08/09/07 - Atlanta reverses its population stagnation City has become a growth magnet

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 08/10/07

People are flocking to live in the city of Atlanta, fueling a residential construction boom and a second year of growth that is reversing a decades-long trend of population loss and stagnation.

The city's population increased 12,600 last year — the largest single increase in more than 30 years, according to the Atlanta Regional Commission.

"People are starting to get tired of the long commutes from the suburbs," said Steve Cover, commissioner of Atlanta's department of planning and community development.

"They're looking for communities where you can literally walk to anything you want — the park, the museum, the grocery store, Georgia Tech," Cover said. "People are looking for a change of lifestyle. Younger people, young couples, empty nesters, that's the trend that we're seeing."

The metro area's 10 counties are booming, too, surpassing the 4 million population mark, according to the population estimates released by the ARC on Thursday.

Henry County's growth rate remained the eighth-fastest in the country, as it has been since 2000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Henry added 8,800 people.

Fulton County added the most people in the region in the last year — 33,400 — fueled by Atlanta's growth. Gwinnett was No. 2, adding 20,600 residents.

But growth is slower than in the 1990s, when Gwinnett added more than 23,000 people annually.

"We needed to catch our breath and these numbers show we have done so," said Gwinnett County Commissioner Lorraine Green. "It's a natural slowing of the growth process. We're taking a much more proactive approach to saving green space and planning for the future."

New Atlantans are moving to glitzy towers in Midtown and Buckhead and single-family homes in places like Cabbagetown and East Atlanta.

Many are moving into new housing. The city issued 10,779 housing building permits in 2006 — more than any of the 10 counties. Gwinnett came in second at 8,956, according to ARC numbers.

Much of the new intown housing is condominiums, an alternative to life in the suburbs, said Sonya Moste, director of marketing and public relations for the Atlanta Development Authority, the city's economic development arm.

"Look at Atlantic Station. You can just look at the cranes," she said. "In the past, people had to move to the suburbs because there wasn't enough housing, and affordable housing in Atlanta."

The city's boom struck the ARC's number crunchers, said Mike Alexander, chief of the ARC's research division.

"We thought, 'Oh my God! The city of Atlanta is doing something!'"

Atlanta lost population in the 1970s and 1980s and stayed flat in the 1990s.

From April 1, 2005, to April 1, 2006, the city gained 9,500 people, according to ARC estimates. It topped that feat this last year.

"That's a monumental change," Alexander said.

The construction activity is all over, not just Midtown and Buckhead, but also older neighborhoods that were once stagnant, like Reynoldstown, Cabbagetown and sections of East Atlanta, he said.

The trend is good for the economy, said Moste.

"It's the population that creates the vitality and the vibrancy of a city. You want people on the street."

08/09/07 -

You Can Tell Area Bank Used To Be A Pizza Hut

May 31, 2006 | Issue 36•20

03/15/07 - Atlanta’s Population to Double within the Next 13 Years

Atlanta’s Population to Double within the Next 13 Years

02/04/07 - Beltline park plan a mystery

Beltline park plan a mystery 

By DAVID PENDERED
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/05/07

Jim Martin never expected the biggest proposed park along Atlanta's Beltline to be developed overnight. But now he worries that the site, which is an active quarry, will become a dangerous eyesore before the park is built.

"The Beltline planners talk about what it will be in 20 years," said Martin, who chairs a neighborhood planning unit that borders the planned park near the railroad yards in northwest Atlanta. "So the question is: What happens between then and now? I've heard there's already illegal dumping, [and] it could attract a lot of homeless people."

Lots of Atlanta residents have similar questions about the planned Westside Park. But answers have been slow in coming. What's known is that the park will house a drinking water reservoir, and possibly a recreational lake. Beyond that, no plans for the park have been made public since Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin announced in January 2006 that it will become the Beltline's prime jewel.

Fulton County Commissioner Emma Darnell, who represents the area, said her constituents repeatedly ask for updates on the park. She's at a loss to offer specific information, even though she serves on the boards of the city's development arm, Atlanta Development Authority, and the city's entity that's overseeing Beltline planning, Atlanta Beltline Inc.

