CarterBlog

Carter Represents SunTrust Bank in Headquarters Move to Midtown

ATLANTA (August 23, 2011) – SunTrust Bank has signed a 95,000-square-foot lease at Campanile in Midtown. Carter’s Kirk Diamond and SunTrust’s Doug Sinclair represented SunTrust Bank and Ridr Knowlton represented the building’s owner, Dewberry Capital.

As reported in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, SunTrust will be relocating from its current offices Downtown at 25 Park Place next April.  The building was sold to Georgia State University in 2007. 

"Like Carter, SunTrust is a well-established, well-respected Atlanta-based company, and we will continue to work to ensure SunTrust Bank meets its real estate goals in the move to Campanile," Carter Senior Vice President Kirk Diamond said. 

Carter and BellSouth developed Campanile in 1987 as BellSouth’s headquarters. The name “campanile” means bell tower in Italian.

Dewberry Capital acquired Campanile in September 2010 and immediately began working on a full renovation of the property, including a re-glazing of the exterior, renovations of common areas and new building systems.  The project will result in a new state-of-the art building with high efficiency glass, new architectural features, new elevator, life safety and digital HVAC systems and upgraded amenities and lobbies.  Architects supporting Dewberry Capital on the renovation include Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart (who also designed both One and Two Peachtree Pointe, as well as Gallery Uptown in Dewberry’s Uptown neighborhood), and Houser Walker Architecture.  Dewberry Capital secured the same award winning team from Harmon, Inc that successfully completed (during occupancy) the glass replacement at the downtown Westin Peachtree Plaza, following the tornado in March 2008. 

“Campanile is a landmark project at a landmark location” stated John Dewberry, founder of Dewberry Capital.  “This asset deserves to be resurrected as the premier location in the city for in-town corporate residents”.  Dewberry added, “We were pro-active early on in securing the most accomplished teams for each facet of the renovation.  The designers and contractors selected represent the best in class.”  

Re-glazing is already underway with scaffolding installed and glass testing occurring this month.  The renovation project will continue into 2012. 

SunTrust Bank considered locations in both Midtown and Buckhead for their new headquarters location.  SunTrust will lease approximately 95,000 square feet on floors 3, 7, 8, 9 and 12.  Construction on their new space will begin this fall with a targeted occupancy of April 2012.  Following the SunTrust lease, Campanile is now over 50 percent leased with the remaining vacancy all on the top floors. 

“Campanile represents the quality of real estate SunTrust Bank expects for their headquarters” says Doug Sinclair, Senior Vice President of Corporate Real Estate for SunTrust.  Sinclair adds, “SunTrust wants to establish a highly visible presence in Midtown and this location is the premier corner”.

Ridr Knowlton, a Partner at Dewberry Capital, mentions, “SunTrust is one of Atlanta’s most desirable tenants, and we are very pleased to welcome them to Campanile.  The addition of SunTrust brings Campanile to over 50 percent leased ahead of schedule.  As we do with all our assets, we target the highest caliber tenants and have retained the top floors available to lease in the face of improving market conditions.”

Dewberry Capital has been the most active investor on Peachtree in Atlanta during the downturn, acquiring several key land parcels along Peachtree Street, as well as the trophy landmark Campanile Building.  

 

Atlanta Eye Organizers Choose Carter to Assist in Site Selection

By Malloy Peterson, Vice President of Marketing, Carter

ATLANTA (Nov. 23, 2010) - Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus, who singlehandedly created one of the South's largest tourist attractions in downtown Atlanta, is working to bring a second one to the city's core.

And Carter is playing a role in the process.

Marcus is working with Atlanta business and civic leaders to bring the "Atlanta Eye" to the area near Atlanta's Centennial Olympic Park. The Atlanta Eye would be a large sightseeing wheel similar to the London Eye, is one of the most-popular attractions in Europe. The destination, shown at left in Wikimedia photo, attracted 3.7 million visitors last year. 

Tourists who board the London Eye climb into a climate-controlled capsule. Each capsule on the Eye holds 25 people and travels 45 stories high. The Atlanta Eye would be a copy of the London Eye.

Atlanta Eye organizers have just begun its site-selection process and recently retained Carter to assist it in the search for the right spot. They'll need about 2 to 3 acres for the attraction that will reach 45 stories in Atlanta's skyline.

Carter President Scott Taylor is heading up the team at Carter. "Downtown Atlanta is approaching critical mass when it comes to major attractions. The Georgia Aquarium, new World of Coca-Cola, the Children's Museum and other destinations have created an incredible base," Taylor said. "The Atlanta Eye would complement these attractions, help downtown maintain its momentum and become a major destination on its own."

