Mayor Kasim Reed announces final plans for City Hall East redevelopment

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Jamestown Properties, an Atlanta-based real estate investment firm, alongside Mayor Kasim Reed, announced Monday that they have closed on the sale of the historic Sears, Roebuck & Company building (City Hall East).

Jamestown purchased the property for $27 million and plan on investing $180 million to restore the 2.1 million square-foot property as a mixed-use development named Ponce City Market, according to a press release Monday.

“I am pleased that we have completed the transaction on City Hall East, and am delighted to welcome Jamestown Properties as its new owners,” said Mayor Kasim Reed. “This sale gets a $600,000 yearly cost off the city’s books and removes the enormous liability that comes with owning and maintaining a 2-million-square foot building.”

According to the release, the deal will yield an “economic impact of more than $1 billion over the next 10 years.”

Here’s the rest of the Ponce City Market project specifics and details (renderings to come):

Located on the edge of Midtown, Atlanta’s premier office district, the building is the largest brick structure in the southeastern United States. The iconic building in Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward was originally constructed in 1926 by Sears, Roebuck & Company as a retail store, regional warehouse and catalog distribution center. The Obama Administration and Department of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar played a critical role in making the closing possible by providing approximately $15 million in historic tax credits for the building.

The historic space will boast many original features, including refurbished hardwood maple floors, original steel windows and high ceilings. The structure’s current parking deck will be removed, exposing the original retail facade and some of the building’s interior space will be converted to a parking area. Markets and restaurants, coffee shops and watering holes will entice residents and visitors, tourists and workers. Ponce City Market will become a meeting place and destination for neighbors and strangers alike to commune and connect with one another. Office spaces, filled with established businesses as well as start-ups, will reflect Atlanta’s enterprising spirit and offer a new landscape for economic growth.

In addition, the design plans for the building include integrating it into the surrounding neighborhood with a network of walkable pathways, crosswalks and access points to the Atlanta BeltLine and other public green spaces.

“This project is the last missing piece for reinvigorating this section of Atlanta, and the Ponce City Market location is its most influential factor,” said Katharine Kelley, president and CEO of Green Street Properties. “In addition to historical and environmental initiatives, our focus will be connecting to surrounding activity. We will work to reshape the physical definitions of the property to enhance walkability and accessibility within the metropolitan framework.”

Outlining a two-year timeline, Jamestown and Green Street will begin construction immediately and continue through early 2014, when Ponce City Market will open to the public. The team will restore the building’s former character and adhere to the National Historic Registry as they progress through phases of exterior improvements, interior restoration of the original maple floors and steel-framed windows and the transformation into urban retail, restaurant, office and residential spaces. For more information, visit http://www.poncecitymarket.com.