ATLANTA | Development Thread V

[Sbgt92]

Originally Posted by bryantm3

oh thank goodness. maybe we can actually do something with that lot facing peachtree! that was a terrible location for such a specialized medical service.

The concrete vaults for the proton treatment rooms are going to very expensive to demolish. The walls are four foot thick solid concrete.

[RocketSurgeon]

Originally Posted by Sbgt92

The concrete vaults for the proton treatment rooms are going to very expensive to demolish. The walls are four foot thick solid concrete.

Yeah, if the current developer abandons it the best case is another comes along and finishes it. Otherwise it will probably be a very long time before it's redeveloped.

It's possible it will just pick back up eventually, but since it's been so long since any work was done and they're having legal problems, I wouldn't bet on it.

[Tuckerman]

Hard to believe that the Proton Center will not be developed in the long run. There are quite a few in major cancer centers around the US and several being developed. It would be very difficult to repurpose this building that is designed around high powered proton accelerators. They are big complicated machines.

[sbrptree]

Originally Posted by Nanosolar

Mims Park has launched:

https://youtu.be/zNTj7k_DD_Q

https://youtu.be/U05-1e-VgSw

Great project. Hope it helps Vine City and West Atlanta

[Nanosolar]

Here is part of the vision for the Westside. Can you say boom?

http://embedslide.net/slide-draft-land-u...-corridor-s5702d76458e6937e042ed518.html

[shivtim]

UDC permit filed for a 238 unit residential building at 465 Memorial Dr SE, right across from Oakland Cemetery.

Also, A UDC was filed for Atlanta's bike share system. Maybe this is finally moving forward?

[jsvh]

Mix of retail, offices, apartments planned for Mall of Georgia... | www.ajc.com

Plans submitted to the county last week call for 217,170 square feet of retail, 91,200 square feet of office space and a 134,460-square-foot hotel with 250 rooms. The development also would include 352 apartments and 40 condominiums.

Edit. More pictures & coverage: http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/...project-proposed-by-mall-of-georgia.html

[GeorgiaPeanuts]

Originally Posted by jsvh

Mix of retail, offices, apartments planned for Mall of Georgia... | www.ajc.com

Why? Why build something like this so far from the city.

[skyscraper_inspector]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaPeanuts

Why? Why build something like this so far from the city.

Agreed... More and more it seems like developers are just building islands of density in the metro region.

Leapfrog development at its finest.

[mikeatl77]

Originally Posted by skyscraper_inspector

It's totally still Portman-esque, yet I think the "Outdoor living room" element is a huge step forward from the Downtown Portman buildings.

https://whatnowatlanta.com/renderings-portman-holdings-georgia-tech-present-coda-tech-square/

Be a great place to drop an Apple store. Love what they did with the street level. Upper floors are growing on me.

[Street Advocate]

Originally Posted by shivtim

Also, A UDC was filed for Atlanta's bike share system. Maybe this is finally moving forward?

I saw pictures of the first shipment of ABS bikes on Facebook, yesterday.

[jpk1292000]

Originally Posted by mikeatl77

Be a great place to drop an Apple store. Love what they did with the street level. Upper floors are growing on me.

Amazing what's happening in Midtown. It's really hard to fathom how much more active the street life will be in even 18 months from now with all the ongoing development. In 36 months, it's going to be a premier urban neighborhood.

[ATL_J]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaPeanuts

Why? Why build something like this so far from the city.

Why not? Not everyone works in the city and considering the North Fulton / metro job core is one of the largest in the metro it would make sense to cater to those people. There are a lot of tech jobs in the area and I'm sure those people would love some sense of walkability without having to live somewhere that requires a 1 hour+ commute. You want less congestion, traffic, etc? You build development like this where people work.

[GeorgiaPeanuts]

Originally Posted by ATL_J

Why not? Not everyone works in the city and considering the North Fulton / metro job core is one of the largest in the metro it would make sense to cater to those people. There are a lot of tech jobs in the area and I'm sure those people would love some sense of walkability without having to live somewhere that requires a 1 hour+ commute. You want less congestion, traffic, etc? You build development like this where people work.

Walkability? This is more like drive thru urbanism. Isolated nodes of density you have to drive to that defeat the whole point of density which is to allow for alternative modes of transportation.

[ATL_J]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaPeanuts

Walkability? This is more like drive thru urbanism. Isolated nodes of density you have to drive to that defeat the whole point of density which is to allow for alternative modes of transportation.

