Midtown Atlanta Archives -

How do Buildings in Midtown Get Developed?

June 15, 2022 by Thom Abbott

Midtown Owners Manual for Developers

I’ve been selling real estate in Midtown Atlanta since 2004. I’ve seen some pretty dramatic changes to the landscape over those years…and I think there may still be a few exciting new things in the future. As you walk down the street, you might be wondering, how some decisions were made with regard to a particular building. And you are having an interaction with that building as you look at it, or even visit a retail establishment or enter the actual lobby of the building. And it could be a residential (condominium) building, a student-focused apartment building (think University House, SQ5, The Mark) or one of the numerous office towers that dot the skyline.

Atlanta has not had much of a flair to make their skyline stand out. Sure, you can pick up various buildings in various locations, but that’s the thing…they are all over the place. You have Downtown, Midtown, Buckhead, the Perimeter ( think Perimeter Mall area) and then the Cumberland/Galleria area. If all the buildings from those areas were grouped together say Downtown to Midtown, you could have a pretty cool looking skyline. But developers in Atlanta seem to like the 4 squares of glass. Many of the newer construction buildings are lack-luster…in my opinion. Go to a city like Miami and the skyline will blow you away. It’s like each developer it trying to outdo the last one. Sure, they have oceans and bays for views, so they have amazing balconies on all the buildings. (If you notice, in Atlanta, balconies are often pretty small…almost an after thought. 1010 Midtown and Plaza Midtown are an exception)

But all of this goes through a pretty extensive design review process through the City of Atlanta, and in Midtown specifically, you have the Midtown Alliance and their Design Review Committee (DRC). And they have a pretty good road map for any developer to follow….but they don’t really say “hey, would you make something that will WOW us?” Mind you, I’m a residential real estate broker, not a developer or builder. So I will be the first to admit I’m lacking in knowledge on this type of construction and all that goes into it. But, I can say, if I was building a building, I’d want it to be one that people driving on the Downtown Connector would go, WOW, WHAT BUILDING IS THAT!

But to help you understand some of the guidelines that the DRC works with, and expects developers to follow, take a look at the Midtown Owners Manual for Developers. It’s a pretty cool online book that will give you some insight into the design goals for Midtown Atlanta.

And maybe, just maybe one day, you’ll see that 40 story building go up, be it residential or office…and you will go WOW! I know I’m waiting.

StreetLights Residential Proposes 26-story Tower at Juniper and 5th

June 12, 2019 by Thom Abbott

Another corner of Midtown seems to be headed to the winds of change…..StreetLights Residential Proposes 26-story Tower at Juniper and 5th!!

First, to give you your bearings as to where we are talking about, take a look at the map to the right….

There may be one house in the blue square (at the bottom) that may not be part of the site.

This building will rise up some 299 “market-rate” residential units (would this mean a potential change to For Sale inventory would be possible?) over a seven-level parking deck to house some 568 parking spaces. It’s worthy to note that 150 spaces will be assigned to the adjacent St. Mark Church. There will also be a very modest 4,000 sq. ft of retail space.

The project went through the Midtown Alliance’s Midtown Development Review Committee this week. The DRC has some recommendations…

Moving the retail space to the corner of Juniper and 5th to take advantage of the pedestrian traffic along 5th Street
“strengthening the exterior design features” and work with the Atlanta City Design Studio due to the size of the building and the location next to the church.

Here is the initial drawing of the building….(dwarfs the church for sure!)

Currently on the site you will find….

The DRC report indicates the applicant will be back for another review after the above items have been addressed.

Stay tuned!

You can read the Midtown DRC report HERE!

Anthem to take Second Midtown Tower

April 19, 2019 by Thom Abbott

The kinda-giant in health insurance, Anthem, Inc. is going to occupy a bigger part of the Midtown Atlanta office landscape.

Anthem to take Second Midtown Tower

740 West Peachtree is currently under construction for the company, next to the almost complete Coda mixed use development. The addition of 712 West Peachtree and the creation of the Anthem Technology Center mean hundreds of Anthem workers will call Midtown Atlanta home by 2021. The second building is expected to start construction in a few weeks.

