Phoenix Fest 2008

     Legend has it that the mythical phoenix firebired rises from its own ashes every 500 years after being consummed by fire. Like the mythical bird, Phoenix Fest celebrates the enduring legacy and renewal of Durham, North Carolina ’s Hayti community. Long known as a mecca for African American business, Hayti was also a focal point for music and the arts. Fayetteville Street, one of Hayti’s main corridors, figured prominently in this picture. Its dual business and cultural legacy are a testament to the men and women who labored to develop this community over one hundred years ago. Their persistence of spirit and self-reliance deserves a celebration in a location befitting its history.

    After the Civil War, African Americans in Durham organized for a common purpose and created the Hayti community. Durham was considered a place of opportunity — for African Americans and for whites. Hayti was significant not only for the presence of African Americans but for their ability to amass sufficient capital to build a thriving business sector supported by black patronage and strong enough to compete with white businesses.

   The growth of Hayti and the Fayetteville Street Corridor provided capital for the formation of African American financial institutions on Parrish Street in downtown Durham and for the growth of numerous African American neighborhoods throughout southeast Durham.

    In its heyday, Hayti was home to over one hundred fifty businesses clustered along Pettigrew and Fayetteville Streets. Self-contained and energetic, this area thrived despite Jim Crow segregation that gripped the state of North Carolina and America. During this era African Americans practiced “self help”, worked together and created a vibrant economic district all their own. Durham was unique in having a booming business district alongside a vibrant cultural scene with many types of music flourishing in and around Durham, including Piedmont Blues, gospel, jazz and R & B.  Its legacy must not be forgotten.

    The tradition of working together is still alive today as new businesses and residents are returning to the Fayetteville Street Corridor to restore the area to its former position of prominence from generations ago.    

     Community residents created a neighborhood master plan in 2005 -- the Fayetteville Street Neighborhood Master Plan -- which outlines 20-years comprehensive vision for the future of this historic neighborhood and business corridor.

     The 139-page Fayetteville Street Master Plan calls for beautifying the Fayetteville Street corridor from NC 147 to Cornwallis Road, enhancing public safety, preserving and restoring homes in the corridor’s twelve historic neighborhoods, increasing traffic for business owners, providing more public parking and access to historic landmarks and creating job opportunities for local residents. Thanks to all those citizens for their vision and contribution to the plan.

     The community's vision includes a streetscape to create the safe and attractive environment so critical to the development of the area.

    Streetscape features include buried utility lines, wide sidewalks with more space for pedestrians, street trees, historic lighting at regular intervals, brick crosswalks for greater pedestrian safety along with landscaping, benches, banners and signage to make the area more hospitable.

    The redesigned Linwood Avenue intersection would include a bus bumpout for better traffic flow, an historic park commemorating Lincoln Hospital and public parking for corridor businesses. Public improvements would encourage residents and business owners throughout the corridor to improve their properties to complement the new look. 

   The Fayetteville Street Plan recognizes the crucial role of community self-determination, empowerment and capacity-building in the renewal of the commercial and residential districts along the Fayetteville Street Corridor. Our approach reaffirms our inherent community assets – local ownership, historic architecture, key location and cohesive community – that will serve us well during the rebuilding process. 

Interested in learning more about business opportunities in the Fayetteville Street Business District?

Contact info@phoenixfestdurham.com