Plaza Midtown - Best in Atlanta Mixed Use/Special Use Winner

From the March 4, 2005 print edition

Plaza Midtown revitalizes area, snags top honor

Best in Atlanta Mixed Use/Special Use Winner

Anya Martin

Contributing Writer

When Daniel Corp. decided to enter the Atlanta market in 2002, the company's first thought was to acquire apartment properties, its area of specialty, said Al Worthington, president of the Birmingham, Ala.-based development firm. But then Steve Baile, vice president of Atlanta operations, found an entire city block in Midtown that had been mired in legal battles that were about to be resolved. "All our market research led us to the dynamic Midtown market," Worthington said.

Daniel Corp. then teamed up with Atlanta-based retail developer Selig Enterprises Inc., to build Plaza Midtown, winner in the mixed-use category of Atlanta Business Chronicle's 2005 Best in Atlanta Real Estate Awards. The 550,000-square-foot development blends 452 high-rise residential condominiums in two 20-story towers with 70,000 square feet of retail, dining and entertainment space, including the area's first grocery store. Daniel is developing the residential component while Selig owns the retail part.

Plaza Midtown broke ground in September and was expected to begin taking condo reservations March 1. The one- and two-bedroom residences, which start in the $180,000s, will be available in early 2006.

But what's significant about Plaza Midtown is that it's between West Peachtree and Spring streets from Eighth Street to Peachtree Place. The 3.3-acre development, midway between the Midtown MARTA station and the recently completed Technology Square, will provide critical urban infill in the area between Peachtree Street and interstates 75 and 85, said Susan Mendheim, president and CEO of the Midtown Alliance. "For this area's revitalization, it's very important -- a remarkable improvement," she said. Still, making it happen wasn't a cakewalk, Worthington said.

Once Baile identified the site, it took two years to complete the acquisition of nine properties whose owners included several trusts with more than 100 total owners, Worthington said. Another challenge was financing, Worthington said. Chicago-based Corus Bank N.A., a subsidiary of Corus Bankshares Inc. (Nasdaq: CORS), handled the construction loan and Richmond, Va.-based Property Investment Advisors Inc. provided the project equity, but the real coup was hooking up with the Canyon-Johnson Urban Fund L.P., for mezzanine financing, Worthington added.

The Beverly Hills, Calif.-based fund, whose managing director is former Los Angeles Lakers basketball star Earvin "Magic" Johnson, specializes in urban infill development but had never done a Georgia venture.

The developers complied fully with the guidelines set by Blueprint Midtown, Mendheim said. Both Worthington and Selig said one of the greatest pleasures was working together. "We hit it off immediately," Selig said. "We have a lot of similarities between our two companies, not just philosophies, but backgrounds, histories and goals."



© 2005 American City Business Journals Inc.