Atlanta Community Discussion Thread

[Street Advocate]

Soon 1105 WP will be visible from this angle. Pic found on Zillow

[Libertarian]

Condolences to the citizens of Atlanta on the death of Congressman Lewis, one of the last of his Era.

[smArTaLlone]

https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/...source=twitter

Atlanta-based Wood Partners’ plans to build a $100 million mixed-use project on a high-profile piece of property on Peachtree Road in Brookhaven appear to be stalled over a zoning dispute with the city.

The Brookhaven Board of Appeals on July 15 denied Wood Partners’ request to be exempted from having to bury overhead power lines as part of the company’s planned redevelopment of nearly five acres at 3920 and 3930 Peachtree Road in the heart of the city. The vote was taken during a virtual meeting due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The new mixed-use development would include nearly 300 apartments, approximately 17,000 square feet of commercial and retail space and 31,000 square feet of green space fronting Peachtree Road.

Wood Partners has already received its land disturbance permit, but the BOA denial could put the project on hold for two years. Other options are for Wood Partners to pay to bury the utilities so it can move forward with the development, or appeal the board’s decision to DeKalb Superior Court.

Cost to remove five Georgia Power utility poles on the property and bury the overhead lines would cost more than $300,000, according to Lem Ward of Dentons, the attorney representing Wood Partners. The power lines are distribution lines serving numerous properties in the area, not just his client's property, he said. Distribution lines are much smaller than transmission lines and carry low voltage electricity to consumers' homes and business, for example.

Removing the poles also means Wood Partners would have to place two sizable cabinets with emergency power switches inside them on the front lawn, ruining the look of the amenity and shrinking its size, Ward said. Georgia Power would also need some of the developer’s property for easements around the cabinets, resulting in an illegal land taking, he said. Ward also said the language is vague in the comprehensive plan about burying utilities.

[smArTaLlone]

https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/...using-foe.html

The spring arrival of Covid-19 played havoc with colleges and universities, as well as many businesses that support them, when classes moved online, students were instructed to shelter-in-place and activities were cancelled. While much uncertainly still exists about how the pandemic will impact schools and related industries in the 2020-21 academic year, some experts say one segment is holding its own: off-campus student housing.

The communal but off-campus housing segment is a fairly recent phenomenon, launching in the early 2000s as developers realized cultural shifts in how young people live presented an opportunity. Those outdated, bathroom-at-the-end-of-the-hall, cramped living quarters weren’t working for kids used to having their own rooms where they could sleep, study and live without others invading their space. And more than a few parents were probably sick of lugging beds and couches into unfurnished apartments.

Matthew Berger, vice president of tax and student housing for the National Multifamily Housing Council, said the industry has emerged in the last decade as a key aspect class, driven largely by supply and demand.

“Many people want the amenities of a purpose-built student building more than a conventional space, or they don’t want to live on campus,” he said. “You’ll probably get a nicer place in a purpose-built building, and as a student, you’ll be living with other students from your college or university rather than working adults.”

In student housing developments, furnished suites with shared kitchens and living areas offer the security and privacy of two to five individual rooms and baths, as well as amenities such as swimming pools, fitness centers and study rooms. Typical 12-month leases cover utilities, cable and internet.

“Bring your clothes and sheets,” said Wes Rogers, cofounder, president and CEO of Landmark Properties, an Athens-based company with a $5.7 billion inventory serving 40,000 residents. Since launching in 2004, Landmark has expanded into 32 U.S. markets close to top-tier universities; in Atlanta, Midtown’s The Mark and The Standard cater to Georgia Tech and Georgia State students. In a typical year, turnover is about 60% as students graduate and new ones arrive.

“Last year, we had a 4.2% rent growth with 96.9% occupancy,” said Rogers. “When Covid hit, we had little more than $2 billion construction going on, and I was nervous about whether kids would be paying or not. But they did: We had 98% collections for April and have had about 96.5% since. Students chose to stay in place with their friends.”

[smArTaLlone]

https://twitter.com/ATLPlanning/stat...63854142627840

[Libertarian]

The apartment fire in Buckhead should be a wakeup call. On Thursday 182 residents were displaced and lost everything. The politicians have allowed themselves to become pussycats of the developers. Such stick-built, cheap trash apartments should never have been permitted, and there are hundreds in the area. The rents are expensive yet the structures have fire fuel like a California forest. More such fires will happen on a regular basis, especially with the human element involved. Typically they start with smoking and kitchen fires.
At this point city council should require all recently built structures be retrofitted with fire retardant components. The work should be handled as like mildew remediation. Tear out the hazardous combustibles and start over.

[smArTaLlone]

https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/...nrollment.html

Georgia State University set new records for the largest enrollment and freshman class size in the school’s history.

Classes began Monday with more than 54,000 students enrolled this semester, compared to last year's record of about 53,000.

While university president Mark Becker expressed concern about the size of freshman enrollment due to the Covid-19 pandemic during an Atlanta Business Chronicle panel discussion in late July, the incoming freshman class at the Atlanta campus includes more than 5,200 students and is the largest, most qualified and most diverse group of freshmen in Georgia State’s history.

Last year’s freshman class consisted of more than 4,600 students, setting the previous record.

