Banyan Street, Oaktree Take 191 Peachtree for $268M
The iconic Atlanta office tower will continue to be managed by the previous owner, Cousins Properties Inc.
By Gail Kalinoski
One Ninety One Peachtree Tower, Atlanta
Atlanta—One Ninety One Peachtree, downtown Atlanta’s iconic 50-story office tower and one of the premier office buildings in the Southeast, has new owners, with Cousins Properties Inc. selling it to a partnership between Banyan Street Capital and funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management LP for $268 million.
But Cousins, which has owned the 1.2 million-square-foot, Class A, LEED Silver-certified tower since 2006, will stay on as the property manager. The new ownership has retained Cushman & Wakefield as leasing agent.
“Downtown Atlanta is a premier destination for business and commerce, and 191 Peachtree is the market’s landmark office building,” Rudy Touzet, founder & CEO of Miami-based Banyan Street, said in a prepared statement. “This acquisition is an important expansion of our Atlanta portfolio and demonstrates the demand for Class A office located within walkable, urban centers.”
Cousins, an Atlanta-based real estate company that develops and invests in top-tier urban office assets and opportunistic mixed-use developments in the Sunbelt, paid Equity Office Properties Trust $153 million for the 25-year-old tower 10 years ago. The company completed a substantial renovation and executed approximately 760,000 square feet in new leases and renewals. The tower has a current occupancy of 93 percent and a roster of tenants that includes Deloitte, the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation, The Commerce Club, architect and design firm Cooper Carry and Hall Booth Smith, a law firm. The Metro Atlanta Chamber is relocating to the building later this year. The average rent is $18.50 per square foot, according to Yardi Matrix.
The joint venture stated it intends to “build upon this momentum by initiating select upgrades to further elevate the profile of the timeless building.”
The downtown Atlanta building is located directly across from a MARTA rail station. It also offers direct access to the Ritz-Carlton Hotel and numerous retail and restaurant tenants, including Alma Cucina, Bistro 191, The Bean Counter and Jos. A Bank, totaling at least 28,388 square feet of retail space.
“We view 191 Peachtree as one of the finest buildings in the Southeast, which we intend to own for the long-term,” Todd Liker, managing director at Oaktree, said in a prepared statement. “We take pride in acquiring great properties and further investing in the improvement of those assets. We are excited to build upon Cousins’ success with this best-in-class building.”
Banyan Street and Oaktree are longtime partners and invested in more than six million square feet of office properties together, including Ten 10th St., also known as Millennium in Midtown, a 421,000-square-foot office building in Atlanta.
Cousins, which developed 20 million square feet of office space, 20 million square feet of retail space along with multi-family and single-family residences, earlier this month completed its $2 billion-plus merger with Parkway Properties Inc. The deal expands Cousins’ holdings in Atlanta and adds assets in Florida and metro Phoenix.
Earlier this week, Cousins, in a partnership advised and led by Parkway Properties, sold the controlling interests in several Two Liberty Place ownership entities in Philadelphia, including office space and amenities like a fitness center, full-café and conference facility.
Image courtesy of Yardi Matrix
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