CAROLINA BEACH — A mixed-use complex that garnered a lot of community feedback will begin to move in its first two dozen or so tenants next month on Pleasure Island.
READ MORE: Connecticut pizzeria to open in Carolina Beach’s Proximity next year
Proximity — a 250-unit luxury apartment housing and commercial space — has announced its first slate of businesses and a 12% tenant capacity. A little more than two dozen residents begin moving in on Sept. 15, as Monteith and Cape Fear Construction continue to build out the complex on more than 12 acres along North Lake Park Boulevard.
Brian Eckel, partner of Cape Fear Development — also behind a neighboring Publix strip mall facility — hosted 30-plus public meetings before getting Proximity off the ground. Its goal is to blend “luxury living with premier retail and entertainment offerings.”
“[We] went after who we consider best in class,” Eckel said. “It was important to us to have each business complement each other to create the customer experience we were striving for.”
Businesses in Proximity are aiming for a 2025 first-quarter opening in more than 25,000 square feet of ground floor space. A new franchise is coming to the region with Riko’s Pizzeria (see PCD’s coverage last week here); however, the majority of eateries announced recently include names locals will be familiar with: K38 Baja Grill, Drift Coffee and Boombalatti’s.
“Our family has always loved crossing Snow’s Cut Bridge into Carolina Beach and it seemed like a logical place to set up shop,” Boombalatti’s owner Wes Bechtel told Port City Daily.
It will be the ice cream shop’s fourth location in the region, with its flagship in The Forum — where all the icea cream for its other locations are churned out. Boombalatti’s opened on N. Fourth Street near downtown in 2018 and another spot in Hampstead in 2020. The expansion is one Bechtel, who owns Boombalatti’s with his wife, Kristen, didn’t expect to see to this degree when they took over at the Forum in 2015.
“I always thought a second location was in the cards, but I don’t think I thought we’d ever get to this point,” he said, noting the store is also shipping its ice cream nationwide.
The Bechtels devise roughly 160 flavors a year, with specialties switching out frequently, such as Fluffer Nutter Butter, cereal milk, oatmeal pie, cannoli, and strawberry pretzel pie. They’re gearing up for the holiday season already, including a lineup of “Thanksgiving Dessert Table” and Christmas flavors.
The Proximity locale will be 1,500 square feet with an aesthetic similar to Boombalatti’s other spots. It will serve 24 flavors, including vegan options, plus milkshakes and sundaes.
“We are very excited to have lots of green space outside our doors for outdoor seating,” Bechtel said.
Green space is at the center of the complex and will be home to an outdoor stage for live music and other events. It can hold roughly 150 guests, who will be welcome to bring lawn chairs and blankets, and can hang out there after dinner or shopping. It’s “multi-functional,” according to Eckel, who said it will welcome lawn games like cornhole.
“Our vision was to create a space that can be enjoyed by all and activate the community,” he said.
A 1,000-square-foot patio also will welcome customers to dine at Boombalatti’s neighbor, K38 Baja Grill. The restaurant has been part of Wilmington’s restaurant scene for more than 30 years.
“K38 is a destination brand and Carolina Beach is a destination market,” Amanda Robinson told PCD. “We are excited to be a part of the growth.”
Founded by Josh Vach, the company — which has seven locations currently — was sold to Raleigh-based Hargett Hunter, a hospitality industry investment group after Vach’s passing. This came just shy of a year before the Covid-19 pandemic shuttered restaurants for months as well.
“Stabilizing the business through Covid and getting back on track for growth – K38 CB will be our third new location since 2023, including K38 Independence and Tower 7 Morehead City,” Robinson added, noting the Live.Eat.Surf brand is also looking to expand into other coastal North Carolina destinations and the Triangle.
The Proximity location will be 3,000 square feet in total and seat roughly 130 diners; it will add 50 jobs to the more than 350 already employed by the Live.Eat.Surf brand of restaurants.
Bechtel said upon CB’s Boombalatti’s opening, it will employ 75 people, with 15 added to handle the increased clientele on Pleasure Island.
“A huge part of our success is finding and keeping fantastic employees,” Bechtel said.
In the last year, Boombalatti’s has begun offering health, dental and vision insurance, 401K with company match and three weeks paid time off for full-time employees.
Cape Fear Development plans to announce two more restaurants, but the team is currently hammering out details. As for how the group decided who to include in their vision, Eckel said the team considered categories to target and took into account community feedback.
The company announced locally operated retail Sweetwater Surf Shop and Island Passage, as well as the workout facility Axis Fitness, to its 30,000-square-foot commercial sector. Sweetwater has a location on Wrightsville Beach, while Island Passage has locations both downtown, at Lumina Station and on Bald Head Island. Axis Fitness has facilities downtown, on Wrightsville Beach and in Hampstead.
The boutique fitness studio will operate 24/7 on the ground floor, with a membership to it included as part of Proximity’s residential package. Sliding doors open to an outdoor fitness lawn with artificial turf to withstand the fitness activities.
The public will also be able to access amenities of Proximity, aside from just the businesses peppering the ground floor. It will have a “resort-style” pool, with memberships open to the public. Eckel was mum on costs as of now, noting they’ll be revealed in spring 2025 ahead of the summer season.
“There is deck space with cabanas,” he said. “We also have multiple swim lanes.”
The residential units consist of studios, one bedrooms, two bedrooms, live works and carriage houses with garages. Units have quartz countertops, stainless steel appliances and modern fixtures. Eckel said the profile of tenants range from young professionals to pre-retirees.
“We are seeing some folks from out of the market that want a second home at the beach,” he said.
Rent starts at the low end of $1,500 a month and scales up, with amenities also including a coworking space. It will only be open to residents at first.
“But we are considering opening this amenity up to the public for day passes when we open up the pool memberships in 2025,” Eckel said.
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