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Residential project rises on gravesite of blighted hotel Josh Green Wed, 10/25/2023 - 08:04 A national developer is nearing topped-out status with part of an apartment project that replaces a vacant, blighted hotel and source of heartburn for gateway neighborhoods between Midtown and Buckhead.

Now christened "The Edley Apartments," the nearly 400-unit venture by Fairfield Residential has risen over two busy intown thoroughfares: Piedmont Road and the Buford-Spring Connector.

The bulk of the project is located where Piedmont Road meets Piedmont Circle, across the street from Tattletale Lounge.

The Edley replaces an InTown Suites that Atlanta developer Paces Properties had scooped up in 2016, fresh off its success with Krog Street Market.

Paces’ plans to team with Austin-based hospitality company Bunkhouse and create a throwback, 162-room hotel that nodded to the lodge property’s midcentury roots never came to fruition on the sloping site.

Paces eventually sold the 4.8-acre property to Fairfield. The hotel had been vacant, graffiti-covered, and trash-strewn for several years before its demolition in 2021.

The project's 1950 Piedmont Circle location in Piedmont Heights, just off Interstate 85. Google Maps

The Piedmont Circle property's former InTown Suites in the twilight of its existence in early 2021. Google Maps

According to plans Fairfield brought before the City of Atlanta and Piedmont Heights neighborhood two years ago, The Edley will include 392 apartments in buildings standing four to six stories at 1950 Piedmont Circle. Rentals will range from studios up to two-bedroom options.

The location falls under BeltLine inclusionary zoning requirements, and Fairfield officials have said roughly 60 apartments, or 15 percent of the overall project, will be set aside for tenants earning 80 percent of the area median income or less.

Construction progress this week along Piedmont Road. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Plans for a curving, varied facade along Piedmont Circle. Fairfield Residential; Dwell Design Studio

According to plans Fairfield brought before the Piedmont Heights Civic Association in 2021, rents for market-rate studios at The Edley will start at $1,400 monthly, while the largest two-bedroom options would rent between $1,900 and $2,500.

A parking deck with some 504 spaces is also in the mix.

According to Fairfield’s promotional website, The Edley is on pace to deliver next year. Find a look at what’s to come, and where the project stands today, in the gallery above.

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• Piedmont Heights news, discussion (Urbanize Atlanta) 

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The project's 1950 Piedmont Circle location in Piedmont Heights, just off Interstate 85. Google Maps

The Piedmont Circle property's former InTown Suites in the twilight of its existence in early 2021. Google Maps

Construction progress this week along Piedmont Road. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Where Piedmont Road meets Piedmont Circle, across the street from Tattletale Lounge. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Parking garage now standing over Piedmont Circle. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Plans for a curving, varied facade along Piedmont Circle. Fairfield Residential; Dwell Design Studio

How the nearly 400-unit project is expected to front the Buford-Spring Connector. Fairfield Residential; Dwell Design Studio

Plans for the corner of Piedmont Circle and Piedmont Road. Fairfield Residential; Dwell Design Studio/2021

Full scope of Piedmont Road frontage. Fairfield Residential; Dwell Design Studio

Subtitle Meet "The Edley," positioned at the junction of Midtown, Buckhead

Neighborhood Piedmont Heights

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Funding OK'd for 500 micro units to address Atlanta homelessness Josh Green Tue, 10/24/2023 - 15:25 The City of Atlanta has taken a step toward providing quickly built alternatives to traditional shelters as a means of getting the city’s homeless off the streets and on paths toward better lives, officials said today.

The Invest Atlanta Board of Directors has approved a line of credit up to $7.5 million that will fund so-called rapid housing initiatives in Atlanta, as financed through the city's Housing Opportunity Bond Fund.

According to Mayor Andre Dickens’ office, that funding will enable the city and its partners The Atlanta Continuum of Care to start building flexible communities with 500 “low-cost micro units” that can be quickly built. Those units, according to the city, can serve as temporary, semipermanent, or permanent shelters and housing for Atlanta’s current unhoused population.

Dickens said the housing options will have a small footprint but provide a substantial benefit to intown communities. In August, the city unveiled plans to build temporary homeless housing from former shipping containers on a South Downtown parking lot on Forsyth Street and another on underused property in Mechanicsville—the latter involving a land swap with Atlanta Public Schools.

According to the city’s announcement today, the Partners for HOME program “anticipates introducing the first location of these [rapid housing] communities to the City of Atlanta by December 31” this year. (Partners for HOME works with Atlanta Continuum of Care, a HUD program, to help end homelessness around the city.) We’ve asked city officials if the $7.5 million approved by Invest Atlanta’s board will be used to open housing options on Forsyth Street, in Mechanicsville, or some other location first; we’ll update this article should clarity be provided.

All units will aim to provide low-barrier alternatives to traditional shelters with access to wraparound services such as healthcare and employment, per city officials. 

“The crisis we’re seeing of people experiencing homelessness calls for experimenting with new construction and product types that allow for rapid manufacturing developments we can put in place quickly,” Dickens said in a prepared statement. “We’re always seeking creative approaches to pilot and deliver new affordable housing options.”