"The No. 1 interest of folks in the area near and around the quarry is what's going on," Darnell said. "That's the big concern right now. Talk to anyone at random in those neighborhoods and they don't have a clue as to what's going on. The city of Atlanta should be able to answer all those questions."

Truth is, all that's certain at this point is that the park is supposed to become a regional attraction, much like Piedmont Park, Atlantic Station and Centennial Olympic Park. Most of the Beltline will be paid for with a projected $1.7 billion in future property taxes collected by three local entities — Atlanta City Council, the Atlanta school board and Fulton County's Board of Commissioners.

The Trust for Public Land removed about 18,000 tires from a 10-acre site next to the quarry it recently sold to Atlanta, said Jim Langford, TPL's executive director.

But the planning process for the 140-acre park isn't to start until at least April, said Tina Arbes, chief financial officer of Atlanta Beltline Inc. Planning for the reservoir is to begin about the same time, said Janet Ward, spokeswoman for the city's Department of Watershed Management.

Arbes said the park could encompass 230 acres within five years, as more land is purchased. Local residents will be involved, but how that will happen has yet to be worked out, she said.

"We recognize the Westside Park is an extremely important component of the Beltline and we have every intention of making sure community involvement is part of the process," Arbes said. "The goal is to have some components of the park available within the next several years."

The company that mines the quarry, Vulcan Materials Co., has until mid-2008 to shut down and vacate. The company met with the city's lawyers and parks officials in November to talk about what Vulcan can do to make it easier for the site to be shaped into a park, said Jimmy Fleming, Vulcan's manager of governmental affairs. More talks are to be scheduled, he said.

Vulcan is required by state law to return the site to some useful form, Fleming said. That means stabilizing disturbed soil and planting vegetation, he said. It only makes sense to groom the ground according to the overall plans for the park, he said.

"The reality hasn't been determined yet," he said. "We don't want to do things the city would have to undo."

12/20/06 - Industrial area poised for new development

Industrial area poised for new development

Atlanta Business Chronicle - December 15, 2006

by Lisa R. Schoolcraft

Staff writer

A heavily industrial area of northwest Atlanta that lies between Midtown's new Atlantic Station development and booming Buckhead may be on the verge of a wave of redevelopment.

Prolific condominium developer Jim Borders, CEO of Novare Group Inc., has locked up several blocks along Howell Mill Road with an eye toward a future mixed-use project.

And real estate services firm Carter has signed Piedmont Hospital as lead tenant for a planned, 275,000-square-foot class A medical office building at Howell Mill Road and Interstate 75 -- part of a larger mixed-use development at the site.

The planned development comes on the heels of The District at Howell Mill, a 300,000-square-foot Wal-Mart anchored shopping center that Atlanta-based Selig Enterprises Inc. opened this fall.

The new shopping center is spurring more commercial and residential interest in the area.

"There are some areas that need one event to pull them onto the radar screen," said Ralph Williams, who oversees the marketing and sales of more than $150 million in townhouses for Paces Ferry Realty. "The Selig redevelopment has had a huge impact on that area."

Novare purchased 1950 Howell Mill Road, roughly 5 acres, Aug. 30 for $6.7 million, according to Alan Wexler, president of Databank Inc., a commercial real estate research firm.

The company is working to assemble the blocks from the U.S. Post Office site to the corner where McDonald's sits, roughly bounded by Collier, Howell Mill, Emery and Beck streets, said Borders.

"We do think it is a redevelopment site in the future," Borders said. The time frame could be anywhere from two to 10 years because of the long-term leases held by the post office and McDonald's. "For now we're going to be landlords, but next year we will have conversations with the neighborhoods and post office."

Any redevelopment of the site would have "a significant neighborhood component," he said. Currently, the site's zoning does not allow for a lot of housing and Novare would try to rezone it for that use.

"There could be an office component there," Borders said. "The zoning allows for more office [space] than it does residential."

Changing landscape

Selig Enterprises didn't seek out the site that would eventually become The District at Howell Mill, one of the company's largest developments.

Post Properties Inc. (NYSE: PPS) had it first, then sold it to another Atlanta-based company, The Home Depot Inc. (NYSE: HD), said Scott Selig, vice president of the privately held Selig Enterprises.

