ATLANTA | Development Thread V

[cabasse]

if this all pans out, we're going to be seeing a ton of cranes in a bit. i'm a little shocked at how quickly the pace changed. it seemed like the end was nigh just a few years ago.

[thebigATL]

Originally Posted by cabasse

if this all pans out, we're going to be seeing a ton of cranes in a bit. i'm a little shocked at how quick the pace changed. it seemed like the end was nigh just a few years ago.

You've got that, right!!!Around the middle or the end of this year, it will be time to go up to next level, no more 10,20,30 stories,its going to be 40,50 and 60+ stories with ground level retail space. I wish they could have brought back Atlanta International Wholesale Tower; 2014 ft and that was proposed in the 80's

[1lifealex]

First Streetcar arrived in Atlanta today http://www.11alive.com/news/article/321903/40/Atlantas-first-streetcar-arrives

[thebigATL]

Originally Posted by 1lifealex

First Streetcar arrived in Atlanta today http://www.11alive.com/news/article/321903/40/Atlantas-first-streetcar-arrives

ATLANTA -- Atlanta's first streetcar of the century arrived downtown on Monday.

Another car will arrive on Tuesday, two more will be in Atlanta in March. Each car seats 200 people. The fleet of streetcars will begin a test run downtown in April.

The track is about 90 percent complete. The overhead wiring system needs to be finished to power the cars electrically. Crews said the new cars are quiet and not like streetcars of the past.

"This is the beginning of a new era in Atlanta's transportation history," said Atlanta City Councilmember Kwanza Hall. "What we're trying to do is begin to build transportation around a new mode of getting people around."

The first ticket will be sold in late spring.

Each Car seats 200 people wow!!! Not bad At all, and they finally listening to the people "What we're trying to do is begin to build transportation around a new mode of getting people around" I hope they can put this through out the city almost on every street.

[Libertarian]

200-person streetcars in those little streets is absolutely crazy; that scale is good for light rail needs with less frequency and fewer stops but not streetcars. Streetcars in downtown Atlanta are a good idea but need to be about 60-capacity with more frequent runs. What is in New Orleans would be about the right size.

[bigstick]

Originally Posted by micropundit

Curbed Atlanta has compiled a list of the current proposed Midtown towers-note that in the comment section , 2 more are noted: The 26 story Georgia Tech tower and the 5th and Peach condos- and states that" If our calculations are accurate, roughly 400 stories of new residential, office, hotel and retail space have been proposed in the last few months, promising a true vertical jolt to the Midtown skyline — if the projects actually come to fruition".

http://atlanta.curbed.com/archives/2014/...er-bonanza-continues-in-midtown.php#more

Amazing.

[kamden99]

A few updates from my side of Midtown:

Viewpoint retail renovations - the street level renovations & buildout are moving along. Workers have erected scaffolding & are peeling back the old skin of the street level retail. Not sure how long this is going to take, but it I'm thinking they should be complete by the Spring. Starbucks at 7th will be moving into the adjacent retail space at Viewpoint once this is finished. From what I can tell, workers are already putting up the interior walls for the temp Starbucks. On the other end of the retail strip, workers have demolished the brick wall in sections where the proposed "Sprouts" urban market/grocery store will go. I'm very curious to see how the plaza & small surface parking lot ends up looking.

811 Peachtree - workers have been surveying the property & taking soil samples. The construction trailer for Skyhouse South (now open) has been removed as well.

[forj]

200 people per streetcar is kindof ridiculous and unnecessary. there is no way those things are going to be full ever.

[thebigATL]

Originally Posted by forj

200 people per streetcar is kindof ridiculous and unnecessary. there is no way those things are going to be full ever.

Yes it will, Downtown will just have to be more dense, and if you think so you have to look at all these huge festivals we have like at centennial, georgia dome and phillips to add on to that it you have students all over downtown majority Ga state students, then you have people that work in downtown as you know...

[ATLmangum]

Originally Posted by kamden99

A few updates from my side of Midtown:

Viewpoint retail renovations - the street level renovations & buildout are moving along. Workers have erected scaffolding & are peeling back the old skin of the street level retail. Not sure how long this is going to take, but it I'm thinking they should be complete by the Spring. Starbucks at 7th will be moving into the adjacent retail space at Viewpoint once this is finished. From what I can tell, workers are already putting up the interior walls for the temp Starbucks. On the other end of the retail strip, workers have demolished the brick wall in sections where the proposed "Sprouts" urban market/grocery store will go. I'm very curious to see how the plaza & small surface parking lot ends up looking.

811 Peachtree - workers have been surveying the property & taking soil samples. The construction trailer for Skyhouse South (now open) has been removed as well.

I think once they remove that billboard it will be safe to say this project is a go!

[Ant131531]

I'm trying to figure out what exactly happened to the proposal at 5th and Peachtree...honestly a project I personally look forward to seeing moving forward.

[ChrisInmanPark]

New apartments finally coming to Downtown?

http://www.bisnow.com/commercial-real-estate/atlanta/895-legacy-to-do-apartments/

[Terminus]

Originally Posted by ChrisInmanPark

New apartments finally coming to Downtown?

http://www.bisnow.com/commercial-real-estate/atlanta/895-legacy-to-do-apartments/

I'm glad this finally broke. While it's still in the formative stages, I give it an 90% change of happening.

There are several other new construction apartment deals underway in the Downtown core. I know of two planned adaptive re-uses too.