Added Dr. Eloisa Klementich, Invest Atlanta president and CEO: “Through this investment, the city is continuing to address the spectrum of housing needs in Atlanta—from homelessness to homeownership—by providing more residents experiencing homelessness a flexible alternative to traditional homeless housing.”

Not everyone has applauded the city’s push for quick housing solutions.

Rapid housing plans have drawn criticism from a pro-business group that believes Forsyth Street is the wrong location for a village of shipping containers, in that it’s a food desert with a high concentration of nightclubs.   

In August, Dickens’ office issued an executive order to begin development of the new $4 million program that aims to help Atlanta’s homeless at 184 Forsyth Street downtown, in the shadow of a MARTA station. The strategy calls for using shipping containers—many of them donated by the Georgia Emergency Management Agency, following use as temporary COVID-19 hospital facilities—as a relatively cheap, quick means of delivering rapid housing options.

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Subtitle First location for rapid housing initiative to be unveiled by December, city says

Neighborhood Citywide

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Images: Decatur's affordable downtown cottages take shape Josh Green Tue, 10/24/2023 - 11:45 Following a construction pause over summer months, a Decatur “missing middle” housing initiative has quickly taken shape in recent weeks a few blocks from the city’s historic Downtown Square.

Plans for the Oak Cottage Court project call for six standalone houses arranged around a shared, central greenspace, offering what officials have described as permanent affordability.

The collaboration between the City of Decatur and nonprofit Decatur Land Trust marks the first cottage-style project in the city. It’s been in the pipeline at 230 Commerce Drive for more than seven years.

Construction on Oak Cottage Court started in summer 2022 on a relatively tight, formerly wooded, half-acre site about six blocks east of MARTA’s Decatur station, just north of College Avenue. 

The six homes will range in price between $199,000 and $275,000, project officials have said.

Construction progress this week at the half-acre site along a bend on Commerce Drive.Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

According to DLT officials, the Oak Cottage Court homes will be offered for sale to people who work for Decatur’s city schools, the Decatur Housing Authority, and the city itself. DLT’s model goes that homes will be sold to new owners, but the land beneath them will be kept in a trust. Should new owners sell in the future, the DLT’s ground-lease program is meant to ensure the properties retain their affordability permanently, officials have said.

Nonprofit developer Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership and general contractor Fortas Homes are building the community.

Site plans indicate the project was designed by Mississippi-based architect Bruce B. Tolar, considered one of the country’s leading experts for missing-middle housing design and development. Tolar's company is specifically known for developing cottage-style housing nodes as part of post-Hurricane Katrina rebuilding.

Plans call for four houses with three bedrooms, one with two bedrooms, and another with a single bedroom, with sizes between 528 and 1,117 square feet, Decaturish has reported. Delays in construction were related to rising construction costs, Georgia Department of Transportation’s delayed approval of the entry off Commerce Drive (a state highway), and other factors.

Overview of how six standalone cottages will be constructed along Commerce Drive. Decatur Land Trust

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

The housing type has been allowed in Decatur since 2014, when an ordinance passed, and Oak Cottage Court is considered a pilot project, in hopes it will generate “more affordable, neighborhood-friendly housing in the city,” per DLT officials.

Site plans show seven parking spaces, including one handicap space, will be installed next to the central green.

Have a look at where construction stands now—and where its heading—in the gallery above.

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The cottage-style project's 230 Commerce Drive location just east of downtown Decatur's main hub of shops and restaurants. Google Maps

Construction progress this week at the half-acre site along a bend on Commerce Drive.Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Overview of how six standalone cottages will be constructed along Commerce Drive. Decatur Land Trust

Closer look at the community's planned centralized greenspace and parking. Decatur Land Trust

Sample facade at Oak Cottage Court. Decatur Land Trust

Subtitle Oak Cottage Court project expected to offer standalone homes from high $100Ks

Neighborhood Decatur

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Soccer in the Streets program expands to another MARTA station Josh Green Tue, 10/24/2023 - 10:42 Seven years after it launched as the world’s first soccer field built inside a transit station, the StationSoccer program is gearing up to kick off its sixth youth-focused facility across Atlanta’s rail transit network.

MARTA has scheduled a grand opening Friday afternoon for StationSoccer at its East Lake rail station, an eastside transit hub located where Decatur meets Atlanta neighborhoods Lake Claire and Kirkwood.

U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff is expected to attend the unveiling at the facility’s north parking lot.

According to MARTA CEO and general manager Collie Greenwood, the East Lake pitch is intended to be a community focal point that specifically provides a social gathering place and competition venue for students from Decatur Housing Authority, the Global Village Project, and Villages of East Lake.

The Soccer in the Streets organization, City of Atlanta, Georgia Power, Atlanta United Community Fund, Amazon, and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta are all considered partners in the project.  

The East Lake MARTA station's north lot in Decatur. Google Maps

The StationSoccer initiative launched in 2016 at MARTA’s Five Points station downtown. Subsequent soccer pitches have popped up at stations in West End (2018), East Point (2019), Lindbergh (2020), and Kensington (2022) near Avondale Estates.

