Developer Belz Harbour LLC, a partnership between Belz Enterprises and Atlanta-based Harbour Retail Partners, broke ground Thursday on a highly anticipated mixed-use project in the heart of Midtown at the corner of Union and McLean avenues.
Demolition work has recently been underway at the site to remove the Towery Building and the former Artisan Hotel, which had sat dilapidated for the past several years.
The $35 million project, the first major residential apartment building in Midtown in the past 15 years, is slated to include 173 one- and two-bedroom residential units, with designated garage parking, direct and secure elevator access from the garage to the residential floors, a pool, a gym and a resident lounge, along with more than 10,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space and 75 parking spaces. The apartments will range from 500 square feet to more than 1,300 square feet.
“We see this project as fitting a huge need for housing in Midtown that has been created by the successful revitalization of Midtown’s Cooper-Young and Overton Square districts, the growth and success of Methodist University Hospital’s main Midtown campus, the Sear Crosstown development, and the continued growth of the Medical District,” said Belz Director of Development Adam Groveman.
LRK Architects created the site plans, Focus Design Interiors is leading the interior design efforts, and Montgomery Martin Contractors is handling construction, which is anticipated to take 14 to 18 months before completion. Some of the residential units should come online before the retail is finished, according to Groveman.
The high traffic Union-McLean intersection boasts the busiest Starbucks and Walgreens in the city.
“This speaks to the retail strength of the Union Avenue corridor and why Union has become a ‘must’ place for retailers and restaurants,” said Groveman.
Members of the Belz family purchased the land in 1958, and it was developed as a Holiday Inn and adjacent office building beginning in 1967.
Not far away, Makowsky Ringel Greenberg, LLC is planning a multifamily project on the block from McLean to Idlewild on the south side of Madison Ave. The $14 million project will include 2,500 square feet of commercial space, 72 one-bedroom apartments, 32 two-bedroom apartments and four studio units.
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