ATLANTA — Confirming rumors that have been circulating for months, San Diego-based OliverMcMillan has announced that it has reached an agreement to acquire The Streets of Buckhead project in Atlanta and plans to re-start construction this year. Financial closing is expected in the next 60 days on the six-block, luxury mixed-use project located in the heart of Atlanta's affluent Buckhead submarket.
“The Streets of Buckhead represents a prime example of our core focus, which is transforming urban properties into highly attractive and special pedestrian-oriented mixed-use developments that complement the neighboring community,” said Dene Oliver, chief executive officer of OliverMcMillan. “We are working closely with [Atlanta] Mayor Kasim Reed, who has pledged his support for restarting and finishing the stalled development.”
Located at the intersection of Peachtree and West Paces Ferry roads, The Streets of Buckhead started as the legacy project of Ben Carter, a local developer and owner of Ben Carter Properties. Carter assembled the site by purchasing 34 properties comprising the former Buckhead Village, sometimes paying as much as $500 per square foot. Carter referred to the $1.5 billion project as “The Rodeo Drive of the South” and imagined 375,000 square feet of ultra-luxury retail, hundreds of multifamily residences, multiple hotels and an office tower. Retailers including Hermes, Van Cleef & Arpels and Bruno Cucinelli were lined up.
Construction began in 2006 but ground to a halt in 2009 as a result of the recession and the lack of credit. Carter sought to renegotiate construction costs with his general contractor but was unsuccessful, and all that exists of the project presently is a partially finished parking deck and infrastructure work.
Carter had trouble finding the funding to get the project moving again. The developer had taken out a $170 million loan from Bank of America and a $150 million loan from CB Richard Ellis Investors — on top of the $20 million Carter and several investors had personally put into the project. However, several hundred million dollars would be needed to finish it. Carter came close to finding funding last fall and even scaled down the size of the project to accommodate the new credit environment, but the project's lenders did not find the developer's timetable expedient enough, so they took over the project in December and brought in OliverMcMillan to finish it.
OliverMcMillan will evolve the architectural plans and re-engage the leasing efforts on the development, leading to an additional $300 million investment and completion of the stalled project.
“OliverMcMillan is currently reviewing all facets of the project design and will stay focused on bringing a first-class, pedestrian friendly community to Buckhead,” said Jeremy Meredith, development director of OliverMcMillan.
OliverMcMillan is the largest private developer in downtown San Diego. A specialist in mixed-use projects, the developer has more than $1 billion worth of projects under development in seven U.S. cities including Honolulu, Houston, San Diego and now Atlanta.
— Daniel Beaird and Coleman Wood