“We’re excited to expand StationSoccer… on the East/West Line in DeKalb County and continue building on this incredible program that supports youth education and development,” Greenwood said in a prepared statement.

Friday’s kick-off event at the East Lake station (2260 College Avenue) is inexplicably scheduled for precisely 4:20 p.m.

Expect food trucks, music, games, a youth soccer tournament, and remarks from Ossoff, Greenwood, and other dignitaries.

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The East Lake MARTA station's north lot in Decatur. Google Maps

Subtitle East Lake station pitch to officially open Friday

Neighborhood Decatur

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Images: Belvedere Park project cleared for takeoff across full block Josh Green Mon, 10/23/2023 - 14:28 Memorial Drive’s homebuilding tsunami is continuing its eastward push beyond City of Atlanta limits.

Decatur-based Valor Tower Real Estate Developments has demolished houses, cleared a full block, and installed infrastructure for a sizable townhome venture in DeKalb County’s Belvedere Park neighborhood, according to a recent site visit.

The sloped site is located just east of East Lake in the 3200 block of Memorial Drive in Decatur, on the south side of the six-lane thoroughfare.

The 44-unit project is called Grand Terraza at Memorial Drive (alternately “Gran Terraza”), according to site plans, renderings, and promotional materials.

The 3265 Memorial Drive site in Belvedere Park, between East Lake and the Interstate 285 Perimeter's easternmost edge. Google Maps

Construction activity at the 44-unit project site this month in DeKalb County's Belvedere Park.Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Grand Terraza will consist of seven separate buildings surrounding an internal park, with several greenspaces dotted throughout. According to the developer, initial plans were altered after Belvedere Park neighbors complained of a lack of visitor parking created by the townhomes along Julian Street, opposite Memorial Drive.

Internal streets were expanded for 23 parking spaces for townhome visitors on special occasions, and Valor Tower also widened Julian Street to 24 feet for more space, as developers have specified.

We’ve reached out this month to Valor Tower for information on a construction timeline and townhome pricing, but inquiries have not been returned.

Norcross-based APC Contractors is building the project.

Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

Plans for an internal greenspace at Grand Terraza. Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

The addition of denser housing types is part of DeKalb County’s overarching plan to revitalize Memorial Drive, a vital commuting corridor linking Stone Mountain to downtown Atlanta.

In the gallery above, find the latest Grand Terraza renderings and photo updates from the block-sized site taken last week.

Site plans for the 44-unit Grand Terraza at Memorial Drive. Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

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The 3265 Memorial Drive site in Belvedere Park, between East Lake and the Interstate 285 Perimeter's easternmost edge. Google Maps

Construction activity at the 44-unit project site this month in DeKalb County's Belvedere Park.Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Where infrastructure has been installed over the past year on the cleared block. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Vacant, ranch-style housing this area of DeKalb County is known for, as seen prior to demolition for the townhome project in late 2021. Google Maps

Site plans for the 44-unit Grand Terraza at Memorial Drive. Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

Planned townhome frontage along Memorial Drive at Thomas Road. Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

Plans for rooftop terraces at Grand Terraza. Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

Plans for an internal greenspace at Grand Terraza. Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

Valor Tower Real Estate Developments

Subtitle Townhome venture on hilly site continues eastward push of Memorial Drive development

Neighborhood Belvedere Park

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Batch of Kirkwood townhomes starts delivering near interstate Josh Green Mon, 10/23/2023 - 12:52 Having risen from a long-vacant site near an east-west expressway, Kirkwood’s latest batch of infill housing is being marketed as a “must see” property with “cutting-edge, contemporary design.”

Texas-based developer Urban Lofts Townhomes is behind the Maynard Terrace project’s 23-unit second phase, located between Memorial Drive and an Interstate 20 exit, about a mile northeast of East Atlanta Village. The company is also behind townhome developments in Sunbelt markets Reno, Las Vegas, Houston, and Dallas.

As we pointed out when construction ramped up in summer 2022, the site near Kirkwood’s southern fringes has been cleared but vacant since President George W. Bush was in office.

Offering some of the area's first modern-style, semidetached living options, the 25-unit phase one was finished 16 years ago.

The first new townhome to come to market this past weekend—unit 14—offers three bedrooms and three and ½ bathrooms in 2,255 square feet.

With an asking price of $649,900, that’s a breakdown of $288 per square foot.

For homebuyers in the market for a Kirkwood townhome, it’s tied for the cheapest option in the neighborhood at the moment, following a price adjustment at a 2019-built unit next to Pullman Yards.

The site location in the 200 block of Maynard Terrace SE, in relation to Kirkwood, Edgewood, East Atlanta Village, and other eastside landmarks. Google Maps

Designs of the next phase tucked off Maynard Terrace in Kirkwood. Urban Lofts Townhomes

According to Urban Lofts’ promotional website, slightly smaller options on Maynard Terrace priced $10,000 cheaper will be available this winter.

Next door, phase-one townhomes with two bedrooms have been reselling in recent years in the high $300,000s, but none have traded in 2023. 

Perks of phase two homes include “elegant wood floors,” two-car garages, natural light galore, and unique four-burner cooktops on kitchen islands, according to listings.