In an email quoted in the Atlanta Business Chronicle, Anthem confirmed this expansion:

“We have announced some future changes to our Atlanta-area office locations that will enable us to provide improved worked environments for our employees and enhance our strong collaborative culture, as we focus on creating a better healthcare experience for the communities and customers we serve. We have recently agreed to lease a tower as part of the new Portman Holdings development in Midtown Atlanta at 712 West Peachtree, and plan to consolidate our offices currently in Buckhead and downtown Atlanta to this new location when construction is completed in 2021.”

As stated above, this consolidation of offices in Midtown and Buckhead may, or may not mean additional new people looking to move into Midtown Atlanta to be closer to the new offices. But there are certainly many choices for just that. Just 4 (or so) blocks away, the new conversion, Harper on Piedmont will offer new condominium residences. Headed North from the site you will find buildings like Cornerstone Village, Viewpoint Midtown, Spire and MidCity Lofts. All of these buildings are an easy walk to the new Center. And these are just a few of the many options! The stars on the map below indicate the location of these buildings.

Anthem employees needing to travel are just a couple blocks from the North Avenue MARTA station for easy access to Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The location of the new building to MARTA, would also open up areas like Assembly Doraville and Chamblee with transit access to work.

We look forward to helping Anthem, Inc. employees call Midtown Atlanta HOME! For more information on the living options available in Midtown Atlanta, just contact us at 770.713.1505 or complete the form below!

Historic West Midtown Goat Farm Arts Center to be Redeveloped

March 25, 2019 by Thom Abbott

A significant redevelopment is scheduled for the Goat Farm Arts Center, an artist community tucked away in West Midtown that’s very well known for its creative tenants and 19th century warehouses.

The $55 million project would add apartments and artist studios to the roughly 10-acre complex, according to plans put forward to the Development Authority of Fulton County.

The proposal refers to for a four-story apartment building with 240 units, including up to 36 affordable units. The building would be a mix of studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units. The project would also include about 50 commercial artist studios and a surface car park lot with 300 spaces.

The investment would come to an area where several of the buildings were originally constructed in the late 1800s, have slipped into a state of disrepair and are losing their functionality and ability to operate safely, says a fact sheet on the project.

The developer is Goat Farm Development LLC, an affiliate of TriBridge Residential, according to the Georgia Secretary of State’s office.

The proposal is scheduled to go before Fulton County’s development authority on March 26. The county will deal with whether to approve almost $2.8 million in property tax abatements over the next 10 years.

Atlanta Business Chronicle first learned of plans earlier this year when tenants said they were told to vacate the Goat Farm by the end of the year.

Sources told ABC that the Goat Farm will have to temporarily close during the redevelopment.

Anthony Harper of Hollister Property Development, which owns the Goat Farm, in February said he could not comment. Harper could not be immediately reached on March 21.

Ben Hautt, co-managing partner of Stream Realty, which has developed adaptive reuse projects including the Ellsworth in the Upper Westside, shared his confidence in a project at the Goat Farm.

” Anthony and the Goat Farm were pioneers and will continue to be,” Hautt told Atlanta Business Chronicle in an email. “Goat Farm was mixing the arts, loft space, and community strategy way ahead of everyone else. No doubt this new development will be prosperous, too.”

A redevelopment at the Goat Farm comes as property values in West Midtown continue to soar.

There’s more than a billion dollars worth of new projects in the pipeline for the area, said Jim Meyer, CEO of Atlantic Capital Properties, which is part of the development team for a $150 million project called 8West that’s bringing 175,000 square feet of office space.

“West Midtown is the place people want to be,” Meyer said.

Other big developments include Star Metals at Howell Mill, Brady Avenue and 11th, where coworking company Spaces signed a lease, and The Interlock, which landed WeWork.

