South Downtown Redevelopment

[L41A]

I remember and loved the vibrancy of this area when I worked there in 1990s. With all the locally owned businesses, corporate employees (Norfolk Southern, BoA), and federal government workers - the area was vibrant and its layout was great with the storefronts and good sidewalks.

I hope the redevelopment brings that vibrancy back.

[bryantm3]

The buildings were dilapidated, but we made it happen in the 2010s also; the Mammal Gallery, Eyedrum and Cat Eye Creative were frequent spots for me. They used the area they're now turning into the town green for acrobatics, flow, fire spinning etc. So the will was there, but it took a while for the developers to catch on and fix up the buildings.

Seeing them finally restore the buildings up is a good thing; many of the buildings were basically just hollow shells at that point, with only the first floor usable for pop-up events.

However, I hope the neighborhood keeps its character somewhat. Seeing them make room for Cat Eye gives me hope that'll be the case.

I don't really want to see it turn into an O4W-type situation where pretty much everyone and everything was displaced for the high-income corporate crowd. There are plenty of people already here who would like to see things get better, and get a chance to be a part of things rather than replaced.

Hopefully it'll be a good example of a place where creativity and diversity can co-exist with new development.

[testarossa50]

I miss the old Lunacy Black Market.

[ArchKid]

Originally Posted by bryantm3

The buildings were dilapidated, but we made it happen in the 2010s also; the Mammal Gallery, Eyedrum and Cat Eye Creative were frequent spots for me. They used the area they're now turning into the town green for acrobatics, flow, fire spinning etc. So the will was there, but it took a while for the developers to catch on and fix up the buildings.

Seeing them finally restore the buildings up is a good thing; many of the buildings were basically just hollow shells at that point, with only the first floor usable for pop-up events.

However, I hope the neighborhood keeps its character somewhat. Seeing them make room for Cat Eye gives me hope that'll be the case.

I don't really want to see it turn into an O4W-type situation where pretty much everyone and everything was displaced for the high-income corporate crowd. There are plenty of people already here who would like to see things get better, and get a chance to be a part of things rather than replaced.

Hopefully it'll be a good example of a place where creativity and diversity can co-exist with new development.

The new developer’s approach is mainly to restore the old buildings, which is quite good and not easy to accomplish. However, the previous developer, Newport RE, also offered valuable ideas. Olaf Kunkat, a professional architect who graduated from the Technical University of Munich, seemed to envision bringing a large residential population into South Downtown. He therefore engaged STUDIOS Architecture, known for its European design style, to carry out adaptive reuse and new construction. In their new plan, high-rise residences were grafted into the old buildings, achieving an organic integration of the new with the old—something that was actually done very well. From the new developer’s approach, however, it seems that the idea of embedding new buildings into old ones has been entirely abandoned. As a result, while many commercial spaces are being carefully restored, the lack of a significant residential population raises doubts about the sustainability of the commercial activity. In fact, Newport RE’s residential plan should not have been completely discarded; with moderate adjustments it could have been excellent. Now, the current developer’s development mindset leaves some concern about whether the project can withstand the test of time.

[ArchKid]

Originally Posted by smArTaLlone

The original intention and concept of this residential area were excellent, striving to create an environment that could sustain long-term vitality, while the blending of old and new buildings improved overall usability. However, if the high-rise buildings are too massive and too costly, they could easily be turned into mid-rise structures instead of completely abandoning the original strategic vision. Think of the commercial pedestrian streets in Melbourne and Sydney, where the street level is shared by trams and pedestrians, the ground floors are commercial spaces, and the upper levels are residential. That is how a truly sustainable mixed-use environment can be created.

[Sojourner_Terminus]

Ugh... thanks for reminding me of those towers. I had never been more excited for a development in my life. The promise of fixing up our old architectural heritage and packing on the residents in south downtown would have been unreal.

We're honestly so fortunate that the Tech ventures guys are managing to salvage this area, but thats all it is, salvaging. Without half a billion+ dollars spent on several new towers to add hundreds or thousands of residents, South downtown will rely on CY, day workers and tourists to stay afloat.

[bryantm3]

Honestly? I am glad this version of the plan got axed.

I'm all for housing there. But I am tired of the parking podiums, and the scale and architectural style of the new buildings was completely out of character for the neighborhood.

