated overlook are set for a previously undeveloped portion of the park. And longer term, he says, there may be improved seating for the Town Common’s amphitheater. Nottingham says the renovation of this signature public space is an investment in an asset that’s relatively rare. 

“A lot of communities don’t have the advantage of being on a river,” he says. “What we have is a 20-acre green space where we hold a variety of events. It serves a lot of different uses and is home to our biggest playground.” 

AARON HINES/CITY OF GREENVILLE

BUILDing Connections 

Jordan Anders, communications specialist for the City of Greenville Engineering Department, says renovations to the city’s downtown streets that had been talked about for nearly 20 years were kick-started when the city won an $18.4 million federal Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) grant in 2019. One result, he says, is vast improvement to the Fifth Street corridor, the “main artery” connecting Greenville’s core districts – East Carolina University’s (ECU) main campus, downtown, West Greenville and the medical district, home to ECU’s Brody School of Medicine. 

“It’s a big deal to modernize that commuter corridor and a quality-of-life improvement for numerous groups of people,” Anders says. 

He says the greenway/sidewalk projects nearing completion will make those areas of Greenville more accessible for pedestrians and provide increased options for recreational activities. 

Courtesy of Hilton Garden Inn

Top-Tier Addition 

Paul Adkison and Scott Diggs have been building, buying and selling hotels together for more than 20 years, but downtown Greenville’s Hilton Garden Inn was different. 

“It was very personal for us,” says Adkison, who has known Diggs since the two were ECU undergraduates. Today, they’re the founders and managing directors of Co-X Holdings, the Greenville property’s parent company. 

They’ve also stayed very involved with their alma mater, Diggs says, which is why he and Adkison went big on the hotel project. It opened in early 2025. 

The nearly $30 million, 101-room hotel is “smack in the middle of downtown,” Diggs says, and features a full-service restaurant/bar, 1717 the Rooftop, with a 180-degree view that spans both the Tar River and ECU’s campus. 

“It’s not a normal Hilton Garden Inn,” Diggs says. “We spent a ton of energy and time making it super special. It’s top tier.” 

Adkison says the Hilton Garden Inn is the first hotel of its kind in downtown Greenville. It’s off to a fast start, he says, and is helping drive a downtown revitalization. 

“We continue to be excited about downtown Greenville, and we believe it will be a place everybody wants to go,” Adkison says.