Midtown Atlanta 2018 Year End Real Estate Market Report

March 23, 2019 by Thom Abbott

Midtown Atlanta is most often referred to as the most walkable neighborhood in all of the Metro Atlanta area. And that certainly is true. Step out the door of your home or condominium, and lots and lots of restaurants, some shopping, two MARTA transit stations, theater and art museums are all within walking distance. Not to mention the numerous festivals that happen each year in Midtown Atlanta’s “backyard” …. Piedmont Park.

A majority of the living options in Midtown Atlanta consist of condominiums and apartments. The area known as Historic Midtown is the only area with single family homes.

For the purpose of this report, we tried to outline what is considered Midtown in the MLS, as indicate in the photo on the right.

Midtown Atlanta 2018 Year End Real Estate Market Report

Disclaimer: As we do this “15,000 ft overview” of the Midtown Atlanta market, we attempted to keep the search as indicate in the map above. So places like Ansley Park or Atlantic Station are NOT represented in this report.

Single Family Homes

Single family homes in Midtown Atlanta, are found in what is referred to as Historic Midtown, and area primarily defined by 10th Street, Monroe Drive, North Avenue and Piedmont Avenue.

There were 25 homes that sold in 2018, ranging in price from $500,000 to $1,680,000. CLICK HERE to see the report.

Condominiums/Townhomes

Midtown Atlanta is best known for condominium living. And the choices range for converted homes with only 4 units to major high-rise buildings with 400 homes! And as you can see in this 2018 Year End Report, there is a range of prices! There were a total of 667 sales in the area for 2018!

86 condominiums sold between $500,000 and above. This accounted for about 13 percent of the market

78 homes sold between $400,000 and $500,000 or about 12 percent of the market.

160 homes sold between $300,000 and $400,000, about 24 percent of the market.

343 homes, or 51% of the Midtown Atlanta condo market sold for less than $300,000.

82 condos sold for less than $200,000 or about 12 percent of the total sales.

CLICK HERE to see the Complete 2018 Market Report — $500,000 Plus

CLICK HERE to see the Complete 2018 Market Report — $400,000 — $500,000

$300,000 — $400,000 CLICK HERE

$300,000 or less CLICK HERE

What’s The Real Estate Market Like In Midtown Atlanta?

Midtown Atlanta’s real estate market is still moving strong in 2019. However, we are starting to see some homes remain on the market longer and not the past frenzy of offers (and sometimes multiple offers) within a day of going on the market. 2019 will also see the values moderate. This is a GOOD THING, AND NOT A SIGN OF ANY TROUBLE! A real estate market cannot continue at 6% or more appreciation each year. If that were to happen, Midtown Atlanta, or ANY area of Atlanta could quickly become unaffordable to many people. So we look forward to continued price and value appreciation, but just not as dramatic as we have seen in the past few years.

If you are looking to Buy or Sell a home in Midtown Atlanta, MyMidtownMojo.com can help!

Selling? Do you want to sell your Midtown Atlanta single family home or condominium? Call us today at 770.713.1505 to schedule a free market analysis of your home. Or, complete our Seller Information Form and we will be in touch with you!

Buying? Are you looking to buy a Midtown Atlanta home, condo or townhome? We can set up specific searches for you based on price, community or other specifics you may be looking for. In a competitive Seller’s Market, we can alert you of new listings within minutes of them hitting the market! Just complete out Buyer Information Form, or let’s schedule a time to talk about what you are looking for!

Contact MyMidtownMojo and Thomas Ramon Realty@Palmer House Properties at 770.713.1505 or Info@MyMidtownMojo.com for all your Midtown Atlanta real estate needs!

Midtown Owners Manual for Developers

Anthem to take Second Midtown Tower

Midtown Atlanta 2018 Year End Real Estate Market Report

Single Family Homes

Condominiums/Townhomes

Contact MyMidtownMojo and Thomas Ramon Realty@Palmer House Properties at 770.713.1505 or Info@MyMidtownMojo.com for all your Midtown Atlanta real estate needs!

PalmerHouse Properties