The proposed Home Depot "got blasted by the neighborhood" when Selig Enterprises was brought in to try to make the retail site work, he said. The company worked for eight years, first with Home Depot, then Costco Wholesale Corp., and finally Wal-Mart Stores Inc. before bringing the retail center to life.

Selig Enterprises felt the site was worth a gamble.

"On Howell Mill Road you weren't going to find 18 acres like that and have all that frontage between Howell Mill and Northside [Drive]," Selig said. "That's an up-and-coming area. The demographics are changing."

Home buyers are starting to take notice of the area that's being called "Midtown West" because "it is one of the only areas where you can get into the city for a decent price," said Leslie N. Woodie, an agent with Harry Norman, Realtors, who lives in the Whitley Heights neighborhood, near Marietta Boulevard and Chattahoochee Avenue.

The neighborhoods of Underwood Hills, Springlake, Collier Hills, Windsor Hills and Loring Heights offer older homes selling in the $200,000s, she said. Newer homes in Adams Crossing start in the $300,000s.

The majority of homes in the area were built in the 1960s "and offer some of the best value in the city," Woodie said. "This is a heavily industrial area and people don't realize there is residential behind and in between. What I like about my neighborhood is when the industrial employees go home, it's nice and quiet here."

Bolton Academy is a new school in the area, catering to many of the younger families moving in with children, she said.

"What you are seeing is 2-bedroom, 1-bath or 2-bedroom, 2-bath homes selling at prices never seen before," Williams said.

Selig's The District at Howell Mill wasn't the only factor in making those neighborhoods more desirable, "but it does bring retail near to you and people make housing decisions based on how they are going to live there," Williams said. "Retail plays a part in that."

Edens & Avant also plans to redevelop a shopping center at Moores Mill and Bolton roads. However, Julie Culbreath, a spokeswoman for the privately held developer, said it was not ready to discuss the plans for Moores Mill Crossing.

All that change will drive other development, such as the Novare project.

"Our history has been developing on Peachtree Street, but we like to look at great urban sites," Borders said. "Frankly, we've been looking at this [Collier and Howell Mill] site for several years."

What makes the Midtown West area ripe for redevelopment is its great neighborhoods and relatively low density as an urban center, Borders said.

With Atlantic Station just a few miles from the District at Howell Mill, big-box retail is in place, Selig said. He expects Howell Mill Road will begin to see trendy boutique retail.

"For the most part, the big parcels are accumulated and accounted for," Selig said. "I think you are going to start seeing some of the trendy stores come and infill between these big centers."

12/06/06 -

Business Card Confirms Real-Estate Salesman Is Eddie Money

December 5, 2006 | Issue 39•04

STOCKTON, CA—The suspicions of house hunters Paul and Gail Barnett were confirmed Tuesday when a business card revealed that the Century 21 agent showing them a two-bedroom split-level ranch was indeed rocker Eddie Money. "He looked just like the guy who sang 'Two Tickets To Paradise,' but I figured it must just be somebody who resembles him," Gail said. "But then, right there on the card, it said 'Edward Money.'" Gail praised Money for his thoroughness and professionalism.

09/30/06 -

Wayne Mason drops Beltline plans

Atlanta Business Chronicle - September 21, 2006

by Jill Lerner

Staff Writer

Developer Wayne Mason, owner of a five-mile stretch of the proposed Beltline project, has pulled his rezoning application -- and with it, his offer to donate 46 acres of land to the city for future Beltline use.

The Beltline is a proposed 22-mile loop of former rail line in the city that planners hope to turn into parks, trails and transit.

Mason needed zoning approvals to build the residential units he claimed were necessary, in order for his donation offer to make fiscal sense.

On Sept. 19, the city of Atlanta proposed that Mason's group trade its 66 acres in exchange for development rights.

In June, Mason, who was frustrated by what he claimed was the Atlanta Development Authority's disregard for his input in the planning process, told Atlanta Business Chronicle that if his NorthEast Atlanta Beltline Group LLC withdrew its application, it would consider selling the land.

Mason, a Gwinnett County developer who controls land near 10th St. and Monroe Drive next to Piedmont Park and, through a partnership, at Amsterdam Walk, submitted a rezoning proposal that calls for just under 3,100 residential units -- including 750 units in two high-rise towers near Piedmont Park.

