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A much-anticipated downtown high-rise has earned another title — residents who started moving in this past week can now call Center Pointe “home.”

Work on the 17-story project, the $40 million renovation of the former Wachovia building at North Elm Street and Friendly Avenue, will continue throughout the year as the approximately 94 condominiums are completed. But units on floors 10 through 12 are ready for tenants.

The transformation from office building to mixed-use development comes after two years of planning and another two years of construction, said developer Roy E. Carroll II, founder of the Carroll Cos. and Park View Development Corp. “We’re at about 50 percent sold.”

In addition to condominiums, Center Pointe also includes commercial space. The building’s first floor also will house a NewBridge Bank branch and Avenue, a restaurant helmed by chef Mitchell Nicks expected to open sometime this summer. Advanced Fitness opened earlier this month, and Carroll’s company will eventually take up the second floor.

The project is a welcome addition to an already blossoming downtown.

“We’re very excited to see the continued growth in downtown’s residential base,” said Ed Wolverton, president and chief executive officer of Downtown Greensboro Inc. When all of the homes at Center Pointe are completed, there will be about 1,200 residential units downtown.

“Having the building open and occupied will help expand the business opportunities for surrounding merchants and will hopefully attract more people to Center City Park and inject 24-hour users at the Elm and Friendly intersection,” Wolverton added.

Carroll thinks Center Pointe complements downtown offerings such as the arts venues, shops and restaurants, while also providing an urban edge.

He’s particularly proud of the concierge station and a special electronic security system that restricts access to the condominiums to residents and their visitors. The concierge services will include assistance obtaining theater and concert tickets, making restaurant reservations, arranging laundry service, providing grocery-delivery service, pet-sitting and dog-walking services, and valet parking.

“At Center Pointe, what we’ve tried to create is more than just a residence, but also kind of a lifestyle,” Carroll said. “A lot of our buyers have second homes or travel extensively. So with these services, if someone wants to take off and travel for two weeks, they don’t have to worry about the grass getting mowed.”

But the building’s trademark may not be what you see from the outside looking in. “The great thing about Center Pointe, that can’t be replicated, is the view. I mean you know you can get a nice residence in Greensboro, but you can’t replicate this view,” Carroll said. “One of the great things we were able to do was the floor-to-ceiling glass. All the exterior of your unit for the most part is glass with a view. And it feels like you’re in the clouds.”

Adding to the urban feel is the décor, which includes works by local artists in the main lobby and corridors. Ronda Ayscue, interior designer for the Carroll Cos., is working with Meg Sternberg, owner of online-based Heart of Living Home Gallery, to coordinate pieces to rotate every six to eight weeks.

Ayscue said the design aesthetic was intended to be modern, but that comfort also was taken into account because they wanted to appeal to customers with a mix of traditional and contemporary styles. They visited cities including Atlanta, Charlotte and Cincinnati to look at examples of similar projects.

“We don’t have the heavy, traditional crown molding. We tried to look for more right angles,” Carroll said. “All these things are more in character with the urban lifestyle.”

It took time to come up with the right style in design and layout. “The hardest thing I think, initially, was: How do we take a square office building and make it have a completely different look and character and not look like a big glass cube? We had to work with the top, then we had to work with the middle and base of the building, and we went through a hundred various sketches before we found the one that everyone said, ‘that’s the one,’ ” Carroll said, also praising the work of lead architect Moser Mayer Phoenix Associates of Greensboro.

Ayscue thinks they’ve achieved their urban design goals with Center Pointe. “It stands out but also blends in with the rest of the architecture” downtown.

Inside, new owners can customize their units with the array of granite, carpet, paint, flooring and tile choices Ayscue assembled. With all that glass, some may wonder about coverage. Window treatment options also are available, but there is a “pretty deep tint on the windows already,” Carroll said. “And all the glass is loaded,” he added, referring to the high-efficiency level and strength of the material.

He said a consulting engineer performed several air and water pressure tests on a three-story mockup of the building they constructed in Miami. “I tell people that we’ve been building a lot of good houses over the years, won the Parade of Homes. I don’t know of a single house that we’ve ever built that would pass the first test, the pressure test. That’s how well sealed these walls are. So if I see a tornado down the street, I feel like this is about as safe a place as you could be.”

The finishes inside the condos were another key consideration. The 2,100-square-foot model on the 10th floor has three bedrooms, three bathrooms, hardwood floors, granite countertops and tile backsplash in the kitchen, and a complete appliance package. “All these items are standard,” Carroll said. “We wanted the loaded Cadillac out front.”

Center Pointe offers numerous one-, two- and three-bedroom floor plans that are from 700 to 2,500 square feet and range in price from around $185,000 to the mid-$600,000s. All units have at least one balcony.

Carroll described the typical Center Pointe buyer as an active baby boomer or young professional.

Carroll said initial plans were actually adjusted to better accommodate the large number of empty-nester buyers they were seeing. To meet the need, the popular three-bedroom model has a large master bedroom and bathroom, dual walk-in closets and numerous storage closets.

“A lot of these people still work. Most of them are pretty extensive travelers,” he said. “They just like the idea of not being married to the maintenance of a typical home.”

The buyer profile isn’t far removed from his inspiration for the project: “I wanted a place to live downtown. That’s really the driver that got us here,” Carroll said.

He has lived in suburban Greensboro homes. He has three teenage daughters, and he and his family don’t really use the yard anymore. And he and his wife enjoy traveling. His penthouse unit, which Wolfe Homes is working on, is expected to be done at the end of the year. It’s a move his family is eagerly awaiting.

Meanwhile, Carroll’s downtown aspirations continue. He’s still working on Center Pointe, and “we have a few things we’re working on downtown,” including plans for the former car lot on Smith Street. An upscale residential development is under consideration for that space.

“Our goal is to continue to have a presence downtown of some type,” he said. “We have a passion for urban development. We think the best is yet to come for downtown Greensboro.”

Contact Heather L. Modlin at 373-7144 or heather. modlin@news-record.com.