Newsroom
Get the story behind the places, faces, and current events shaping the downtownATL district.
The National Center for Civil and Human Rights in downtown Atlanta announced a $48 million expansion in 2022 — adding two new wings, a 10,000 square-foot education space, and a permanent home for the Morehouse College Martin Luther King Jr. Collection.
Atlanta's selection as a 2026 World Cup host city has accelerated major downtown development projects, pushing Centennial Yards, South Downtown, and Underground Atlanta to compress timelines. Developers say the tournament deadline is turning aspirational 2027-2028 targets into firm 2025-2026 deliverables.
Newport, the German real estate firm redeveloping Historic Hotel Row, announced plans for two new residential high-rises totaling 650 apartments on South Broad Street in South Downtown. The 18- and 21-story towers will also include about 70,000 square feet of retail space.
Dragon Con drew 65,000 attendees to downtown Atlanta over Labor Day weekend 2022 — the convention's second year back after going digital-only during the pandemic — and raised a record $190,000 for Open Hand Atlanta.
Six office towers and the shopping mall at Peachtree Center were taken back by their lender Tuesday in one of the largest foreclosures in Atlanta since the Great Recession. The future of the landmark downtown complex remains in flux as new ownership reverts to investors.
Hundreds joined Ambassador Andrew Young for a peace walk from Centennial Olympic Park to Peace Park on March 10, 2022, celebrating the 90th birthday of the civil rights leader, former mayor, and architect of modern Atlanta.
Slater Hospitality, the team behind Ponce City Market's 9 Mile Station, is set to open a rooftop diner and cocktail lounge at 222 Mitchell Street in South Downtown, slated for Summer 2023.
Intuit's $12 billion acquisition of Atlanta-based Mailchimp — one of the largest exits for a homegrown tech company — marks a milestone for the city's tech ecosystem, which has grown largely independently with entrepreneurs like David Cummings reinvesting returns into local ventures.
Pins Mechanical Company, a game bar from Columbus-based Rise Brands, is set to open a 25,000-square-foot venue at 222 Mitchell Street in downtown Atlanta as part of the South Dwntn development. The open-air space will feature duckpin bowling, three full bars, an outdoor courtyard, and rooftop patios.
The Historic Hotel Row project on Mitchell Street will welcome a new pizza shop from Slater Hospitality and an underground cocktail bar featuring an Outkast mural. The How Crispy team will also open a new concept in the South Downtown redevelopment.
The redevelopment of the Gulch in downtown Atlanta is officially underway, with the $5 billion Centennial Yards project kicking off its first phase covering six acres of mixed-use development. The ribbon-cutting marks the start of a sweeping effort to transform 50 acres of parking lots and rail lines into a mini-city near CNN Center, State Farm Arena, and Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Atlanta's Department of City Planning is proposing a complete redesign of a 1.2-mile stretch of Peachtree Street as a "shared space" for walkers, bicyclists and cars. The initiative draws inspiration from pedestrian-friendly corridors in London and Seattle, aiming to bring more street life to a corridor that city officials say is not currently a lively urban place.
The Georgia Music Accord, co-chaired by Ludacris and entertainment lawyer Joel Katz, launched a campaign to build a Grammy Museum in downtown Atlanta — backed by a $500,000 state-funded feasibility study and a vision to honor the state that produced James Brown, the Allman Brothers, and R.E.M.
Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms unveiled a two-year, $5 million plan to redesign 20 streets and corridors across Atlanta after a series of e-scooter fatalities and pedestrian deaths — including one at a downtown intersection that prompted residents to form a human-protected bike lane.
WarnerMedia announced in June 2020 that CNN Center — the downtown Atlanta landmark that served as CNN's global headquarters for four decades — would be put on the market.