Carter also is advising the National Health Museum in its search for land near Centennial Olympic Park. Click here for a recent update on the search from NHM President David Roland.

On Nov. 9, Marcus convened a meeting of government and business leaders at McKenna Long Aldridge's downtown offices to promote and gauge interest in the plan to bring an Eye to Atlanta. In an exclusive interview with Atlanta Business Chronicle columnist Maria Saporta, Marcus says he thought about Atlanta getting its own version of the London Eye even before he opened the Georgia Aquarium in 2005.

"I thought this would be absolutely sensational," Marcus told Saporta. "It's like nothing I've ever seen before. There is no sound. There's virtually no movement. All of a sudden you are up 45 floors looking around 360 degrees."

Excitement about the Atlanta Eye comes amid of a series of good news for downtown Atlanta. They include the College Football Hall of Fame's selection of a site for its museum, the federal government's decision to give $47.6 million for the Atlanta Streetcar and Cox Enterprises' $50 million donation of the former Atlanta Journal-Constitution headquarters to the city of Atlanta.

"I think we are executing the plan," Central Atlanta Progress President A.J. Robinson recently told WABE's Charles Edwards. "These last two weeks we've had pretty good two weeks of good news. People just weren't paying attention during the recession because we were working on all of these things."

 

 

 

Cox Gives Former AJC Building to City of Atlanta

ATLANTA (Nov. 9, 2010) - Cox Enterprises has donated the former Atlanta Journal-Constitution headquarters complex, valued at more than $50 million, to the city of Atlanta.

The city will use the complex at Marietta and Forsyth streets in downtown for several purposes, including office space for its employees. The complex includes a nine-story office building and large industrial component that contains warehouse space and the paper's old printing presses.

The AJC vacated the Marietta Street complex earlier this year and moved its main newsroom at 223 Perimeter Center Parkway near Perimeter Mall.

"This generous and indeed unprecedented gift is worth over $50 million," Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed said at a morning press conference where the donation was announced. (Reed is shown answering questions after the press conference in photo. COO Peter Aman is in center of background with yellow tie.)

The mayor said Cox's gift has to be the largest single donation of its kind to Atlanta - or any other city - in recent memory.

"Show me when the city of Atlanta has received a gift like this - really," the mayor said. Atlanta Chief Operating Officer Peter Aman agreed. "It is a stunning gift to the city." 

During his remarks, Mayor Reed acknowledged Carter President Scott Taylor for his help. "I also want to thank Scott Taylor for being involved in the early process," the mayor said.

Taylor was involved in early discussions about potential uses for the vacant AJC property. CBRE Vice Chairman John Shlesinger, who represents Cox Enterprises in its real estate transactions, played a key role in the donation.

Reed said the repurposing of the headquarters complex will help the Marietta Street corridor, which has been "different" since the paper shut down its downtown operation. "The reopening of the doors at 72 Marietta will bring new life and energy and vitality to the area," he said. "[City employees] will literally be in a building that's a jewel."

The new office space will help the city of Atlanta eliminate about $2 million in lease payments over a phased in period. This will more than offset the $100,000 in annual property taxes Cox paid on the AJC complex.

The mayor and Aman also stressed that the donation by Cox will benefit generations to come. "It's about caring for the long-term vitality ... of the city," Reed said. "It will help me and every mayor after me."

Carter Markets Historic Downtown Atlanta Office Buildings for Sale or Lease

By Brad Haertel, vice president, Carter

ATLANTA (Feb. 22 2010) - With more companies considering acquiring office buildings for their own use, Carter is ramping up marketing efforts of two side-by-side buildings less than a block from Centennial Olympic Park in downtown Atlanta.

The buildings, 135 Walton St. and 141 Walton St., total nearly 14,000 square feet and are available immediately. Carter is marketing the buildings for sale or lease on behalf of their owner. Built in 1916, 135 Walton has 9,500 square feet of office space. Its neighbor at 141 Walton was built in 1920 and comprises 4,269 square feet. A secure courtyard connects the two properties.

Recent tenants have included an architectural design firm and Lisa Borders' mayoral campaign. The buildings offer a high-profile signage opportunity. Nearby, CNN, Atlanta BeltLine Inc. and others have rented large billboards along Centennial Olympic Park.

If you'd like to tour the buildings or hear more about them, please call me at 404-888-3069 or e-mail me at bhaertel@carterusa.com.