Overall site plan for both phases, with Interstate 20 just off-screen at left. Urban Lofts

Example of the largest floorplan at 2,255 square feet. Urban Lofts

The project continues a surge of nearby townhome development on or near the Memorial Drive corridor, including the 12-unit Warren South project elsewhere in Kirkwood and Walker Place Townhomes in Edgewood.

Directly across the street, Urban Realty Partners is fully underway with vertical construction on 103 townhomes replacing the former Gospel Tabernacle Cathedral, which was heavily damaged by fire in 2019.

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Designs of the next phase tucked off Maynard Terrace in Kirkwood. Urban Lofts Townhomes

The site location in the 200 block of Maynard Terrace SE, in relation to Kirkwood, Edgewood, East Atlanta Village, and other eastside landmarks. Google Maps

Overall site plan for both phases, with Interstate 20 just off-screen at left. Urban Lofts

Example of the largest floorplan at 2,255 square feet. Urban Lofts

Example of the developer's previous work in Atlanta. Urban Lofts

Subtitle Maynard Terrace option is cheap as townhomes currently get in eastside neighborhood

Neighborhood Kirkwood

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Huge swath of Buckhead hits the market. Any big ideas? Josh Green Mon, 10/23/2023 - 08:05 A tranquil slice of Buckhead with a unique backstory is up for grabs, presenting what sellers call a “once in a lifetime opportunity” for a big price.  

Larger than downtown’s Centennial Olympic Park and Woodruff Park combined, the 3910 Randall Mill Road property spans about 30 acres among palatial estates just east of Interstate 75 and south of I-285.

Today it’s mostly woods, with a gorgeous section of Nancy Creek running through.

“When you’re there, you don't even feel like you’re in Atlanta—it’s a slice of the mountains,” Atlanta resident Nick Stinnett, who’s hiked his dogs many times along the the property's creek, tells Urbanize Atlanta. “It will probably be subdivided and developed, which is sad, because it would be an incredible nature park.” 

The 3910 Randall Mill Road property's proximity to central Atlanta and the Interstate 75/285 junction near Truist Park. Google Maps

Looking southeast toward Midtown and downtown, the 30-ace property is shown with Interstate 75 at right. Ansley Real Estate/Christie’s International Real Estate

The property listed last week with Ansley Real Estate/Christie’s International Real Estate for a cool $15 million, offering a rare undeveloped swath of Buckhead larger than a few acres. The “legacy property” includes “as rich a history as you can find” in the city, notes the listing.

The previous owner—celebrated Atlanta photographer and philanthropist Lucinda Bunnen, the “godmother of Southern photography” who helped build the High Museum of Art’s photo collection—died last year at age 92.

Back in the mid-1950s, Bunnen’s family commissioned Cecil Alexander, architect of Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium and many other iconic local buildings, to create a home inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright’s work on 5 acres. That eccentric, throwback-modern structure still stands today, surrounded by a swimming pool, a tennis court, and so many trees.

Driveway to the Randall Mill property's main home structure. Ansley Real Estate/Christie’s International Real Estate

Inside the 1950s home on site today. Ansley Real Estate/Christie’s International Real Estate

As the decades unfurled and Bunnen’s photography career took off, the owners continued to buy contiguous land, eventually expanding to the roughly 30 acres offered today. A darkroom for developing photographs (Google it, kids) was installed in the main home’s base level in 1970, according to the listing.  

A couple of decades ago, a two-mile trail was installed around the property for soaking in nature, walking dogs, hiking, and yes, taking photos of it all.

Two houses are included in the offering today, totaling seven bedrooms, six bathrooms, and more than 7,000 square feet. Maybe that’ll be a moot point, should this ITP sanctuary be redeveloped. Or if it’s kept largely as-is, lending some well-heeled buyer the ultimate in intown privacy.

Plat showing positioning of the main home structure and Nancy Creek on the 30-acre site. Ansley Real Estate/Christie’s International Real Estate

A scene on the property beside Nancy Creek. Submitted

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The 3910 Randall Mill Road property's proximity to central Atlanta and the Interstate 75/285 junction near Truist Park. Google Maps

Looking southeast toward Midtown and downtown, the 30-ace property is shown with Interstate 75 at right. Ansley Real Estate/Christie’s International Real Estate

Google Maps/submitted

Ansley Real Estate/Christie’s International Real Estate

Driveway to the Randall Mill property's main home structure. Ansley Real Estate/Christie’s International Real Estate

Inside the 1950s home on site today. Ansley Real Estate/Christie’s International Real Estate

Ansley Real Estate/Christie’s International Real Estate

Plat showing positioning of the main home structure and Nancy Creek on the 30-acre site. Ansley Real Estate/Christie’s International Real Estate

A scene on the property beside Nancy Creek. Submitted

Subtitle $15M buys "a slice of the mountains" near Interstate 75

Neighborhood Buckhead

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Fresh renderings, name revealed for topped-out JPX high-rise Josh Green Fri, 10/20/2023 - 16:23 Like the Lilli Midtown tower before it, JPX Works’ latest Midtown high-rise has adopted an atypical name that nods to its unique façade.

