Biltmore Hills National Register Nomination

The Planning and Development department, in partnership with the Raleigh Historic Development Commission and a consultant, are completing a National Register of Historic Places Nomination for the Biltmore Hills neighborhood. 

The Biltmore Hills neighborhood was added to the North Carolina Study List in June 2024. The neighborhood includes approximately 348 properties. Biltmore Hills was developed by Ed Richards in collaboration with John W. Winters, whose company was the sales agent. However, when Winters died in 2004, numerous articles credited him with the vision for Biltmore Hills. It is possible that Ed Richards, who was white, took a more visible role at the onset of the development, as he likely had the political capital and access to financing denied to Winters in the pre-Civil Rights era.  

Biltmore Hills is an approximately 105-acre, single-family, residential subdivision located in southeast Raleigh between Garner and Cross Link Roads. The neighborhood is bounded by Biltmore Hills Park (ca.1965) to the south and I-440 (the Raleigh “beltline”) to the north. The construction of the beltline severed Biltmore Hills’ connection with Rochester Heights (WA4581), an adjacent neighborhood also purpose built for Raleigh’s Black residents. Like neighboring Rochester Heights, the streets in Biltmore Hills are named for notable Black Americans (e.g. Fitzgerald Drive is named for Ella Fitzgerald). 

Architecturally, the majority of the houses are one-story, side-gabled ranch-style houses of just under 1,000 square feet, clad in brick veneer. Some of the later houses are split-levels. Among the 348 houses built between 1959 and 1970, 21 identified models are repeated throughout the community.  

This project will result in a completed National Register of Historic Places nomination for the neighborhood. The final decision for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places will be made by the National Park Service. 

• The National Register of Historic Places is an official list of properties and neighborhoods recognized by the National Park Service as worthy of preservation. 

• Created by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America's historic and archeological resources. 

• It is largely honorary in nature and comes with the ability for property owners to apply for historic tax credits for building rehabilitation projects. 

• Learn more on the National Park Service’s website. 

Part of the Raleigh Historic Development Commission’s (RHDC) mission is to identify and recommend properties and neighborhoods for historic designation. This includes Raleigh Historic Landmarks, Raleigh Historic Overlay Districts, and National Register designation.

This project follows a previous study, completed in spring 2024, that recommended Biltmore Hills as an eligible candidate for listing in the National Register of Historic Places. The overall project budget is $20,000. The funds are from the Planning and Development budget targeted for historic reports and surveys.