2010 in Sandy Springs: parks, bridges, a new ceremony
The property was supposed to go to the dogs. Vines and bamboo covered the 27 acres on the edge of Bull Sluice Lake. Nobody thought much about the land in an out-of-the-way spot at the end of beat-up Morgan Falls Road. City officials figured it would be a good place for residents to exercise their pets… A group of property owners in downtown Sandy Springs formed a new group intended to develop a common vision for the city’s commercial center. Mimms Enterprises CEO Lonnie Mimms Jr., who helped pull the group together, said the organization hoped to make the area more than a speed bump on the commute from homes in Cobb County to jobs in the medical district nicknamed Pill Hill. “How do you take it back from commuter traffic?” Mimms asked. “There obviously is no easy answer, or it would have been done.” On Sept. 7, the organization, which included developers such as Kirk Demetrops and Jan Saperstein, presented its plan to the city officials. Mayor Eva Galambos hailed the presentation as “the beginning of a new world.”… Originally Published in the Sandy Springs Reporter Read More...
read moreShipping firm forwards city $20M gift: Its Headquarters
JAS Forwarding Worldwide has purchased a 6.34-acre site on Barfield Road in Sandy Springs from The Griffin Co. for the relocation of its North American and worldwide headquarters from College Park south of Atlanta. The site, which is part of the former Cosmopolitan North office complex, includes three buildings at 6165, 6195 and 6205 Barfield Road that will be renovated — including new exteriors, building systems and interiors — for the freight-forwarding company’s 90,000-square-foot headquarters. Griffin Construction Services Inc., which along with its parent, The Griffin Co., is based at 800 Mount Vernon Highway in Sandy Springs, will be the general contractor of the more than $20 million state-of-art JAS corporate campus project, which will include the three two-story buildings, a walking and jogging trail, and lodging for some business travelers. Construction is scheduled to begin in the first quarter of this year… Originally Published in the Sandy Springs Reporter Read More...
read morePole Position
A recent run of good-sized deals and an improving vacancy picture have breathed new life into the once-moribund Central Perimeter office market. As a result, there’s more than one developer waiting for the right moment to start a new project — not necessarily wanting to build without an anchor tenant, but also not wanting to miss the boat altogether. The Griffin Co. Senior Vice President Kirk Demetrops said there is a lot of excitement about the Central Perimeter, which has 26 million square feet of office space… Originally Published in the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Read More...
read moreSandy Springs eyes remake of Roswell Road
Just as the city of Atlanta wants to transform its signature Peachtree Street into a Southern version of Chicago’s Magnificent Mile or New York’s Fifth Avenue, the fledgling city of Sandy Springs is trying to make Roswell Road its Peachtree… Kirk Demetrops, senior vice president of longtime Sandy Springs developer The Griffin Co., said Roswell Road would benefit greatly if Sandy Springs could get Fulton to re-establish the tax allocation district that was put in place just before its incorporation, or perhaps create a community improvement district for the corridor… Originally Published in the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Read More...
read moreThe residential plug-in
It’s called The Manhattan, a 27-story condominium tower that developers think foreshadows residential development in the Central Perimeter area in coming years. Southeast Capital Partners Inc. is building the 222-unit high-rise as part of Perimeter Place, the massive mixed-use project by The Sembler Co. across from Perimeter Mall… With two mixed-use projects in the works, The Griffin Co. is bullish on the Central Perimeter. “It’s always been a great office market but underserved residentially compared to everywhere else,” said Senior Vice President Kirk Demetrops. “People want to live close to where they work. Mixed-use is a way to underwrite these projects because you can deliver some parts now and wait on others…” Originally Published in the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Read More...
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