JPX and development partners Zeller and Manulife Investment Management officially topped out their 31-story apartment venture over Spring Street and christened it “Emmi Midtown” this week, project leaders tell Urbanize Atlanta.

Tweaked exterior renderings and the first design glimpses inside the building were released today.

Construction on the 326-unit high-rise began in May last year, and the Emmi building has since climbed from a relatively small, .54-acre site at the southeast corner of Spring Street’s intersection with 18th Street. It replaces a vacant one-story building that most recently housed The John Marshall Law School’s Blackburn Conference Center.

Planned "Emmi" branding over Spring Street. The building's "dynamic façade incorporates a large-scale framework, defined by random groupings of inboard balconies," per JPX. Courtesy of JPX Works; designs, RJTR (architecture), Square Feet Studio (interiors)

The 10th-floor pool deck. Courtesy of JPX Works; designs, RJTR (architecture), Square Feet Studio (interiors)

According to JPX officials, the building’s name was inspired by architectural elements of the façade that resemble the letters “E”, “M”, and “I”—a tactic that echoes the Lilli project’s branding farther south in Midtown.   

Here’s a more technical explanation (you’re welcome, wonks), as provided via email today:

“The ‘E’ [arises] from the vertical façade bands stacked on top of each other, the ‘M’ being derived from the up and down movement of the horizontal portion of the façade bands, and the ‘I’ from the inset balcony groupings. Moreover, rotating around the building starting on the north façade in a counterclockwise direction reveals that the major breaks in massing of each elevation form the letters ‘EMMI.’

[All] letters in the name have the ability to be rigid or soft (‘EMMI’, ‘emmi’) depending on the font and whether they are uppercase or lowercase. This plays into the dichotomy of the rigid, rectilinear exterior elements and the organic, curvilinear interior elements,” per the design team.

Emmi’s plans call for apartments ranging from studios to three-bedroom units. Rents haven’t been specified, as pre-leasing isn’t expected to start until spring next year.

Amenities around the building will include a 10th-floor pool deck and outdoor lounge with fire pits, coworking spaces, indoor lounge areas that aim for a hospitality feel, plus a large fitness center, meditation room, and yoga facility.  

Interior designs on tap for the Emmi lobby. Courtesy of JPX Works; designs, RJTR (architecture), Square Feet Studio (interiors)

Example of kitchen designs inside one of Emmi's 326 apartments. Courtesy of JPX Works; designs, RJTR (architecture), Square Feet Studio (interiors)

Atlanta-based firms RJTR architecture and interior-designers Square Feet Studio have joined general contractor Brasfield & Gorrie in bringing the project together over the past year and ½.

The development team says momentum for “Midtown’s northern arts district” is strong given SCAD’s recent expansions, Colony Square’s revival, mixed-use Midtown Union’s completion last year, and employment wins such as Microsoft’s expansion at nearby Atlantic Station.

Zeller’s chief operating officer, Sam Zeller, said in a prepared statement Emmi’s topping-out marks “a milestone in the development process [that] highlights the strength of the entire team in keeping to schedule and budget, even as we deliver a project that pushes design boundaries for multifamily buildings.”

JPX officials say the building remains on pace to finish construction in summer 2024.

Plans for the Emmi building's western facade toward the downtown Connector freeway. Courtesy of JPX Works; designs, RJTR (architecture), Square Feet Studio (interiors)

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Planned "Emmi" branding over Spring Street. The building's "dynamic façade incorporates a large-scale framework, defined by random groupings of inboard balconies," per JPX. Courtesy of JPX Works; designs, RJTR (architecture), Square Feet Studio (interiors)

Interior designs on tap for the Emmi lobby. Courtesy of JPX Works; designs, RJTR (architecture), Square Feet Studio (interiors)

The 10th-floor pool deck. Courtesy of JPX Works; designs, RJTR (architecture), Square Feet Studio (interiors)

Example of kitchen designs inside one of Emmi's 326 apartments. Courtesy of JPX Works; designs, RJTR (architecture), Square Feet Studio (interiors)

Plans for the Emmi building's western facade toward the downtown Connector freeway. Courtesy of JPX Works; designs, RJTR (architecture), Square Feet Studio (interiors)

Example of a resident bathroom. Courtesy of JPX Works; designs, RJTR (architecture), Square Feet Studio (interiors)

Subtitle 31-story Midtown tower replaces vacant commercial building on small corner lot

Neighborhood Midtown

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Filings: Midtown mixed-use proposal site heading for auction Josh Green Fri, 10/20/2023 - 12:57 A wave of foreclosure proceedings for high-profile intown properties will include a Midtown site where an array of uses was planned around a historic, renovated apartment complex as lenders continue to tighten leashes, according to Fulton County filings.

Atlanta developer Tenth Street Ventures planned an L-shaped, mixed-use building for 1450 W. Peachtree Street that had been drastically revised following pushback from historic preservationists and Midtown development arbiters.

That property, home to a vacant low-rise office structure called the Master Mind Thinker Building, is now scheduled for a Nov. 7 auction on the Fulton County Courthouse steps, according to recent filings made by lender Longline Financial.