[Terminus]

Originally Posted by bryantm3

Honestly? I am glad this version of the plan got axed.

I'm all for housing there. But I am tired of the parking podiums, and the scale and architectural style of the new buildings was completely out of character for the neighborhood.

Agreed. Keep the podiums in Midtown.

We only have a few blocks of authentic, high quality urbanism left in the city. We need to treasure and preserve them - let the podiums happen on the ample remaining parking lots.

[smArTaLlone]

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/southdown...put-on-activity-7366169410425765888-SisD

[smArTaLlone]

This is tenant “Wave” One of Phase One. Phase One is between now and the World Cup.

Wave one of phase one includes all the tenants we’ve signed leases with where the astronomical goal is to get them open before the World Cup.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/tenant-wa...ingId=aZ9c%2FS6OUybB6NSxi%2Fe%2F7w%3D%3D

[smArTaLlone]

• Video Link

[MarketsWork]

Wow, very well done. Each of the project managers that Tim Wright interviewed knew their stuff and was very informative. Great background look into this exciting megaproject while stealing a glimpse into Atlanta's history at the same time. 46 minutes well spent. Thanks for posting this, SmArTaLlone.

[Martinman]

Really good stuff going on down there.

Having followed these developments for so long, it's easy to forget how dramatic a change all of this will be. Plus the fact of two huge developments going on at the same time adjacent to one another - I mean you couldn't have planned it any better.

[smArTaLlone]

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/southdown...across-activity-7407532778340319232-e95n

[smArTaLlone]

Progress on converting this to ~200 apartments is still held up in liens and lawsuits unfortunately.

[ArchKid]

https://www.instagram.com/p/DS2rva0kVwp/?img_index=1

Building a city is difficult, but destroying one is easy. South Downtown, once full of European continental charm, has now largely turned into desolate ruins. Shouldn't Atlanta reflect on its past movements toward urbanization and car-centric development?

[ArchKid]

Considered to be Atlanta's first skyscraper, the eight-story Equitable Building (1892, razed in 1971) was designed by John Wellborn Root in the Chicago School style. It was the first fireproof office building in the Southeast, and is the only building Root designed in Georgia.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DS7tIfhDgPe/?img_index=2

From the post above, it seems that Atlanta, in its modern architectural development movement, has demolished far too many exquisite buildings, essentially ruining an entire main urban area.

If these beautiful historic buildings had not been demolished, Atlanta's downtown would possess an exceptionally profound sense of historical accumulation and a rich urban sophistication. Yet now, in their place stand numerous ugly parking garages and vacant lots, along with some crude and rudimentary so-called mid-20th-century modern buildings. For the people of Atlanta, this truly represents a catastrophic crime against the city's cultural heritage.

[ArchKid]

https://www.instagram.com/p/DS6GUSBCa4w/?img_index=1

https://www.instagram.com/p/DSTPnlAidJj/?img_index=1

https://www.instagram.com/p/DSU4G68Djln/?img_index=1

Photos of before-and-after contrasts like those shown in these posts make one feel that many past urban decision-makers in Atlanta were truly destroyers of the city's cultural heritage. Their failure to protect and their inaction led to the demolition of numerous architectural legacies that should rightfully belong to Atlantans, erasing the cultural fabric left by the tide of history. This represents a profoundly irresponsible crime and injury to the people of Atlanta, with far-reaching consequences.

[smArTaLlone]

https://x.com/sodowntownatl/status/2006748462197649818

[bigstick]

Originally Posted by ArchKid

https://www.instagram.com/p/DS6GUSBCa4w/?img_index=1

https://www.instagram.com/p/DSTPnlAidJj/?img_index=1

https://www.instagram.com/p/DSU4G68Djln/?img_index=1

Photos of before-and-after contrasts like those shown in these posts make one feel that many past urban decision-makers in Atlanta were truly destroyers of the city's cultural heritage. Their failure to protect and their inaction led to the demolition of numerous architectural legacies that should rightfully belong to Atlantans, erasing the cultural fabric left by the tide of history. This represents a profoundly irresponsible crime and injury to the people of Atlanta, with far-reaching consequences.

This makes me physically nauseated. Also, Union Station and the grandiose Terminal Station,