"After nearly two years, we have every reason to be skeptical of the entire Beltline project and we have serious questions about its feasibility," Mason said in a statement. "To realize the Beltline, there has to be property ownership. Given the city's lack of ownership of any land in the 22 mile Beltline, their lack of money to buy the land and the highly speculative nature of their proposal to us, we realize that like other visions, this one is unlikely to sustain itself."

In a statement, Mayor Shirley Franklin said the Beltline will happen, "make no mistake."

08/24/06 -

August 24, 2006
Written by Bailey Webb

What’s Another Billion Between Friends? Equity Office Puts Up More For-Sale Signs

Office REIT Restates Amount of Assets Planned for Disposition, Adding Another Billion Dollars Worth and Taking a $185 Million Charge in Third Quarter

191 Peachtree, which accounts for 65% of a $185 million impairment charge EOP will take in the third quarter.

Keeping its fingers crossed that investor demand for U.S. office property maintains its torrid pace, Chicago-based Equity Office Properties Trust (NYSE: EOP) announced plans to add another billion dollars in assets to those it plans to sell by the end of 2007.

The company now proposes to trim $3 billion to $3.5 billion worth of buildings from its portfolio, up from the $2 billion to $2.5 billion level it stated just three weeks ago. EOP said it expects to record more than $700 million in gains from selling assets during that timeframe.

Earlier this month, EOP announced that it planned to exit the Atlanta market, where it owns more than 7 million square feet of office space. Other markets it singled out for dispositions include Chicago, Denver and Northern California.

With the sales, EOP does not plan to pay a special dividend and does not expect the loss of revenue from the sold assets to dilute the company’s stock value over time.

"We continue to encounter exceptionally strong demand for office assets at very attractive pricing," Richard Kincaid, Equity Office’s president and chief executive officer, said in a prepared statement. "As a result, we have increased our pipeline and extended the timeframe of our previously planned dispositions. We will continue to leverage market conditions, and our level of sales may fluctuate in response to changing opportunities. Current market conditions offer us the opportunity to maximize value and further strengthen our portfolio."

The same week that EOP announced it was pulling out of Atlanta, it announced its first disposition there, a building swap with Cousins Properties (NYSE:CUZ) where Cousins would acquire EOP’s 191 Peachtree building in downtown Atlanta for $153 million (approximately $127 per square foot) and EOP would acquire Cousins’ Frost Bank Tower in Austin, Texas, for $188 million (approximately $354 per square foot).

The 191 Peachtree sale accounts for 65% of a $185 million, or $.46 per diluted share, non-cash impairment charge EOP will take in the third quarter that will hit FFO and net earnings.

Analysts estimate that EOP's Atlanta portfolio represents close to $1 billion of the total it plans to sell. The company is expected to try and find a single buyer for its Atlanta buildings, which include the 23-building, three million-square-foot Perimeter Center office complex valued at approximately $540 million, the 774,000-square-foot Promenade II office tower valued at $159 million, the 424,0000-square-foot Prominence in Buckhead building valued at $106 million, the 433,000-square-foot 200 Galleria valued at $82 million, the five-building, 390,000-square-foot Lakeside Office Park valued at $58 million, and the two-building, 600,000-square-foot Central Park office complex valued at $12 million.

Analysts had mixed reviews over Thursday’s announcement, but many praised the company for selling some assets in the current cycle and taking advantage of prices at historically high levels. Some responded with little enthusiasm, though.

"We continue to view execution of large-scale corporate and portfolio restructurings as expensive, that drag on earnings and seldom turn out as budgeted," stated UBS analyst Jamie Feldman in a note issued Thursday.

Feldman suggested that EOP would be better off concentrating on leasing its buildings. Job growth has fueled a rebound in many major office markets. Feldman was especially critical of the $185 million charge, which he called a "destruction in value" because it reflected 191 Peachtree’s value after depreciation compared with its actual sales price.

Thursday’s announcement had little effect on EOP’s stock price, as EOP closed at $36.98, down $.06 from Wednesday’s close.

01/12/06 - Analytics

Vacant Space for Atlanta Office Market Historical Analysis, All Classes

Commercial Real Estate