Piedmont, Levin Expand Atlanta Portfolios with Property Acquisitions

By Georgiana Mihaila, Associate Editor

Recent transactions seem to leave room for hope of recovery when it comes to Atlanta’s commercial real estate market.

Starting this week, the nearly vacant Medici Office Building, part of Buckhead’s Piazza at Paces–the high-end mixed-use office and residential development–has become part of Piedmont Office Realty Trust’s portfolio. The six-story office building was developed in 2007 by Ronus Properties, which leased 95 percent of its space to the Silverton Bank. After federal regulators seized Silverton Bank in May 2009, in what represented the largest bank failure in the history of Georgia, the Medici did not only lose its main tenant but also one of its co-owners.

The building, located at 3284 Northside Parkway and Interstate 75, traded for $13.2 million and represents Piedmont’s second acquisition of metro Atlanta property in the past couple of months, following the $20.5 million purchase of the Dupree Building. The 85 percent vacant building was acquired at a Fulton County foreclosure auction, and Piedmont has plans to actively market it for lease, as Reuters reports.

Levin Properties Inc. also shows interest in expanding its Atlanta portfolio, given its recent purchase of the Crescent Centre at Northlake in Tucker, Ga. The 12-story Class A office building was purchased along with its adjacent parking deck for nearly $21 million, with Hartman Simons’ Jeremy Cohen–assisted by Stephanie Skidmore and Diane Haeger–as legal representative for the buyer.

The 247,040-square-foot building, constructed in 1986, provides ease of access to Interstates 285 and 85, high visibility and signage identity for its tenants, as well as proximity to the Northlake Mall and a variety of restaurants, banks and hotels. The suites available for lease range from 1,082 square feet to as much as 11,002.