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Ben Carter's Vision Clearly Evident in Buckhead Atlanta

ATLANTA (Sept. 23, 2014) - Buckhead Atlanta, the upscale shopping-and-more district that opened last week, turned out much the way Ben Carter originally planned, the developer tells 11Alive.

In fact, "90 percent of it or more" aligns with Carter's vision for the eight-block development that had been home to Atlanta's rowdiest (to some), best (t0 others) bar district. This includes the general layout, which Carter created when he acquired dozens of parcels for the assmblage, the residential tower, and even the Hermes store, which Ben helped design with Bob Chavez, CEO of Hermes of Paris, Inc..

Ben offered his assessment of the former Streets of Buckhead in an interview with 11Alive Trending at 10 anchor and former Bloomberg reporter Melissa Long, who described the Buckhead native as "the visionary with the original plan for that prime retail space - that prime real estate."

Carter, who visited Buckhead Atlanta on its opening day of Sept. 18, said he's happy it's open. "I've been dying for it to get finished. It was great to see it and great to see that vision realized."

Carter now is focused on the restoration and/or renovation of 37 properties along Savannah's historic Broughton Street. He and partner Acadia Realty Trust will invest about $100 million in the project. Acadia also invested in the restoration of the Bowey in Manhattan.

 

Restoration Hardware to Open Flagship Buckhead Store Nov. 21

UPDATE (Nov. 13, 2014) - The store will open Nov. 21, according to Buckhead View.

UPDATE (Oct. 2, 2014): Restoration Hardware's Buckhead store, its Southern flagship, will open this fall (don't know more than that). The store is hiring leaders and sales associates now. Furthermore, the official store name is RH Atlanta, The Gallery at the Estate in Buckhead.

Here's a photo taken Oct. 1, from Shake Shack.

ATLANTA (July 9, 2014) - As the former Streets of Buckhead across the street draws closer to completion, one of the largest RH (Restoration Hardware) galleries is emerging as a vital addition to the Peachtree Road corridor in the heart of Buckhead.

The six-story structure rising from the ashes of the demolished ESPN SportsZone will come in at 56,460 square feet, according to the building permit reviewd by What Now Atlanta. That's a whopping 40 percent more space than at RH's flagship Gallery on Boston's Back Bay, which measure about 40,000 square feet. It opened last year.

Today, crews were busy working on the mammoth retail structure. The new Atlanta location will replace its former store at Lenox Square and be its first next generation Full Line Design Gallery, according to Zacks Equity Research. 

The store will open in October, same time as Buckhead Atlanta. Here's more on the new store from RH CEO and Chairman Gary Friedman:

Atlanta will present more than three times the product assortment of our Houston full-line design gallery and more than seven times the assortment of presented in our current Atlanta store. We believe this new format will generate revenues and earnings that will far surpass any of the previous design galleries we have opened and provide the proof-of-concept that supports our long-term growth objective. After visiting the site recently, I believe that the Atlanta gallery will prove to be our most revolutionary innovation to-date and will demonstrate the true power of the brand we have created.

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Thanks to Spanx, Buckhead Atlanta Becomes Bona Fide Office Site

ATLANTA (June 27) - The revived Buckhead Atlanta (formerly Streets of Buckhead) now is a legitimate office location in additon to high-end retail.

Bisnow Atlanta reports that Spanx Inc. will lease 100,000 square feet of office at the retail-heavy mixed use development on Peachtree Road, where Buckhead's best bars used to stand. This is a great sign for the Buckhead office market.

Atlanta Business Chronicle also reported the news, complete with a quote from Spanx founder Sara Blakely. "Like the Spanx brand, the Buckhead Atlanta space is innovative and unique,” Blakely tells the ABC. "We’re also thrilled to offer hometown fans a way to experience the magic of Spanx at our first [flagship] store.”

And because no good-news Buckhead story would be complete with a quote from former Mayor Sam Massell, The Atlanta Journal Constitution chimed in with a word from the unofficial mayor of Buckhead.

Massell told the AJC that the project, when completed, will be a destination and it will help Buckhead cope with its population growth. “People are excited about it,” Massell said. “It’s a big thing for Buckhead.”

In a classy move, the AJC credited Bisnow Atlanta with breaking the news about the big Spanx deal.

A  spokeswoman for project developer OliverMcMillian tells the AJC that no comment on all of this will come until Friday, June 28.

@AJC Taps Chris Quinn as Interim #CRE Reporter

ATLANTA (Nov. 16, 2011) - Residential real estate reporter Christopher Quinn, with assist from banking reporter Scott Trubey, will serve as interim  commercial real estate reporter at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Insiders say the AJC is committed to the all-important CRE beat and will name a permanent replacement for Rachel Tobin, whose last day the paper was Monday. Tobin, president of the Atlanta Press Club, left journalism for a public relations job at Midtown-based Jackson Spalding.

Tobin makes the move to PR after a career in newspapers that included stints at Atlanta Business Chronicle and The Daily Report. As mainstream media continue to struggle, public relations has become a nice career alternative for reporters who can wite and think critically. Journalists are exposed to a variety of PR pitching styles, and they know which ones are effective.

At Jackson Spalding, she'll represent OliverMcMillan's Buckhead Atlanta (Streets of Buckhead) and the Gulch project in downtown Atlanta.

As for CRE at the AJC, Quinn, right, will be busy. Residential real estate in Atlanta remain shaky and foreclosure notices are on the rise in Georgia. Not that media focus on the negative, but the residential malaisse will command much of Quinn's time.

It makes sense for Trubey to contribute, too, because commercial real estate is all about finance, income-producing properties and investment. Plus, commercial real estate has caused banks (especially community banks) more distress in the past three years than any other part of their operations.

