The redevelopment of the Gulch in downtown Atlanta is officially underway. The $5 billion project, now known as Centennial Yards, held a formal kickoff event Tuesday for the first portion of the site, which will span six acres and include a mix of apartments, office space, retail and a brewery. It marked the official start of the venture to reimagine the 50-acre property, which is currently a sea of parking lots and rail lines that sit 40 feet below street level. In late 2018, discussions about the future of the Gulch dominated Atlanta City Hall politics for months ahead of the City Council's approval of a public financing deal for the project totaling an estimated $1.9 billion.
Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms stated that this project represents "a much needed transformation for our city" beyond just redeveloping the vacant urban land. Bottoms, Councilwoman Cleta Winslow and developers from CIM Group held a ribbon-cutting for a converted railroad building that now contains 162 loft-style apartments ready for residents by summer. Fifteen percent of the units will be designated as affordable housing for people earning under 80% of the area median income, which is $82,700 for a family of four in metro Atlanta.
The former Southern Railway freight depot and office building along Ted Turner Drive, previously occupied by Norfolk Southern from 1982 to 2005, will become "Centennial Yards South." Construction is set to begin on 80,000 square feet of office space, 50,000 square feet of retail space and a brewery. LaGrange-based brewery Wild Leap will open there this fall.
Eventually, developers envision a mini-city at Centennial Yards that would create several new city blocks with 12 million square feet of mixed-use space near downtown's CNN Center, State Farm Arena and Mercedes-Benz Stadium. California-based CIM was co-founded by Richard Ressler, whose brother Tony is the lead owner of the Atlanta Hawks — who are also a partner on the project.
Centennial Yards received approval with an incentive package worth approximately $1.9 billion in bonds and reimbursements through 2048. Community benefits include a $28 million donation toward a citywide affordable housing trust fund, $12 million for an economic development fund, an additional $12 million to fund a new fire station, and a commitment to 38 percent minority and women-owned business participation in construction.
Source: The Atlanta Journal-Constitution