A $9-million loan pertaining to the .31-acre property with a one-year balance was originated in March 2022, according to filings. The foreclosure proceedings also include .22 acres behind the Master Mind building that front 19th Street.

Tenth Street Ventures leadership has not responded to an inquiry about the viability of its proposal.

Revised plans for the mixed-use project at the corner of West Peachtree and 19th streets, with the neighboring historic apartments pictured at bottom. Courtesy of Tenth Street Ventures; designs, Blur Workshop

Fulton County property records indicate the West Peachtree Street property last sold for $6.45 million in March 2022 to an LLC called TSV Mastermind.

Records indicate the adjacent parking lot along 19th Street is also owned by TSV Mastermind.

The project went back to the drawing board and reemerged in January with three fewer stories—from 20 to 17 floors—but still a variety of planned uses. Earlier plans for converting the Master Mind Thinker Building were also scrapped at that time in favor of tearing it down.

The mix of apartments, hotel rooms, offices, and commercial space was expected to rise over three major Midtown streets (West Peachtree, Spring, and 19th streets), sharing a small block with the historic Winnwood Apartments.

At last check, the number of proposed residential units had dropped by 32—from 171 to 139—while commercial, retail, and restaurant spaces were also reduced.

Other components included 149 flexible-stay hotel rooms, 6,600 square feet of coworking space, a small café, and public fitness center spanning 5,000 square feet.

The Master Mind Thinker Building today, at left, and the historic Winnwood Apartments at right. Google Maps; Urbanize Atlanta

Courtesy of Tenth Street Ventures; designs, Blur Workshop

Tenth Street Ventures principal Brian McCarthy told Urbanize Atlanta in January the project was expected to cost roughly $100 million and that talks were ongoing with several potential financing partners. The goal at the time, McCarthy said, was to break ground within a year.

Next door, the circa-1931 Winnwood building’s 50 fresh apartments came online earlier this year as micro studios and one-bedroom units, renting for $1,987 monthly and up.   

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The full corner in question, with the renovated historic apartments at right. Google Maps; Urbanize Atlanta

The Master Mind Thinker Building today, at left, and the historic Winnwood Apartments at right. Google Maps; Urbanize Atlanta

Original 2022 proposal for the site where West Peachtree Street meets 19th Street. Tenth Street Ventures; designs, Blur Workshop

Revised plans for the mixed-use project at the corner of West Peachtree and 19th streets, with the neighboring historic apartments pictured at bottom. Courtesy of Tenth Street Ventures; designs, Blur Workshop

Billboards shown along Spring Street on a neighboring strip of land. Courtesy of Tenth Street Ventures; designs, Blur Workshop

Courtesy of Tenth Street Ventures; designs, Blur Workshop

Courtesy of Tenth Street Ventures; designs, Blur Workshop

Courtesy of Tenth Street Ventures; designs, Blur Workshop

Courtesy of Tenth Street Ventures; designs, Blur Workshop

Courtesy of Tenth Street Ventures; designs, Blur Workshop

Subtitle Tweaked West Peachtree Street plans called for mix of hotel, apartments, retail, more

Neighborhood Midtown

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PATH400 project scores 'critical' funding for construction Josh Green Fri, 10/20/2023 - 08:30 How Buckhead’s answer to the BeltLine will reach its construction finish line is coming into clearer focus.

Officials with PATH400 spearhead Livable Buckhead announced this week the multi-use trail has scored $400,000 from Atlanta City Council and two city department coffers that will be “critical” in completing construction between Buckhead and Sandy Springs.

The Atlanta Department of Transportation, Department of Parks and Recreation, and Atlanta City Council member Howard Shook (longtime representative of Buckhead’s District 7) have reached an agreement to provide the funding, according to Livable Buckhead.

Denise Starling, Livable Buckhead executive director, said the funds will allow PATH400 to begin construction on PATH400’s last major missing piece—the segment stretching from Loridans Drive to Atlanta city limits at Sandy Springs—early next year.

“We’re thrilled to get this funding,” noted Starling.

Construction progress on the next northward leg of PATH400 is seen during a recent public tour. Courtesy of Livable Buckhead/PATH400

PATH400’s full, 5.2-mile greenway is expected to be finished on public land adjacent to Ga. Highway 400 sometime in 2025. Partnering with Livable Buckhead on the project are the PATH Foundation and the Buckhead Community Improvement District.

Starling told Urbanize Atlanta in August construction to expand the existing PATH400 trail north to Loridans Drive had hit its stride. Several walls have been erected and infrastructure for PATH400 bridges that soars almost 60 feet high (see below) was nearly finished.

Courtesy of Livable Buckhead/PATH400

Courtesy of Livable Buckhead/PATH400

In other PATH400 news, plans are moving forward to install a large, artistic gateway to the trail at a key entry point: the top section of Miami Circle off Piedmont Road, home to the Southeast’s largest collection of art galleries and attractions such as Eclipse di Luna restaurant.

As is, PATH400 links to a parking lot next to Eclipse di Luna by way of an unremarkable ramp. Livable Buckhead plans to rebuild the ramp with a bold art feature to create an aesthetic highlight and link public art on the trail with fine art in galleries, officials have said.