We should see a doubling of the population living within the core within 3 years.

NOTE: By "core" I mean the area west of the Connector, north of I-20, east of GWCC, and south of Ivan Allen Jr. Boulevard.

[micropundit]

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that The New York Stock Exchange, an institution that has long been at the heart of downtown Manhattan's identity, is considering a reduction of its presence there as its new parent company cuts jobs and moves positions out of the city.

The Atlanta-based Intercontinental Exchange Group Inc., which acquired the exchange last year for more than $8 billion, has been trying to sell some of the NYSE's businesses and is moving some of its operations to Atlanta. The NYSE still employs hundreds of workers in its downtown complex that includes its landmark headquarters at 11 Wall St. and space it leases in the building next door at 20 Broad St.

Now the parent company, known as ICE, is trying to decide whether to keep the office space in 20 Broad when that lease expires in 2016, according to a person familiar with the matter. Another option under consideration is to reduce the amount of space it leases there. The NYSE has a lease for 381,000 square feet at 20 Broad, according to an ICE regulatory filing. A spokeswoman for ICE declined to comment.




http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303491404579389382818517954

[thebigATL]

Originally Posted by micropundit

The Wall Street Journal is reporting that The New York Stock Exchange, an institution that has long been at the heart of downtown Manhattan's identity, is considering a reduction of its presence there as its new parent company cuts jobs and moves positions out of the city.

The Atlanta-based Intercontinental Exchange Group Inc., which acquired the exchange last year for more than $8 billion, has been trying to sell some of the NYSE's businesses and is moving some of its operations to Atlanta. The NYSE still employs hundreds of workers in its downtown complex that includes its landmark headquarters at 11 Wall St. and space it leases in the building next door at 20 Broad St.

Now the parent company, known as ICE, is trying to decide whether to keep the office space in 20 Broad when that lease expires in 2016, according to a person familiar with the matter. Another option under consideration is to reduce the amount of space it leases there. The NYSE has a lease for 381,000 square feet at 20 Broad, according to an ICE regulatory filing. A spokeswoman for ICE declined to comment.




http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303491404579389382818517954

This is great!!! I'm surprise all these NY developers coming to Atlanta...I think their up to a plan???

[MNT]

I've lived in New Orleans; you don't want their streetcars. They're not much larger than buses and they are mind-numbingly slow. Their newest lines actually support modern streetcars but they built replicas of their 1930s era green cars so everything is kind of fake historic together. Larger streetcars make much more sense for real transit, not a tourist ride, and yes, they're designed to be operated right on streets.

[Libertarian]

I lived in Europe more than 10 years, been on trams including articulated and multi-car configurations in every major city, and a 200-pak would only be used in service on really major thoroughfares that ran through very dense populated areas over distances of at least several kilometers, and could run frequently so as to gain maximum ridership. It seems to me that such a thing running on a short one-way loop in small streets with long wait times, expensive tickets, and only sporadic tourist or student use, is a sure recipe for disaster. If they would use these units to serve Emory/CDC by way of Midtown and using the Beltline to the juncture with the existing legacy railbed to Emory, it might make sense, but not in a very small area of downtown. I love trams and wish I could be more positive about the prospects but I think the scale is just overkill. You don't want to emulate the Detroit people mover that runs empty.

[TarHeelJ]

Originally Posted by Libertarian

I lived in Europe more than 10 years, been on trams including articulated and multi-car configurations in every major city, and a 200-pak would only be used in service on really major thoroughfares that ran through very dense populated areas over distances of at least several kilometers, and could run frequently so as to gain maximum ridership. It seems to me that such a thing running on a short one-way loop in small streets with long wait times, expensive tickets, and only sporadic tourist or student use, is a sure recipe for disaster. If they would use these units to serve Emory/CDC by way of Midtown and using the Beltline to the juncture with the existing legacy railbed to Emory, it might make sense, but not in a very small area of downtown. I love trams and wish I could be more positive about the prospects but I think the scale is just overkill. You don't want to emulate the Detroit people mover that runs empty.

Oh, you've lived in Europe...you must be right.

[Libertarian]

Yes, well I do have that experience. Sorry. Maybe you should just address the concerns. It seems some of you are a bit defensive? If a mistake was made, let's admit it and try to find a fix.

[forj]

Ideally you would be able to scale the service. Say add an extra car to a train if there is a high volume event. I think the size of the trains on this initial track is excessive. Not to say it won't reflect the eventual need. They do have 4 complete trains ordered and available at start of service. I imagine all 4 won't be in service at one time but would expect three to be out there at the beginning if only to keep things quick and riders happy. The expansion of the street car lines can't com soon enough. We need the belt line loop with crosstown connections to this line, down north avenue and/or ponce, up peachtree, up Marietta to northside, and more. Peachtree streetcar all the way up to buckead would be transformative.

Another note. This is no Detroit. Atlanta is one of the largest transpiration hubs I the Western Hemisphere. We have the busiest airport in the world. We are a massive inland port for rail traffic and trucking. Some of the biggest Fortune 500 companies make their headquarters here and our metro area has seen some of the highest rates of growth continuously for years on end. We all want ugh dr density and better transit for our beloved city. It's gonna be a slow process but we must embrace these initial efforts. I am at king with Atlanta for the long run and everything I am seeing tells me we are headed in the right direction. We'll leave a great legacy and a more international and connected city for future generations. OK rant over : )