Renaissance Cumberland mixed use @ Cumberland mall (Vinings, Lenox: sales, apartments, renters)

[netdragon]

I bet this got your attention, though just a disclaimer that this is actually a vision I have had for a while, and not a scheduled project.

Therefore, I'm looking for feedback before I present this to government and private groups (as a citizen looking to improve the area, not to make money - I make plenty of money in other ways). Goal would be to start build when economy starts to pick up.

This concept solves 6 issues I see with the Cumberland mall/Galleria area:
* Not enough parking near the outdoor portion of the mall
* Poor walkability from outer parking bordering Cobb Parkway
* Not enough housing near the galleria (so the area is dead after 8PM). Closest housing is Post Crest on Cumberland Pkwy/Cumberland Blvd intersection.
* No shops along the pedestrian bridge between Galleria and Cumberland mall to take advantage of traffic between the two areas and to tie them together. Too wide open as a result.
* Traffic flow issues on Cumberland Mall SE at access points to other surface roads. Stop signs aren't sufficient. Stop lights would be overkill. A roundabout would be a good compromise.
* Area looks too wide open and too suburban a character compared to Perimeter, Buckhead, midtown. Lack of transit has probably played a role, however this project is meant to be combined with building an LRT station.

Since the Revive-285 top end project (http://www.revive285.com/default.asp - broken link) is discussing a LRT or BRT station there, I thought it would be great to combine with a mixed-use project.




It won't, in my opinion, block visibility of the existing shops because they aren't visible except from the Costco area or Galleria parking garages anyway, and that line of site visibility won't change.

The amenities I suggested will make it attractive. The "CEO" unit in the Spring Tower would be amazing 4 floors w/ 40 foot foyer and wrap-around terrace)! Though with only one such unit, it will probably be easily sold.

Most of the revenue would probably come from shops/office/parking.

This development would also bring a total of 147 new units, with perhaps around 300-500 people living right next to the Cumberland mall, shopping at the Cumberland mall. It would probably be in the benefit of the Cumberland mall to get into the action. :-)

All light rail accessible, a transit-friendly development and a great example of smart growth, especially turning the Cumberland mall complex into mixed use.


Architecture: Baroque, victorian and/or gothic (aside from LRT station and Cumberland garage)

Cumberland Garage is private-public partnership, mostly publicly subsidized.
Renaissance Garage, Spring Tower complex, and Aker's Tower complex are partially subsidized by government. Land is purchased by government.
Mini roundabout and walkways are publicly funded. Traffic flow priority is given to cars entering and exiting Cobb Parkway. Cars coming from and continuing on Cumberland Mall Rd SE have lower priority.

Total estimated sale price for condos: $15 million - $20 million (based on very conservative sales estimates)
Total estimated combined rental revenue for apartments: $93,600/mo - $1.1 million / yr
Shops / office / parking revenue: Unknown




Renaissance Garage + shops
------------------------
Paid valet and paid public parking.
Underground taxi/van/limo pickup/dropoff
Underground walkway to LRT
Private running track, tennis court, and underground half-court basketball.
Shops/boutiques on ground level.
NO underground walkway to Cumberland mall (to encourage shopping at outdoor shops)

Cumberland Garage
------------------------
Free parking with breeze card w/ 20 or more rides added in last 3 months.
Economy parking
NO underground walkway to Cumberland mall (to encourage shopping at outdoor shops)


Spring Tower/office + shops
------------------------
Stats:
20 floors (including lobby)
underground parking - 1 space per bedroom + public paid parking
20th floor shared access garden/sunroom with terrace (accessible to office renters as well)
weight room gym (accessible to office renters as well)
indoor underground half-court basketball court (accessible to office renters as well, in private section of Renaissance garage)
access to pool, running track and tennis court for both office renters and condo dwellers
mgmt office in Aker's tower.
Security guard / doorman
Shops/boutiques on main level
Underground taxi/van/limo pickup/dropoff
Underground walkway to LRT and Renaissance Garage
NO underground walkway to Cumberland mall (to encourage shopping at outdoor shops)
12 foot ceilings and trey ceilings

