The Downtown Clubs of Raleigh (N.C.) plans to invest $2 million to expand and renovate the current Cardinal Club and close the Capital City Club. In 2009, the ClubCorp-owned clubs pooled their memberships and began operating as a single club in two locations. The renovation is expected to be complete next June and a name for the refurbished club has not yet been chosen.

The Downtown Clubs of Raleigh, which has been operating exclusive clubs in two of the city’s tallest buildings just a few blocks apart, plans to consolidate its operations and close the Capital City Club, the Raleigh (N.C.) News & Observer reported.

The business plans to invest about $2 million to expand and renovate the current Cardinal Club, which is on the 28th and 29th floors of the Wells Fargo Capitol Center, General Manager Karl Swink said.

“The bottom line on this is: We’re going to put a lot of money into this,” Swink said. “We’re going to make a spectacular club.”

The renovation and expansion of the Cardinal Club is expected to be complete in June. Until then, both clubs will continue to operate. The name for the refurbished Cardinal Club has not yet been chosen, the News & Observer reported.

“We haven’t settled on names yet for anything,” Swink said. “The first step, obviously, was choosing a location.”

In 2009, the Capital City and Cardinal clubs, both of which are owned by Dallas-based ClubCorp, pooled their memberships and essentially began operating as a single club in two locations. Dinner is served only at the Capital City Club, and breakfast is served only at the Cardinal Club; both locations serve lunch, the News & Observer reported.

“We’re stretching out the benefits and services of one club over two properties as it is right now,” Swink said. “So this is going to allow us to focus all our energies on one location, which will be a lot more efficient. It will be a better experience for everyone involved.”

The 2009 move was driven by the need to streamline costs in the wake of a decline of about 500 members in the two years previous, leaving the clubs with roughly 3,000 members. That decline has continued, with membership today totaling more than 2,100, the News & Observer reported.

“The recession has been really tough on the private club business,” Swink said. Swink declined to disclose membership fees, the News & Observer reported.

Choosing where to consolidate was “a very difficult choice,” Swink said. “We have had a very long-standing relationship with both landlords, and both clubs have a very proud tradition.”

Space was the decisive factor. The Capital City Club has about 17,000 sq. ft. and can’t be expanded, Swink said, but the operations at the Cardinal Club are being expanded about 2,000 sq. ft. to total 23,000 sq. ft, and there’s room for future expansion as well, the News & Observer reported.

“We are investing all this money so we can once again grow the business,” Swink said.

Downtown Clubs also noted in a message to members that 65 percent of the meals at the two locations are served at the Cardinal Club, the News & Observer reported.

Sheila H. Ogle, chair of the Capital City Club’s board of governors, called the plan “a very, very positive move for both clubs. Our members are going to have an experience like they have never had before.”

Ogle has piled up a lot of memories at the 34-year-old Capital City Club, but is looking forward to what the renovated Cardinal Club location will offer, the News & Observer reported.

The expansion of the Cardinal Club will include a new bar and casual dining area overlooking Fayetteville Street, additional private dining rooms, and smaller “touchdown rooms” that provide meeting spaces for members, the News & Observer reported.

The touchdown rooms enable members “to use the club as an office away from the office,” Swink said.