Front Street Capital and Carter Reveal First Tenants for $250M Mixed-Use Development The Grounds in Winston-Salem

Front Street Capital and Carter have announced the first five retail tenants for The Grounds, a $250 million mixed-use development situated on 100 acres adjacent to Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C. The project is targeting a fall 2027 opening for its first phase, which is positioned between Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium and Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

First Wave of Tenants Targets All-Day Traffic

The five initial tenants were selected to generate consistent visitation across morning, afternoon, and evening hours, according to the development team. The lineup includes The Jimmy, a Mediterranean and Italian-inspired restaurant from North Carolina-based restaurateur Jim Noble, which will occupy the two-story building nearest the stadium. The Fieldhouse Tavern, a food-forward sports bar from Winston-Salem restaurateurs Tom and Brandon Brock, will anchor a second two-story space.

Rounding out the first wave are Bagels & Co., a breakfast and lunch concept with an established presence in college towns; Tremble, a fast-growing Pilates franchise opening its second North Carolina location at the project; and Allegacy Financial, the financial institution whose name appears on the adjacent football stadium, which will operate a multipurpose location within the retail village.

Both The Jimmy and The Fieldhouse Tavern will feature rooftop space open to the retail village and stadium. Additional tenants are expected to be announced later this year.

Retail Village Structure and Ownership

The retail village comprises five buildings totaling 42,000 square feet of experiential retail, dining, wellness, and community-focused uses. Two of the five buildings will include second-floor for-sale residences above ground-floor retail. The retail village is owned by Front Street Capital and Carter and is ground-leased from Wake Forest University.

The development team is collaborating with the university on tenant selection. Wake Forest will benefit financially over the long term through ground lease income from the retail village, as well as potential future revenue-sharing opportunities.

The site also serves as the home of the Winston-Salem Open ATP Tour tennis event and is adjacent to a fairgrounds, giving the project multiple built-in traffic drivers beyond the university itself. Winston-Salem retail vacancy has remained in the mid-to-high single digits, with demand concentrated in service-oriented and necessity-based tenants — a profile that aligns closely with the food, wellness, and financial services mix Front Street Capital and Carter have assembled for the first phase.

Broader Project Scope

The Grounds' first phase extends well beyond the retail village. The overall project includes a 229-unit student apartment community, a 130,000-square-foot Wake Forest-anchored office building, and 22 luxury residences. Approximately $40 million in state and city-funded infrastructure improvements are also part of the plan, including rehabilitation of Silas Creek and the creation of a greenway trail running through the development. The residential component sits on the north side of Silas Creek.

The project has grown in scope over time, with the total investment rising to $250 million as the office and retail components were refined. The office building is leased by Wake Forest for non-academic staff offices, representing a sizable preleased anchor in a Greensboro/Winston-Salem office market where vacancy has remained elevated but showed improvement in mid-2026.

Brasfield & Gorrie is serving as general contractor for the project. Nelson Worldwide designed the retail village.

Market Context

The tenant announcement moves The Grounds from the planning stage into active lease-up ahead of its fall 2027 target opening. The emphasis on all-day, multi-use programming reflects a broader trend in mixed-use development, where owners seek to reduce dependence on any single traffic driver — such as game-day crowds — by layering dining, wellness, and daily-needs tenants that can sustain weekday and weekend visitation alike.

The Winston-Salem area has recorded roughly 300,000 square feet of net retail absorption over the past 12 months, and limited new development due to construction costs has kept vacancy below national averages in comparable Carolinas markets. Those conditions support the rationale behind Front Street Capital and Carter's curated, service-oriented tenant strategy for the retail village's opening roster.

Sources

Carter — Wake Forest's The Grounds Picks First Retailers to Drive All-Day Traffic