I'm not sure I follow your logic. These developments are catered to people who work in the area. The other options right now are to live in other urban areas, and drive vast distances, or live in suburban areas with zero walkability. If you work in this area this development would be no more "drive-thru" urbanism than someone living in Virginia-Highland and working in Buckhead.

Living near a mall isn't my cup of tea, but this development would offer an opportunity for density and "walkability" in an area severely lacking in such and all the while having the vast amenities that a mall offers, which again, isn't my cup of tea, but would offer more restaurants and shopping than most "urban" areas of Atlanta. I would definitely see the appeal if I worked in the area and didn't want to commute 2 hours+ a day to live in a more urban setting (this also holds true for things like Halycon, Avalon, etc).

This might be "drive-thru" for you, but not for the people that end up living there. This isn't meant for someone in town to visit and drive to.

And as always, you have to start somewhere.

[TarHeelJ]

Originally Posted by ATL_J

I'm not sure I follow your logic. These developments are catered to people who work in the area. The other options right now are to live in other urban areas, and drive vast distances, or live in suburban areas with zero walkability. If you work in this area this development would be no more "drive-thru" urbanism than someone living in Virginia-Highland and working in Buckhead.

Living near a mall isn't my cup of tea, but this development would offer an opportunity for density and "walkability" in an area severely lacking in such and all the while having the vast amenities that a mall offers, which again, isn't my cup of tea, but would offer more restaurants and shopping than most "urban" areas of Atlanta. I would definitely see the appeal if I worked in the area and didn't want to commute 2 hours+ a day to live in a more urban setting (this also holds true for things like Halycon, Avalon, etc).

This might be "drive-thru" for you, but not for the people that end up living there. This isn't meant for someone in town to visit and drive to.

And as always, you have to start somewhere.

I think this type of development is consistent with what is happening in Atlanta and other large metros...suburban nodes are becoming more dense and compact. It seems like the logical next step in creating more attractive, densely-built suburban spaces that will (hopefully) one day be connected by transit, and this area might be a candidate for a commuter rail stop. I don't see anything wrong with it.

[mikecolley]

Originally Posted by TarHeelJ

I think this type of development is consistent with what is happening in Atlanta and other large metros...suburban nodes are becoming more dense and compact. It seems like the logical next step in creating more attractive, densely-built suburban spaces that will (hopefully) one day be connected by transit, and this area might be a candidate for a commuter rail stop. I don't see anything wrong with it.

The problem with retrofitting surburban areas with urban-like development is that it's being done backwards. Most suburbs in the US exist because freeways were build first. Car-dependent development then followed. Building a tiny walkable area in the middle of a car-dependent surburb is like trying to fix a broken bone with a bandaid. If we built mass transit like we build freeways, we would naturally have more pedestrial-oriented suburbs.

[Verge]

Originally Posted by jsvh

Mix of retail, offices, apartments planned for Mall of Georgia... | www.ajc.com





Edit. More pictures & coverage: http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/...project-proposed-by-mall-of-georgia.html

Shades of Tom Wolfe's 'A Man in Full'

[Frankster87]

Originally Posted by Verge

Shades of Tom Wolfe's 'A Man in Full'

Nice reference

[TarHeelJ]

Originally Posted by mikecolley

The problem with retrofitting surburban areas with urban-like development is that it's being done backwards. Most suburbs in the US exist because freeways were build first. Car-dependent development then followed. Building a tiny walkable area in the middle of a car-dependent surburb is like trying to fix a broken bone with a bandaid. If we built mass transit like we build freeways, we would naturally have more pedestrial-oriented suburbs.

Natural or not, whether retrofitted or "urban-like", it's better than letting them languish. These places are trying to improve themselves, not to do what's best for the city of Atlanta...and many of them pre-date Atlanta. I applaud any improvements like the one mentioned earlier that can help a suburban town become more urban and livable. I guess doing it backwards is the only option at this stage in the game.

Isn't it similar to what is happening all over Atlanta, but on a smaller scale? I don't see any difference in Atlanta retrofitting Midtown or Memorial Drive to become more urban/walkable...Decatur wants to do it too, as does Roswell, Marietta, and the Mall of Georgia area. We don't have a monopoly on creating urban/walkable spaces just because we're the big city, and this isn't unique to Metro Atlanta.