We'll keep you posted on when/if a permanent CRE reporter is named at the paper that used to say it Covers Dixie Like the Dew.

Streets of Buckhead Name Hard to Remove

ATLANTA (July 20, 2011) - New owner OliverMcMillan will have a tough time getting people to start calling The Streets of Buckhead development "Buckhead Atlanta." Apparently the firm will have a tough time removing all signs of the former name, too.

A "Streets of Buckhead" banner continues to fly several stories in the sky. The sign is attached to one of the several cranes that have been mostly idle for more than two years. It's no easy task climbing up there and replacing the sign.

For that matter, some Buckhead residents say they're still waiting for OliverMcMillan to erect new, prominent signage with the Buckhead Atlanta name.

The new name has received mixed reviews since OliverMcMillan made it big rebranding announcement in May at ICSC's RECon show in Las Vegas. 

Late last month, Studley tenant rep Clark Dean discussed the new name in a blog titled "Lost in Buckhead" for Atlanta Business Chronicle's Real Talk blog series. In his blog post, Dean says a good name establishes context and promotes distinction. "And 'Buckhead Atlanta,' the new name for the “Streets of Buckhead” development doesn’t seem to do either very well," he writes.

Word is, Dean's blog post set a record for overall number of hits by a single post on Real Talk. So, interest in the mostly retail project's name is sky high. Problem is, so is the sign with the old name.

Leaving Las Vegas, Again, After Successful Trip

By Tony Wilbert, Wilbert News Strategies

LAS VEGAS (May 23, 2011) - As 30,000 people pack up and head to McCarran International Airport for flights home, it's time to reflect on ICSC's huge RECon show.

First, the overall mood proved to be much more upbeat in recent years. One developer from Oklahoma City, Okla., said he nearly canceled his trip this year because he had deals to close. Atlanta developer Jim Jacoby was in a great mood, celebrating his new deal with Porsche, which has committed to moving its North American headquarters to Jacoby's Aerotropolis mixed-use development adjacent to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

While in Vegas, a group issued an open letter calling for Porsche to consider leaving Georgia altogether because of just-signed illegal imigration law. Smartly, the automaker said, "Nein" and will continue with plans for the $100 million HQ at Aerotropolis.

As for Jacoby, he told ICSC revelers that the Federal Aviation Administration really likes Aerotropolis as a potential home to a 650,000-square-foot regional headquarters/training center. That will be another big win if Jacoby makes it happen.

Second, OliverMcMillan, new owners of the erstwhile Streets of Buckhead, used retail real estate's largest stage to announce a new name and whittled-down plans for the project. The new name "Buckhead Atlanta" didn't inspire too many people, so we've come up with some suggestions:

Peachtree at Buckhead (actual intersection of development); The Shoppes at Tony Buckhead; The Peachtree at Buckhead Avenue (Cousins Properties might have a little issue again of the project went the Avenue route).

Last, the Atlanta party of the year had to be Hartman Simons' 10th annual RECon bash. Yes, the law firm is a client, and no wasn't as glitzy as Hendon Rocks, but the party still raged at midnight. Even a fancy New York City marketer (Karen Fluharty) commented that the Hartman Simons party might be the social event of ICSC.

See you there next year.

Hedge Fund Manager Envisions 115 New Parks Emerging from Stalled Atlanta Developments

ATLANTA (Sept. 22, 2010) - For the past year, there's been low-level buzz in Atlanta's commercial real estate industry about a major fund that would replace a slew of failed developments with new parkland. While people knew the public/private effort's name, Redfields to Greenfields, they did not know a lot about the program, the guy behind it or how it would work.

Today's Atlanta Journal-Constitution includes a lot of answers questions people are asking. In an interview with AJC reporter Jeffry Scott, Georgia Tech grad and hedge fund partner Michael Messner explains the Redfields to Greenfields program. (Several blogs, hedge fund trades and Carson Matthews' Buckhead Blog also picked up on the story today. AJC reporter Dan Chapman broke the initial story in December.)

"A Fed-backed land bank would finance purchases of bad real estate at 0 percent interest though the banks," Messner tells Scott. "Nationally a $200 billion fund would stabilize the $30 trillion real estate market, producing a huge return on investment."

Messner specifically identifies Ben Carter's Streets of Buckhead development in his plan. "...finishing the Streets of Buckhead would cost about $1.5 billion," he tells the AJC, which recently reported that the project will be downsized. "If the banks financed Streets of Buckhead, Atlanta would just have more of the same: excess commercial and residential developed real estate. An investment in green space of that same magnitude would remake the entire region and stabilize everyone's property values."

Ultimately, if Messner and his wife Jenny can make Redfields to Greenfields work, the equivalent of 15 new Piedmont Parks would be created inside the Perimeter and 100 OTP. 

Messner's plan is grand and hard to imagine. Then again, if people like him didn't think big, we wouldn't have a lot of the landmark developments we take for granted.

Report: Ben Carter Hopeful to Restart Streets of Buckhead Next Month

ATLANTA (Sept. 10, 2010) - Developer Ben Carter is hopeful to restart construction on the high-profile Streets of Buckhead project next month.

 In an e-mail to the Buckhead Reporter, Carter says, "Please know that my team is working in the worst economic conditions, with no sign of improvement. We remain hopeful that our efforts will overcome all obstacles and start construction back up in October."

An October restart date would put the project on tract to open in March 2012, "with a roster of retailers previously announced and who for the most part have stuck with their commitment to open in Atlanta within our project," Carter writes to the paper.

So, it appears we have an answer to the most-asked about commercial real estate project in Atlanta.