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Posted by Faye Bell on March 18, 2008 at 19:47:59:
PART OF THE MARGARET MITCHELL PROPERTY MAY BE SOLD
Competing developers’ plans include building underground parking, retail or a hotel
By KEVIN DUFFY
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/14/08
The Atlanta Historical Society is considering selling part of the Margaret Mitchell property in the heart of Midtown. Two developers, Jamestown and Dewberry Capital, have made competing offers for the rear portion of the property that fronts Crescent Avenue.
Plans are to build underground parking and a mixed-use building with retail and residences, or a hotel.
Currently, that land — less than acre — contains surface parking and a former bank branch that’s the “Gone With the Wind Movie Museum,” part of the Margaret Mitchell House & Museum experience.
At its Jan. 28 board meeting, the trustees voted 17-8 to sell the land at a future date. That date could be the board’s next meeting on March 31.
The building at Peachtree and 10th streets where Mitchell wrote most of “Gone With the Wind” in apartment No. 1 would remain untouched.
“It doesn’t affect the Margaret Mitchell homeplace at all,” trustee Sam Massell, president of the Buckhead Coalition, said.
According to minutes from the January meeting, requests for information about developing the site were sent to 46 developers two years ago. The historical society received 13 responses and narrowed the choice to Jamestown.
“The Jamestown offer includes payment of $7 million in cash,” the minutes say. “Of that $7 million, $5 million would go to the endowment of the Margaret Mitchell House & Museum and $2 million would seed a capital campaign” to build a new visitors center.
Mary Rose Taylor, former executive director of the Margaret Mitchell House & Museum, then presented another $7 million offer, from Dewberry, according to the minutes.
“Because of the Dewberry offer, the planned-for vote regarding the Jamestown offer was not taken,” the minutes say. Instead, the trustees approved the idea of selling the property for at least $7 million.
Historical society trustees were reluctant to comment because no deal has been finalized.
“It’s being discussed,” was all board member Sheffield Hale would say. Manning, the chairwoman, could not be reached for comment.
Sal Cilella, CEO of the Atlanta Historical Society, said, “I can’t discuss that because it’s in negotiations.”
Executives of Dewberry could not be reached for comment.
Matt Bronfman, Jamestown’s chief operations officer, said if his company were to buy the land, a glass tower would not be part of the project.
“Anything that would be done over there should be architecturally consistent and fit into the fabric of the neighborhood,” Bronfman said. “It should all blend together. The Margaret Mitchell House is an important part of this city’s history and you want to do something that really activates the Margaret Mitchell House and embellishes it.”
Jamestown, based in Atlanta and Cologne, Germany, uses German money for developments not only here but in New York, San Francisco, Boston and Washington.
In January 2007, Jamestown bought 999 Peachtree, the office building across Peachtree Street from the Margaret Mitchell House. That building is going to be expanded at street level to make it more of a retail destination on the Midtown Mile, a 14-block redevelopment effort loosely based on destinations such as Michigan Avenue in Chicago.
Bronfman said “an ample parking lot below ground really could benefit the entire mile and contribute to having lots of pedestrians on the street. The Midtown Alliance, of course, supports this vision of a below-ground parking lot located at the heart of the mile.”
As part of its efforts to beef up the Peachtree-10th intersection, Jamestown has hired Cousins Properties “to manage, lease and enhance 999 Peachtree St.” Cousins’ job begins April 1.
Shannon Powell, executive vice president of the Midtown Alliance, said “we are very supportive of quality development and development that reinforces the vision of Midtown.” The alliance’s offices are in the 999 Peachtree building.
The Historical Society took over the Margaret Mitchell attraction in 2004 and it’s pretty much revenue neutral, Cilella said. But Massell said any future transaction is “not a distress sale.”
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P.S. Thanks to the Windie who passed this on to me.
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