On the heels of confirming the Atlantic Station development in Midtown Atlanta is on the market, and opening the hugely successful mixed-use Avalon development, North American Properties (NAP) is looking for its next opportunity.
NAP, which has evaluated and passed on development opportunities in Nashville and Miami, is currently assessing opportunities in Atlanta, Charleston and Savannah.
NAP bought the distressed Atlantic Station in 2010 and completely transformed it into a landmark, trophy destination by reimagining and delivering on an exceptional guest experience. Sales per square foot have increased by more than $140 and NAP has signed 34 new leases at the development, including first-to-market Athleta and Yard House.
“The turnaround of Atlantic Station is complete,” NAP Managing Partner Mark Toro said leading up to the International Council of Shopping Centers’ (ICSC) RECon trade show. “We are proud of what we accomplished and how we transformed Atlantic Station into a retail-dominant, mixed-use property where guests, residents and office workers all have a great experience. Atlantic Station served as an incubator for our new approach to development, which is centered on creating experiential, mixed-use, walkable properties.”
Added Toro: “Atlantic Station is a highly programmed, carefully curated experience at the intersection of urban retail and experiential real estate with offerings that resonate with the new class-forward thinking consumer.”
The payoff of using Atlantic Station as an incubator can be seen at NAP’s new development that opened in October in Alpharetta, about 25 miles north of Atlanta. Avalon, the $600 million, 2.3-million-square-foot “urbanburb,” as Toro and the NAP team calls it, includes retail, office, for-sale and for rent residences. NAP is currently working on the second phase of the development, which, when opened in 2017, will include a hotel, a conference center and additional retail, office and multifamily space.
Avalon has already developed a reputation for its industry-leading customer service and for creating great experiences for guests. A dozen of Avalon’s retailers and restaurants are maintaining sales totaling more than $1,000 per square foot.
Avalon’s luxury multi-family residential units are getting the highest rental rate per square foot in metro Atlanta, and 101 homes there are selling at roughly two-and-a-half times the local market average.
“Seeking to transform an industry, we are focused on the human experience, rather than the buildings,” Toro said. “And whereas we are excited about the possibility of creating the next great destination, we are in no hurry. We are confident the right opportunity will find us.”
For more on the sale of Atlantic Station, visit bit.ly/1B4bJOu. To view a timeline of some of Toro’s career highlights, visit bit.ly/1GZiZzt. For more about NAP, visit www.naproperties.com.