[cabasse]

Originally Posted by Libertarian

The apartment fire in Buckhead should be a wakeup call. On Thursday 182 residents were displaced and lost everything. The politicians have allowed themselves to become pussycats of the developers. Such stick-built, cheap trash apartments should never have been permitted, and there are hundreds in the area. The rents are expensive yet the structures have fire fuel like a California forest. More such fires will happen on a regular basis, especially with the human element involved. Typically they start with smoking and kitchen fires.
At this point city council should require all recently built structures be retrofitted with fire retardant components. The work should be handled as like mildew remediation. Tear out the hazardous combustibles and start over.

i would retweet this @ the mayor and city council if i could, though i doubt they pay much attention to any of it...

[smArTaLlone]

https://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/...Pos=0#cxrecs_s

A $73 million apartment development will add over 300 units along the Beltline’s Southside Trail, the latest in a slew of projects bringing new housing to south Atlanta neighborhoods.

Middle Street Partners, a Charleston, S.C., firm of former Greystar Real Estate and Wood Partners principals, will develop the 323-unit project on a nearly 3-acre site in Grant Park fronting the trail. On Tuesday, the firm received approval for a $3.2 million reduction in property taxes over the next 10 years to offset development costs. The Development Authority of Fulton County voted 6-3 in favor of the proposal.

Middle Street joins other developers on the 4-mile corridor, which is connecting the Southside and Westside trails and projects including Pittsburgh Yards, Murphy Crossing, The Met and Lee+White. The trail isn’t finished yet and already hundreds of millions of dollars of development is planned around it, including about 1,600 new apartments. For example, just a short walk from Middle Street’s planned project along Boulevard is a new $58 million, 263-unit apartment development launched by global investment giant The Carlyle Group and TPA Residential.

“The demand for intown urban housing in Atlanta is incredible,” Johnson Bazzel, a senior partner with Middle Street, told Development Authority members Tuesday. “We are increasing housing in a place where the city and the BeltLine (leadership) are focused on adding density.”

Density, parking and affordability were at the center of a debate about providing the $3.2 million tax break to Middle Street. Concepts for the new apartment development included a parking deck, but the downside meant fewer units and a potential eyesore along the Southside Trail, Bazzel told board members Tuesday. The BeltLine and surrounding neighborhoods did not favor a deck along the pedestrian corridor. Middle Street chose to build the parking underground, a more costly “configuration with the greatest density,” Bazzel said, adding that it was more “aesthetically pleasing.”

[Libertarian]

Atlanta success story

[Libertarian]

Peugeot announced in 2018 they would be locating their North American headquarters in Atlanta and start reimporting their line beginning 2026. Peugeot bought Opel from GM. They said when the new wave hits it will be serious and compete on price and quality. As of present of course no dealers announced, but hopefully some will start soon. Any additional thoughts?

[mousquet]

^ Really!? Wow, this is good news to me! You're the 1st to tell me about it! I hadn't heard of it in our local business news yet.
Lol, these forums can be informative sometimes, though...

This is good news because the PSA group (Peugeot + Citroën + DS + Opel/Vauxhall) is being quite healthy at the moment, trying to catch up on the German quality cars. That means they're finally going higher-end, better quality. Not too soon, huh.

I'll tell you about their current strategy in a couple of phrases.

1. The DS brand is supposed to develop their premium kind of vehicles in the future.

2. The Peugeot and Citroën brands should keep on manufacturing mid-range vehicles in the same fashion as your regular Chevrolet or Volkswagen, but they actually do better already! Their latest designs are more than interesting; I find them exciting. It might also be a bit more expensive by now, though, which is not necessarily a good thing when it comes to smaller cars.

And 3. Opel/Vauxhall should be their lower-end offer on the market. Even though originally German and manufactured out there in Germany, Opel has never been anything premium at all.

I always thought the Fr car manufacturers were pitiful wimps for not trying to implement anything serious in North America, so I wish them all the best over there in Atlanta.

[Libertarian]

Sir - typical American as I am I love all French...music, art, language, cuisine, architecture, design, engineering, and no doubt the people except certain arrogant corporate types de polytechniques (yourself excepted). Nice little culture and were I wealthy I'd live there. Very much looking to Peugeot coming in 2026. I will buy one.

[RATBOYKEV]

Post Midtown changing its branding to MAA Midtown after the latter bought the former four years ago. Wonder if this is the future of all Post Properties?

[(four 0 four)]

Any guesses as to when Dewberry will restart work on the Campanile Building? I sure am getting tired of looking at the disaster he's made of that corner.

I can't imagine how much money he's losing per month having it in its current state.

[Libertarian]

Atlanta Fed initiative

[Libertarian]

I was under the impression that garage apartments, basement apartments, subdividing houses into no more than three units, etc. are already allowed anywhere in Atlanta including Buckhead?
https://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta-new...JJONT3AM7TTUQ/

[NYbyWAYofGA]

Originally Posted by Libertarian

I was under the impression that garage apartments, basement apartments, subdividing houses into no more than three units, etc. are already allowed anywhere in Atlanta including Buckhead?
https://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta-new...JJONT3AM7TTUQ/

Great! This needed to happen, like, yesterday. It's a start.

[Libertarian]

One driving force facilitating the subdivision of properties is that everyone I know in Atlanta who owns a single family residence can no longer afford to pay the taxes no matter size of house or economic status. Few young people can qualify to buy a house...even with 2% mortgage rates.

[NYbyWAYofGA]

Originally Posted by Libertarian

One driving force facilitating the subdivision of properties is that everyone I know in Atlanta who owns a single family residence can no longer afford to pay the taxes no matter size of house or economic status. Few young people can qualify to buy a house...even with 2% mortgage rates.

Yea, that's one of the reasons a lot more people are choosing to rent nowadays.