A new development team will continue a massive project, aiming to transform a shuttered West Midtown nightclub into a mixed-use district.
Cartel Properties and Aquila Commercial recently announced a joint venture to redevelop the 3-acre site around Compound, a famed Atlanta nightclub off Brady Avenue that closed in 2021. The firms are picking up the baton from New York development firm Tishman Speyer, which recently withdrew from the $700 million project after kicking off the redevelopment process last year. Tishman Speyer’s withdrawal was first reported by the Atlanta Business Chronicle.
In April 2022, Tishman Speyer submitted a Development of Regional Impact (DRI) filing that detailed the firm’s initial vision for the dilapidated site near Howell Mill Road. The plan included 700 residences, 50,000 square feet of street-front retail and 300,000 square feet of office space. DRIs, required by state law and the Atlanta Regional Commission, are infrastructure analyses for large projects set to impact multiple jurisdictions.
Tishman Speyer declined to comment, and Atlanta-based Cartel did not respond to a request for comment. Texas-based Aquila said the project’s new details are still being finalized, and the developers will seek rezoning.
Earlier this month, Cartel and Aquila filed an application with the city of Atlanta that tweaked the project’s details, according to the Chronicle. The new plan axes most of the office space, while incorporating a 135-room hotel. The plan also includes 760 apartments and nearly 58,000 square feet of commercial space.
Many developers across metro Atlanta have delayed or reduced the office components within their active projects because of a tight lending market and lack of demand for new workplaces.
Tishman Speyer has developed and held many real estate assets across metro Atlanta, including Colony Square, Midtown Plaza and Three Alliance Center in Buckhead. But the firm has also walked away from multiple high-profile projects.
Last year, the developer abandoned plans to redevelop the Atlanta Civic Center, and the firm backed out of a deal to buy and redevelop The Mall West End in 2021.
On Wednesday, Tishman Speyer subsidiary TS Communities announced it acquired Avia at North Springs, a 502-unit workforce housing community in Sandy Springs, which it will rename Randolph Perimeter. TS Communities paid $107.5 million to purchase the 22-building community from Harbor Group International, according to Fulton County records.
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