MARTA looking for North Avenue tower developer

MARTA has hired commercial real estate firm JLL to market a transitoriented development (TOD) at the North Avenue station in Midtown.

According to a media release, JLL plans to secure a developer for a “signature tower project” at the station. Bound by Ponce de Leon Avenue, West Peachtree Street and North Avenue, the 1.5 acre property is located within Midtown’s high-density SPI-16 district and within blocks of Portman Holdings’ CODA and Anthem projects, as well as Norfolk Southern’s headquarters.

This marks the first time MARTA has used a third-party consulting firm for its TOD program. JLL’s Scott Cullen and Mark Lindenbaum, who co-lead the firm’s Land and Development Services Group, and Jeremy Becker, who leads JLL’s Southeast Public Institutions Group, will oversee the marketing of the site, the developer selection and the transaction process.

“With employers and residents increasingly interested in being in this part of Midtown, we think the time is right for us to establish a development partnership,” said Jacob Vallo, senior director of TOD and Real Estate for MARTA. “We look forward to working with JLL to find the right partner for the project.”

“The Atlanta BeltLine was always envisioned as a transportation corridor, a plan validated by Atlanta voters in 2016,” said Clyde Higgs, President and CEO of Atlanta BeltLine, Inc. “The adoption of the More MARTA phasing today is a start towards fulfilling the promise of transportation options to some of the largest hubs for economic and workforce development along the BeltLine.”

Here’s a look at the sequencing approved by MARTA.

Operational by 2025:

Capitol Avenue (Summerhill) BRT: a bus rapid transit line linking commercial, government and education centers and the Atlanta BeltLine’s Southside Trail

ART projects:

Cleveland Ave: improvements to the existing Route 78 between East Point Station and Browns Mill Golf Course

Metropolitan Parkway: improvements to the existing Route 95 between West End Station and Hapeville

Peachtree Road: improvements to the existing Route 110 between Brookhaven Station and Arts Center Station, linking dense neighborhoods with key employment centers in Midtown and Downtown

North Avenue BRT Phase I: connecting the BeltLine’s Eastside Trail and PonceyHighland to North Avenue Station

Bankhead Station improvements: lengthening the platform to accommodate eight-car trains and significant growth in the neighborhoods surrounding the station

Under construction by 2025:

Streetcar East Extension: an approximately two-mile route along the Atlanta BeltLine connecting the existing Atlanta Streetcar to Ponce de Leon Avenue through popular Intown neighborhoods Inman Park, Old Fourth Ward and Poncey-Highland

Greenbriar Transit Center: a multi-modal transit hub connecting local bus service to high-capacity transit on Campbellton Road

Five Points: station improvements

Planning and design phase by 2025:

Campbellton Road high-capacity transit: approximately 5 miles of service from Oakland City Station to the Greenbriar Transit Center

Clifton Corridor Phase 1: light rail linking Lindbergh Center Station to Emory University, Emory Hospital, the Centers for Disease Control, Children’s Healthcare, and Veteran’s Administration Hospital

Southwest BeltLine: approximately 3.5 miles of light rail service from Oakland City Station to Westview Drive near I-20, where it would connect to the future western extension of the Atlanta Streetcar

Northeast BeltLine: approximately 3.5 miles of light rail service between Ponce City Market and Lindbergh Center Station/Armour Yard area

For details on the More MARTA program, including a map and breakdown of projects, visit itsmarta.com/moremarta.aspx.