The outlook is bright on the southernmost end of PATH400 as well, where a junction of trails is planned to help create a true regional network.

This past summer, Atlanta BeltLine Inc. received a $25 million federal grant—the largest in project history—to help build connections between the BeltLine, PATH400, and two other trail networks in the Lindbergh area, the Peachtree Creek Greenway, and Southfork Conservancy trails.

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Construction progress on the next northward leg of PATH400 is seen during a recent public tour. Courtesy of Livable Buckhead/PATH400

Courtesy of Livable Buckhead/PATH400

Courtesy of Livable Buckhead/PATH400

Subtitle Multi-agency contribution to help clear trail's path to Sandy Springs

Neighborhood Buckhead

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Tower watch: Crane erected for Atlanta's tallest high-rise in decades Josh Green Thu, 10/19/2023 - 15:45 Three months after its official groundbreaking ceremony, a sky-piercing mixed-use project slated to be Atlanta’s tallest new building in more than 30 years has reached a construction milestone.

Within the past week, New York City-based developers Rockefeller Group have erected a construction crane over the West Peachtree Street pit where the U.S. Postal Service long housed Midtown operations in a low-rise building.

Rockefeller’s plans for the 60-story 1072 West Peachtree building call for achieving two benchmarks as Atlanta’s tallest residential building and tallest mixed-use tower.  

The 1072 West Peachtree site's construction crane, as seen this week looking northwest toward Atlantic Station.Submitted

Set on the southwest corner of West Peachtree and 12th streets, the project’s height will alter Midtown’s skyline, especially when viewed from the west. Rockefeller officials say the tower will climb more than 730 feet—making it Atlanta’s fifth tallest high-rise, supplanting Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel for the No. 5 spot.

No taller skyrise has been built in Atlanta since 1992.  

Designs by Atlanta-based TVS call for 6,300 square feet of retail at the street and 224,000 square feet of Class A office space above that. Topping the building will be more than 350 apartments alongside amenities described as world-class. Another component will be Midtown’s largest outdoor amenity deck, designed for expansive views of the city, Rockefeller officials have said.

Site activity along West Peachtree Street this week. Submitted

Rockefeller hosted a ceremonial groundbreaking for 1072 West Peachtree alongside City of Atlanta officials and project partners in July.

At that time, John Petricola, Rockefeller’s senior managing director of the Southeast region, said the company is “commitment to the continued growth of Atlanta” and providing a Midtown project that will “meaningfully elevate the experience of living and working here.”

A joint venture between Rockefeller Group, Japan-based Taisei USA, and Mitsubishi Estate New York is providing the project’s equity, officials said in July. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank, a New Jersey-based subsidiary of one of Japan’s major trust banks, has signed on to provide a senior loan to fund 1072 West Peachtree’s construction financing.

A new perspective on how Rockefeller expects the tower to meet West Peachtree Street. Site Solutions is the project's landscape architect. Courtesy of Rockefeller Group

Rockefeller is familiar with the area, having partnered with Selig on the 40 West 12th condos a block from the former post office. The company bought the 1.14-acre USPS site for $25 million in 2020.

In February last year, the Midtown post office closed and moved its operations to Selig’s 1065 Peachtree Street building, the first step in setting the stage for demolition and redevelopment.

No timeline for 1072 West Peachtree’s completion has been specified, but the site has seen heavy demolition and infrastructure work ongoing since March. 

The latest rendering showing the 1072 West Peachtree project's eastern facade, toward Peachtree Street and Piedmont Park. Courtesy of Rockefeller Group

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The 1072 West Peachtree site's construction crane, as seen this week looking northwest toward Atlantic Station.Submitted

The latest rendering showing the 1072 West Peachtree project's eastern facade, toward Peachtree Street and Piedmont Park. Courtesy of Rockefeller Group

A new perspective on how Rockefeller expects the tower to meet West Peachtree Street. Site Solutions is the project's landscape architect. Courtesy of Rockefeller Group

Submitted

Site activity along West Peachtree Street this week. Submitted

West Peachtree Street view of Rockefeller Group’s planned 60-story Midtown project.Rockefeller Group; Brock Hudgins Architects; TVS

The first interior 1072 West Peachtree rendering depicts offices and views west. Rockefeller Group; Brock Hudgins Architects; TVS/1072 West Peachtree

The landing page for 1072 West Peachtree's website provides a glimpse of how the project would alter Midtown's skyline when viewed from the Connector. Rockefeller Group; Brock Hudgins Architects; TVS/1072 West Peachtree

Scope of the 1072 West Peachtree Street site, formerly occupied by the U.S. Postal Service. Rockefeller Group; Brock Hudgins Architects; TVS

View looking east from around 14th Street. Rockefeller Group; Brock Hudgins Architects; TVS

Mixed-use breakdown of lower floors. Rockefeller Group; Brock Hudgins Architects; TVS

View toward the southwest, over Georgia Tech. Rockefeller Group; Brock Hudgins Architects; TVS

Subtitle It's on

Neighborhood Midtown

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Infamous Midtown skyscraper site bound for foreclosure, filings show Josh Green Thu, 10/19/2023 - 13:39 The Midtown site where one of Atlanta’s grandest, most amenitized skyscrapers was pitched, modified, and promised ad nauseam appears to be headed for the courthouse steps.

