Latest Two Peachtree tower plan calls for 287 affordable apartments

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The newly tapped development team spearheading the overhaul of downtown’s Two Peachtree Street tower has promised to outfit the old 44-story State of Georgia office building with 287 affordable apartments—including some priced for seniors earning less than half the local median income.

The city’s economic development arm, Invest Atlanta, on Thursday selected a joint venture dubbed Two Peachtree Partners LLC to retrofit the skyscraper towering over MARTA’s Five Points train station with new housing, shops, and what the agency calls “cultural amenities.” The team includes Atlanta-based developers Integral Group, Atlantic Companies, T. Dallas Smith & Co., and Lalani Venues.

The city of Atlanta bought the property for $39 million from the state of Georgia in late 2022 with the aim of retrofitting it into apartments. According to the city, fully 46% of the apartments will be priced below market under its agreement with the development team. 

Two Peachtree Partners plans to convert floors six through 41 of the 1960s tower into 625 residences. Of those, 338 will rent at market rates and the other 287 will be priced as affordable for households earning up to 80% of the area median income (AMI)—about $77,000 for a family of four—according to Invest Atlanta project documents obtained by Atlanta Civic Circle.

Of the 287 units designated as affordable, 140 will be earmarked for renters earning 60% or less of AMI—or about $58,000 for four people—and another 65 will be set aside for seniors who make up to 50% of AMI (roughly $48,000).

Housing experts have long told Atlanta Civic Circle that the city is in most dire need of units affordable to people earning less than 50% of the AMI. According to the current plan, the 65 units for seniors priced at that level will make up 10.4% of the total 625 residences envisioned for the office tower.

“The project will use ‘income averaging’ to achieve deeper affordability in some units,” an internal fact sheet said.

The affordable housing component for Two Peachtree’s overhaul has largely remained mysterious until now—with officials only promising at least 200 affordable units. The development team and the city did not respond to Atlanta Civic Circle’s inquiry about whether any of the units will be available to people who rely on government-backed Section 8 housing vouchers to pay rent.

Still, the redevelopment of the 890,000-square-foot structure should activate an otherwise idle, centrally located block of downtown that’s seen little besides Georgia State University students, businesspeople, and Atlantans experiencing homelessness for well over a decade.

Eloisa Klementich, Invest Atlanta’s chief executive, said the revamp from empty office space to residences is part of “a vision to bring more residents and businesses to downtown Atlanta,” according to a city press release. 

“The vision for 2 Peachtree St. is not just about building or repositioning structures, but creating a community that resonates with the heart of Atlanta,” Integral CEO Egbert Perry added in a statement.

The redevelopment team’s selection tees up Two Peachtree Partners and the city to finalize a master development agreement for the project in April.

The joint venture anticipates closing on financing in November, but construction isn’t slated to conclude until April 2027, Invest Atlanta documents show. Residents could begin moving in by the end of 2027.