Designed and constructed in 1925, the Carolina Power & Light (CP&L) Company Car Barn and Automobile Garage was built to house and maintain the company’s service vehicles. The sleek Art Deco styling of the building reflects the forward-thinking corporate image the rapidly expanding power company wished to project in the 1920s. The brick building features a corrugated metal roof, terra cotta coping, large multi-light metal windows and protruding brick piers, the tops of which are ornamented by terra cotta inlay and molded capstones.

An electric streetcar serviced by the Carolina Power and Light Company Car Barn and Automobile Garage Photo by Dr. Leon Jordan, courtesy of Raleigh Historic Development Commission

The Automobile Garage was part of a multi-block complex of CP&L (now Progress Energy) buildings dedicated to supplying local electric power and transportation. The complex included a two-story Power House and its associated buildings, shops, storage sheds, the Automobile Garage and a larger sister building, which serviced the company’s electric streetcars and buses. The ground floor of the garage, accessed from West Street, originally housed a maintenance area, offices and linemen’s quarters. The main floor above, entered from Harrington Street, provided vehicle storage space as well as an indoor car washing area. In 1998, federal and state preservation tax credits were employed in adapting the building for new use. The ground floor now houses an Irish pub, and the main floor serves as the offices of an architectural firm. Carolina Power and Light Company Car Barn and Automobile Garage is a designated Raleigh Historic Landmark.

The Carolina Power & Light Company Car Barn and Automobile Garage is located at 116 N. West Street. The building is open during the regular operating hours of its commercial tenants.