Office stacks:
2 vertical elevator shafts, 4 elevators total
12800 sq foot / floor, class A. Total 38400 sq foot office space

Lower section:
80 ft by 80 ft of space per floor
central elevator column with 20x20 shared area and 4 elevators:
2 elevators for floors 1-8, floor 20, and garage/rec/lobby levels.
2 elevators for floors 9-15, floor 20, and garage/rec/lobby levels
Three 1300 sq ft 2 br 2 1/2 bath "VP" units per floor. 1 porch per unit. 1 garden tub/jacuzzi per unit. kitchenette only. Shared living room + dining. Price target: $180k - $240k per unit
Two "Professional" units per floor: 1br, 1 1/2 ba 900 sq foot. 1 porch per unit. 1 garden tub/jacuzzi per unit. kitchenette only. Shared living room + dining. Price target: $120k - $150k per unit
14 floors (not including lobby). 70 units.



Upper section:
64x64 ft
3 express elevators (1 for "CEO" unit, 2 shared for 18th+19th floor)
All have free valet and free doorman conceirge.
17 floor 4 story luxury "CEO" unit (note: top 3 upper floors are small, 20x30) w/ 4800 sq foot 4br, sitting room, office, 5 1/2 ba, 3 garden tubs/jacuzzis, 1 gas fireplace per bedroom, master bedroom has private porch access. Wraparound porch for lower level. Formal dining w/ gas fireplace, full luxury kitchen, 40 foot foyer with skylight, 3 upper floors - each with circular staircase and elevator access. 2nd floor bar/rec/theater room w/ balcony to foyer, gas fireplace and outdoor porch. 3rd floor servant's quarter w/ balcony to foyer, outdoor porch, and bath. 4th floor garden room with skylight and plants. All floors w/ elevator access.
- Price target: $900k-$1.5m dollars
18th + 19th floor each have 2 luxury 1800 sq foot "Executive" units - 1800 sq foot luxury units per floor. 3 br 4 ba. Each bedroom with gas fireplace. Master bedroom has private porch. Office / guest br. with gas fireplace. 2 garden tub/jacuzzis. full luxury kitchen. formal dining with gas fireplace. family/living/rec room w/ gas fireplace.
- Price target: $300k-$500k per unit



Aker's Tower/office + shops
------------------------
Stats:
13 floors (including lobby)
underground parking - 1 space per bedroom
20th floor shared access garden/sunroom with terrace
weight room / gym
indoor underground half-court basketball court (in private section of Renaissance garage)
access to pool, running track and tennis court for renters
mgmt office.
Security guard / doorman
Shops/boutiques on main level
Underground walkway to LRT and Renaissance Garage
NO underground walkway to Cumberland mall (to encourage shopping at outdoor shops)
12 foot ceilings and trey ceilings

80 ft by 80 ft of space per floor
central elevator column with 20x20 shared area and 3 elevators
Two 1300 sq ft 2 br 2 1/2 bath "VP" unit per floor. 1 porch per unit. 1 garden tub/jacuzzi per unit. kitchenette only. Shared living room + dining.
- Rent $950-$1,200 per mo
Four "Professional" units per floor: 1br, 1 1/2 ba 900 sq foot. 1 porch per unit. 1 garden tub/jacuzzi per unit. kitchenette only. Shared living room + dining.
- Rent $750-$950 per mo
72 total units

[aries4118]

This is awesome/great. I can give more feedback later when I have more time.

Love the detail and your reasoning/solutions for the issues of the area.

And...as you obviously realize...the Cumberland/Galleria area--already nice...still has so much more potential.

