Buckhead Atlanta construction hidden…but happening

Buckhead residents are anxiously awaiting the emergence of Buckhead Atlanta to replace the holes in the ground that have pockmarked Buckhead’s Village district for years now; but they continue to ask BuckheadView “Is there any work really taking place?”

Looking down on Buckhead Atlanta site from One Buckhead  Plaza, work
is visibly going on in Parcel C behind the building that houses the
Capital City Grille. Parcel B in the foreground is being used for a parking
area for workers and Parcel A is out of the picture to the right. 

In order to dispel any disbelief, BuckheadView peered over the fences from a perch at One Buckhead Plaza on Wedneday and indeed witnessed real work being done, as these accompanying photos show.

Part of what these photos show is a two-level underground parking deck that is under construction in what has been labeled by developer OliverMcMillan as Parcel C of the 8-acre development that spreads over six city blocks.

As part of this parking deck construction, the columns that remained from Ben Carter’s start of work on the former Streets of Buckhead are being cut down to fit the new designs that OliverMcMillan has been working on over the past year—basically, a redesign of the entire project.

A closer view shows that the previous tall concrete pilings have been cut
down on the right side of the photo to adjust for the new project design.
Also forms are being erected for pouring the concrete parking deck flooring. 

Also, what is visible is the standard form work in preparation of pouring floors, the usual steps taken as part of construction. So, yes Buckhead, construction work is really underway, just as BuckheadView announced last month it would be. 

Hermes’ will be the first signature retailer and will anchor the corner of Parcel C, formed by Buckhead Avenue and Bolling Way, for the nearly $1 billion Buckhead Atlanta mixed-use development.

Hunter Richardson, managing director of development  for OliverMcMillan, still claims Buckhead Atlanta will begin opening for business in late 2013 or early 2014.The last parcel of development is still slated to open in spring 2014. 

A yet closer view shows the forms being put in place by workers. 

The completed project will offer 300,000 square feet of upscale retail stores, restaurants and cafés, more than 20,000 square feet of office space and 370 luxury high-rise residences, and will provide roughly 2,300 parking spaces. The total square footage will be about 1.5 million square feet.

Women’s Wear Daily recently reported that Morgan Dene Oliver, chief executive officer of the San Diego-based OliverMcMillan confirmed there will 75 to 80 retails stores upon completion of the project, although he declined to name any except Hermes. He did tell WWD “a big chunk is already leased.”

A broader picture of the Buckhead Atlanta site shows Parcel C work at the
left in the photo, the Parcel B site in foreground and Parcel A site at right,
which will be the next reported area for major construction work. Buckhead
Avenue is seen running through the middle of the development parcels. 

Ben Carter Properties initiated the Streets of Buckhead in 2006 with a scheduled opening beginning in 2010. Retailers that signed leases then included Loro Piana, Etro, AG Jeans, Vilebrequin and Oscar de la Renta, as well as Hermès. The project faltered in 2009 as retailers pulled out and the economy continued to nosedive. OliverMcMillan acquired the property in May 2011.

“We reworked the design in terms of our vision, and that includes lighting, signage, graphics and other details,” Richardson has said. Some of the construction was already done, specifically the subterranean work. But some of that work has to be altered or eliminated in order to fit the new OliverMcMillan design for the project.

That is partially what is going on now. The more visible construction work is expected to begin in November.