Vision for East Lake Commercial Village Gains Traction

TimFebruary 11, 2016June 10, 2021Comments Closed

In October 2012, City Realty was hired by the C.F. Foundation to help re-enliven four vacant corners at Hosea Williams and 2nd Avenue. After three years and countless proposals, the four corners are now coming together in what promises to be a lively community center containing offices and at least six restaurants. Below is the article about it that came out yesterday written by Josh Green for Curbed:

Plans to revive a tired East Lake intersection with several commercial ventures and spiffy new architecture are barreling ahead. All four corners of the intersection, dubbed “Hosea + 2nd” for its cross streets, are in for big changes, beginning with the northwest quadrant, where a former gas station is being transformed into the third Greater Good BBQ outpost, which plans to open this spring. Now, a development team that includes the owners of Fellini’s Pizza and La Fonda Latina has inked James Beard-nominated pastry chef, Aaron Russell, and his wife, Jamie Russell, to open a neighborhood restaurant and bar on the southeast corner of the intersection (see above and after the jump).

The concept, which will eventually be joined by two others on that corner, is called “Poor Hendrix” after the couple’s rescue dog. Expect “perfectly prepared classic dishes that compliment an affordable, but thoughtful wine list” and small plates in the bar, officials said.

Across the street, developers closed last week on the acquisition of a third corner (northeast), where plans are being finalized. The C.F. Foundation, an organization that’s worked to revitalize East Lake since 1993, has plans to activate the remaining southwest corner.

(You can read more and explore the site plans for all four corners at hosea2nd.com.)

A Look Inside Downtown’s FlatironCity

TimFebruary 10, 2016June 10, 2021Comments Closed

A new entrepreneurship hub in a 120-year-old downtown Atlanta landmark is changing how people work. Renovations are nearly complete at the historic 11-story Flatiron building — Atlanta’s first “skyscraper.” It was completed in 1897 at Peachtree and Broad streets near near Woodruff Park.

Called FlatironCity, the 40,000-square-foot building is becoming a collaborative workspace that’s a far cry from the gray walls and drab cubicles of a traditional office tower.

“It’s got a different energy. It’s alive. It’s dynamic,” said one tenant in the building, Thomas P. Ventulett, co-founder and CEO of Aegex Technologies. He’s also the son of the renowned Atlanta architect Tom Ventulett of tvsdesign.

The project marks a continued shift toward shared office space, meant to spark the creative spirit and foster big ideas from startups and freelancers. Flatiron draws some similarities to WeWork, a New York-based provider of loft office space that’s now launching in Buckhead. WeWork co-founder McKelvey was quoted in Bloomberg last year as saying: “All these buildings that we look at, towers which are full of these soul-crushing acoustic ceilings, and crappy gray carpets, and draining environments with fluorescent lights …no one wants to work that way anymore. … It has nothing to with the economy. It has nothing to do with anything other than humanity.”

FlatironCity echoes what McKelvey believes. It offers its tenants a plethora of amenities, from fridges stocked with Wild Heaven beer to the latest technology — from a 2-gigabit dedicated fiber optic line, 3D printer, to Microsoft Surface Hubs, large touch-screen computers for conference calls, brainstorming sessions and more. It also will soon house Atlanta’s only HoloLens, a technology from Microsoft that brings high-definition holograms to life. “I think our amenities go above and beyond,” said Flatiron City Manager Katie Ryan, formerly a brokerage coordinator for Cushman & Wakefield.

The ground floor will be open to the public and includes three concepts from Figo Pasta including Italian pasta, soup and sandwich, and coffee bars. Those should open around April or May. The first floor also boasts a Microsoft Innovation Center, which aims to be the living room of the building. It will host workshops for entrepreneurs in partnership with PASTE Magazine, and weekly CEO conversations through Georgia Tech’s Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC). “We want people to feel like it’s their home,” said Arun Nijhawan, managing principal for Lucror Resources. “I want people to feel like they own this building.”

A real estate fund led by Nijhawan bought Flatiron in 2014, paying $2 million, according to Fulton County records. Renovations kicked off in early 2015. “The whole building was basically falling apart,” he said. “We started to see what it could become. We looked at how office space is used, and we knew we wanted a place where people would be talking and interacting about their ideas.”

The renovation continues to unfold. Today, the building is about 50 percent leased. Its tenants include iFusion, Project Locker, TEDx Peachtree, Boardwalk Consulting, Preston Atteberry and Aegex Technology. The city of Atlanta also is bringing its Women’s Entrepreneurship Initiative (WEI) to the 11th floor of Flatiron. When it opens in next month or so, it will house 15 women-founded companies.

Unlike traditional office landlords, FlatironCity gives its tenants more options to expand and contract depending on their needs. “We always ask our tenants to give us their ideas, and we will evolve with them,” Nijhawan said.

Written by Amy Wenk and Douglas Sams for Atlanta Business Chronicle

Post Properties develops its first project in downtown Atlanta

TimFebruary 8, 2016June 10, 2021Comments Closed

After 45 years in Atlanta, Post Properties Inc. is building its first apartment project downtown.

Atlanta-based Post (NYSE: PPS) is breaking ground today on a 438-unit apartment building it calls Post Centennial Park, which will be in walking distance of two downtown MARTA stations and the Atlanta Streetcar. The $96 million project will include units that average about 808 square feet and roughly $1,620 a month, the company said. Ten percent of the apartments will be designated workforce housing, with rents averaging about $1,090 a month.

In a statement, Post CEO and President Dave Stockert said the project reflects the ongoing downtown Atlanta renaissance. Since the recession, downtown has emerged as a stronger center of tourism and entertainment, and Georgia State University has continued to expand throughout the area.

Post also maintains an important shift in residential development that started several years ago just after the recession ended. Since then, apartment developers have concentrated most of their new Atlanta projects in dense urban areas such as Midtown or Buckhead or neighborhoods including the Old Fourth Ward where people can live and work next to the Beltline. The areas are usually in walking distance of transit and near amenities such as shops or restaurants. Post is building its project near the Civic and Peachtree Center stations but also tourist destinations such as Centennial Olympic Park and Philips Arena.

Post and developers such as Paces Properties Inc. have bought into downtown’s potential to generate apartment demand, especially as Georgia State University enrollment grows and more students want to live downtown after graduation. Land in other parts of the city is also becoming more expensive, potentially making downtown a more affordable option for developers seeking projects in dense urban settings.

Written by Douglas Sams for Atlanta Business Chronicle