[aries4118]

It won't, in my opinion, block visibility of the existing shops because they aren't visible except from the Costco area or Galleria parking garages anyway, and that line of site visibility won't change.


*This is very important for people to know. People unfamiliar with the area (because you can't tell from the picture above), may not realize that there is steep slope from the parking lot of the mall down to Cobb Parkway. One cannot see the new restaurants/other shops when coming south on Cobb Parkway from I-285.

*This development would definitely help Cumberland become more "Lenox-esque."

[netdragon]

Originally Posted by aries4118

*This development would definitely help Cumberland become more "Lenox-esque."

Thanks for your feedback. I completely agree. The LRT/BRT will be a critical component as well. Without it, I believe this concept fails.

[K-SawDude]

Absolutely great ideas here. I'm very happy to see how pedestrian-focused the design is, and I'm a fan of anything that's being built with an eye towards connecting to light rail. I live near this area, and like you I think it's a real shame there's not more night life around there. I mean, there's what, Doc's and Hooter's open after 8PM? I'd love to see more residents brought into the area, and more upscale-ish bars/coffee shops and such. There seem to be so many younger singles and couples that are aching to go out in this area without having to go down to Vinings or further intown every time. One question: I can't tell from the picture, but which directions would the condos be facing? I'm assuming you'd want one side to be full-on ATL skyline-directed (if you could build it that way).

[PKCorey]

Wonderful idea. I like it.

[netdragon]

Thanks for the encouragement. Based on feedback from someone on Skyscraper page forum, I am considering making some of the floors 4-8 (or something similar) rental in both towers because they will be the ones where the Cumberland mall and Galleria roofs will be most visible. Others above that height will naturally see past it when looking straight ahead and floors below will be more focused on the streetscape (I checked in Bing 3d). I remembered there's a Cobb County law that only some percentage of a property that has condos can be rental property. Does anyone know the law and what code # it is or where it can be found? I didn't have any luck finding it in the Cobb County code.

I also realized when I drove by that the front side of the mall is visible from the main intersection, and this would partially obscure it. Therefore, I may take someone's advice on skyscraperpage forum and will move it closer to Aker's mill. That would also make the units on floor 4-8 have less of a roof view.

I'm also going to think about some of the reasons that Horizon Wildwood units had so much trouble (aside from the economy and condo market saturation) and perhaps put some of that into consideration. At least one of the reasons doesn't apply (lack of proximity to shopping), so that's a start. However, any private entity looking into getting involved will expect an explanation of why these units won't fall into the same trap. I definitely believe they won't, but still will need to make sure all points are covered. One example was that people in Cobb expect larger units so I may need to decrease the density, and perhaps increase the size of the towers either vertically and/or slightly on width and/or height.

[netdragon]

New rendering with the complex at the corner of Aker's Mill and Cobb Parkway. LRT now goes underground and LRT station is underground. In order to make it more attractive to Cobb residents, making units bigger (at a cost)



Updated description:

It won't block visibility of the existing restaurants attached to mall because the store level will be below the level of the intersection of Aker's Mill and Cobb, and the best place to view them is from straight ahead, which is still not blocked.

Better sidewalk connections from Galleria pedestrian bridge.

The amenities I suggested will make it attractive. The "CEO" unit in the Spring Tower would be amazing 4 floors w/ 40 foot foyer and wrap-around terrace)! Though with only one such unit, it will probably be easily sold.

Most of the revenue would probably come from shops/office/parking. There is a serious parking shortage in the area.

This development would also bring a total of 129 new units, with perhaps around 250-350 people living right next to the Cumberland mall, shopping at the Cumberland mall. It would probably be in the benefit of the Cumberland mall to get into the action. :-)

All light rail accessible, a transit-friendly development and a great example of smart growth, especially turning the Cumberland mall complex into mixed use.


Architecture: Baroque, victorian and/or gothic (aside from LRT station and Cumberland garage)

Renaissance Garage is private-public partnership, mostly publicly subsidized. Spring Tower, and Aker's Tower are partially subsidized by government. Land is purchased by government. Garage is under entire complex.

