City Springs to Life: Arts Anchor for Sandy Springs new city center
Demetrops is a former owner of the lot where the Adley at City Springs mixed-use project is being built within the City Springs district. He’s also now the developer of Alpharetta’s City Center, a similar downtown place-making project.He said City Springs should be a “tremendous asset for the city for years.” “With our … experience [and] involvement in town centers, we find that there is a desire to create an identity, or personality, for the town center. The Performing Arts Center and distinctive architecture of the entire project, in my opinion, are the unique features,” he said. Read the entire article here: Sandy Springs...
read moreCrocker Partners and MidCity plan Sandy Springs project along Georgia 400
Developers in Atlanta’s central Perimeter are drawing up plans for more projects, as tenants look to expand while existing office space fills up. The latest ambitions come from a joint venture between Atlanta’s MidCity Real Estate Partners and Florida-based Crocker Partners. The companies want to develop NorthPlace, which could include up to 370,000 square feet of office space. The 3.7-acre site stands at Barfield Road and Georgia 400 in Sandy Springs and just southeast of the new Mercedes Benz USA headquarters. The site has been a target of development for years. Crocker bought it in 2007, just before the downturn. Today, Barfield Road is part of an active corridor connecting Hammond Drive, Mount Vernon Highway and Abernathy Road, an area home to blue chip companies such as UPS, Global Payments, and IBM (ISS). Earlier this year, Mercedes Benz said it was relocating its headquarters from New Jersey to a site on Abernathy. Ashton Woods Homes also plans to convert the 76-acre site around the headquarters into a mix of townhomes, flats, apartments and retail. The development could feature more than 1,000 planned housing units. Anticipating that residential growth, NorthPlace developers have plans for ground floor retail. The site’s density can also be adjusted based on the needs of tenants, and it could accommodate build-to-suit projects from 20,000 to 100,000 square feet. “What makes us different is that we can dial up the density or go smaller,” said Kirk Demetrops, president and founder of MidCity Real Estate Partners. The joint venture has started marketing the property and needs significant pre-leasing before it would launch construction. Warner Summers – Architecture is designing the project. Across the central Perimeter, plans for new projects show how much demand Atlanta’s largest single office district is seeing from prospective tenants — and how much the market’s class A space is tightening. Overall vacancy is the lowest in over eight years, with class A vacancy dropping to 11 percent, according to market data. Roughly 2 million square of tenants in the market have leases expiring over the next two years, Demetrops said. Companies are also expanding. Atlanta Business Chronicle is reporting today Enterprise software maker VMware Inc. (NYSE: VMW) plans to expand its Atlanta-based AirWatch business — a move that would create more than 300 jobs. Palo Alto, Calif.-based VMware is said to be scouting the central Perimeter and north Fulton for at least 50,000 square feet of space. General Electric officials are also expected to tour buildings and sites across Atlanta as the company considers Georgia as a possibility to relocate its Connecticut headquarters. The Wall Street Journal recently reported a decision could come by the end of this year. Big blocks of class A Perimeter office space are drying up, as new development has been limited by tighter lending and rising construction costs. The last speculative office building to break ground in the central Perimeter was almost 10 years ago, according to data from real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield. One of the few class A blocks just became available after Newell Rubbermaid Inc. decided to move its corporate headquarters from one side of Georgia 400 to the other. Developers see an opportunity, especially along Abernathy and 400. Later this year, Hines plans to start a spec office project on 14 acres at Mount Vernon Highway, Abernathy Road and Georgia 400. Cousins Properties Inc., Ackerman & Co., and H.J. Russell & Co. also formed a joint venture to develop a mixed-use project on the same corridor. All this comes as rents soar to...
read moreIs a new city vision taking shape on Roswell Road?
Across the street, in the 6000 block of Roswell Road, developer Kirk Demetrops with MidCity Partners is requesting a zoning change for the property, where a seven-story office building and Bank of America stand. According to Demetrops, Bank of America has been issued a building permit to construct a new branch where KFC and Checkers were located, adjacent to the proposed development. If rezoning is approved by Sandy Springs City Council, the MidCity Partners development could include a mix of office, retail and residential. That project is scheduled to go before the Planning Commission on Jan. 15 and the council on Feb. 17. This Article Originally Ran In The Sandy Springs Reporter For More, Please Click Here and Turn to Page...
read moreYear in review: What 2012 was about, for Sandy Springs
In 2012, Sandy Springs began a time of rapid change. The city settled lawsuits that had dragged on for years, pursued economic development and completed a design of plans for what leaders hope will be a vibrant downtown… Major business news included Branch Properties’ decision to buy the struggling City Walk development, and Regent Partners has purchased the Concourse Corporate Center in Sandy Springs, which includes the iconic King and Queen buildings. The Sandy Springs/Perimeter Chamber of Commerce began promoting its initiative to turn the city’s famous “Pill Hill” into a Silicon Valley of medicine. Kirk Demetrops, president of MidCity Real Estate Partners, announced a $36 million development of seven medical office buildings at the northwest corner of Ga. 400 and North Hammond Drive. The city also hired an economic development director, Andrea Hall… Originally Published in the Sandy Springs Reporter Read More...
read moreSandy Springs project signals new cycle of medical offices
A local developer has announced a major project some hope could signal the start of a new cycle of medical office development in the central Perimeter market. Kirk Demetrops, president of MidCity Real Estate Partners, says the $36 million development will consist of seven buildings located in the northwest corner of Ga. 400 and North Hammond Drive. The complex also offers frontage on Barfield Road and Ga. 400… Originally Published in the Sandy Springs Reporter Read More...
read moreSandy Springs Business owners want more for Powers Ferry Landing
City leaders say the Powers Ferry Landing’s business district needs more encouragement and attention to get it out of its rut. Developers say the district has loads of undeveloped potential, but geography holds the area back. Many people aren’t aware Powers Ferry Landing is in Sandy Springs… Kirk Demetrops, a local real estate developer, said the interstate also provides challenges. “I think the traffic on I-285 alone caused this area to be more difficult to get to,” he said… Originally Published in the Sandy Springs Reporter Read More...
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