Six years after its dynamite-induced groundbreaking, the long-stalled No2 Opus Place property in the heart of Midtown is scheduled for a Nov. 7 auction on the Fulton County Courthouse steps, according to filings this week. 

The lender, Miami-based real estate debt fund Benmark Capital, provided No2 Opus Place developer Olympia Heights Management with a $40-million, short-term bridge loan to refinance the project last year. Exactly what’s changed since isn’t yet clear; we’ve reached out to Benmark officials for comment and will post any additional information that comes.

Benmark’s two-year loan was originated for the 98 14th Street property in August 2022, according to foreclosure filings this week.

Olympia Heights could not be reached for comment today and has not responded to inquiries in recent years.

An early rendering shows No2 Opus Place when it was designed to be taller—a 730-foot glass statement piece to rival the condo towers of Manhattan and Tokyo. Plans were later scaled back. Perkins+Will/No2 Opus Place

Benmark’s director of originations, Joe Moser, told the *Commercial Observer*last year the loan was meant to cover Opus Place pre-development costs at the 4-acre site. Benmark officials had traveled to Midtown and came away impressed with recent commercial activity, pointing to Google’s headquarters at nearby 1105 West Peachtree and a “construction boom” as evidence that jobs were flooding into the Midtown submarket and more luxury housing was required.

Olympia Heights, the New York-based company that first unveiled Opus Place as a titanic, three-tower vision in 2014, came to Benmark after receiving notice from its previous bridge lender that its loan would not be extended. Benmark officials told the publication they visited the Midtown property, underwrote the loan, and executed it within 30 days.

But confidence in Opus Place ever beginning construction had waned to point Atlanta real estate observers derisively coined the project “Nopus.”

The $40 million in financing wasn’t a construction loan, but if it was, it would have covered only a fraction of the cost to build Atlanta’s tallest condo tower. Project heads estimated in 2016 (ancient history, at this point) the initial 74-story tower alone would require $300 million to build, necessitating a substantial number of condo presales.

The project's ceremonial groundbreaking was held just before Christmas in 2017, followed by years of empty promises and blown construction timelines.

By 2018, the brokerage attempting to sell the deluxe homes reported more than 50 units had gone under contract, priced between $400,000 and $12 million—the latter an unheard-of price for Midtown to this day.

The most recent, scaled-back plans for Opus Place called for a 53-story, mixed-use tower totaling 1.8-million square feet with commercial and retail space included. Building permits show no activity since 2020, and the unsightly property has largely been idle in recent years, save for a quick spate of groundwork spotted in early 2022.

Olympia Heights later tried to sell off part of the site. The company was also hit with a lawsuit in 2021 from Perkins + Will architecture firm for allegedly not paying invoices for design work totaling roughly $800,000.

The project's main pool would have dwarfed those at other new Midtown buildings. ArX Solutions/No2 Opus Place

Soil testing activity at the 14th Street site in February 2022. Submitted

No2 Opus Place’s bonkers amenities called for two pools, an IMAX screening room, a 40th-floor golf simulator, and an onsite “Lifestyle Curator” to advise residents on how to live their best Atlanta lives.

A $3-million sales center for Opus Place condos materialized onsite but little else ever did. So the project's tallest component to be realized was the full-scale model in that sales center—a luxurious mock condo with 10-foot ceilings.

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Depressing as it may be, November foreclosure filings involving closely watched intown development properties don’t end there.

As Bisnow Atlanta reports, Miami-based lenders BridgeInvest intend to foreclose on a significant portion of Newport RE’s South Downtown holdings next month, including parcels the German firm had begun developing into new uses.

Filings indicate 18 properties are in play, ranging from a parking garage and small commercial buildings to parts of Hotel Row. Newport officials early this year said they’d accumulated more than 50 parcels and lots in the district. In July the company announced it was cutting bait, leaving the South Downtown market, and offloading all of its holdings to seasoned Atlanta developers Braden Fellman Group. How potential foreclosures could impact that sale isn’t yet clear.

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An early rendering shows No2 Opus Place when it was designed to be taller—a 730-foot glass statement piece to rival the condo towers of Manhattan and Tokyo. Plans were later scaled back. Perkins+Will/No2 Opus Place

The revised 14th Street facade and overall scale. ArX Solutions/No2 Opus Place

Following dynamiting to remove granite, this site work in June 2019 had Atlanta development wonks feeling giddy. The project’s expensive sales center, since closed, is pictured just beyond the hole. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Soil testing activity at the 14th Street site in February 2022. Submitted

The project's main pool would have dwarfed those at other new Midtown buildings. ArX Solutions/No2 Opus Place

A second pool in the early designs. ArX Solutions/No2 Opus Place

ArX Solutions/No2 Opus Place

ArX Solutions/No2 Opus Place

ArX Solutions/No2 Opus Place

Subtitle Despite years of false starts, fabled No2 Opus Place never got off the ground

Neighborhood Midtown

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