One face views downtown + midtown. Another face views midtown+Buckhead. Another face views Vinings+Windy Ridge. Another face views Perimeter+Buckhead

Total estimated sale price for condos: ~ $10 million (based on very conservative sales estimates)
Condo association fee revenue: $9980/mo - $119760/year
Total estimated combined rental revenue for apartments: $66,000/mo - $792,000 / yr
Shops / office / parking revenue: Unknown


Renaissance Garage + shops (under entire complex, partially funded by state/county/cumberland cid)
------------------------
Paid valet and paid public parking.
Underground taxi/van/limo pickup/dropoff
Underground LRT station
Underground walkway tunnel to adjacent corner of Aker's Mill Rd, Cobb Parkway intersection
Underground LRT tunnel connection to other side of Aker's Mill Rd, Cobb Parkway intersection
Private running track, tennis court, and underground half-court basketball.
Shops/boutiques on ground level.
NO underground walkway to Cumberland mall (to encourage shopping at outdoor shops)
Garage is 4 sub-levels. Total parking: 800 spots

Spring Tower/office + shops
------------------------
Stats:
20 floors (including lobby)
underground parking - 1 space per bedroom + public paid parking
20th floor shared access garden/sunroom with terrace (accessible to office renters as well)
weight room gym (accessible to office renters as well)
indoor underground half-court basketball court (accessible to office renters as well, in private section of Renaissance garage)
access to pool, running track and tennis court for both office renters and condo dwellers
mgmt office in office section.
Security guard / doorman
Shops/boutiques on main level
Underground taxi/van/limo pickup/dropoff
Access to Renaissance garage + LRT
NO underground walkway to Cumberland mall (to encourage shopping at outdoor shops)
12 foot ceilings and trey ceilings

Office stacks:
2 vertical elevator shafts, 4 elevators total
8500 sq foot / floor, class A. Total 1700 sq foot office space


Lower section condo floors 2 and 9-16:
80 ft by 80 ft of space per floor
central elevator column with 15x15 shared area and 4 elevators:
2 elevators for floors 1-8, floor 20, and garage/rec/lobby levels.
2 elevators for floors 9-15, floor 20, and garage/rec/lobby levels
Floor 2 has special terrace access.
Two 1600 sq ft 3 br 3 1/2 bath "Presidential" units per floor. 1 porch per unit. 2 garden tub/jacuzzis per unit. 10x10 kitchen area. Shared living room + dining. Price target: $200k - $240k per unit. Association fee: $180/mo.
Two "VP" units per floor: 2br, 2 1/2 ba 1200 sq foot. 1 porch per unit. 1 garden tub/jacuzzi per unit. 10x10 kitchen area. Shared living room + dining. Price target: $140k - $160k per unit. Association fee: $150/mo
9 condo floors (not including lobby). 36 units.

Lower section apartment units floors 3-8:
80 ft by 80 ft of space per floor
central elevator column with 15x15 shared area and 3 elevators
Two "VP" units per floor: 2br, 2 1/2 ba 1200 sq foot. 1 porch per unit. 1 garden tub/jacuzzi per unit. 10x10 kitchen area. Shared living room + dining. Rent target: $950-$1150 per unit
Four "Professional" units per floor: 1br, 1 1/2 ba 900 sq foot. 1 porch per unit. 1 garden tub/jacuzzi per unit. kitchenette only. Shared living room + dining.
- Rent target $750-$950 per mo
36 total units


Upper section:
64x64 ft
3 express elevators (1 for "CEO" unit, 2 shared for 18th+19th floor)
All have free valet and free doorman conceirge.
17 floor 4 story luxury "CEO" unit (note: top 3 upper floors are small, 20x30) w/ 4800 sq foot 4br, sitting room, office, 5 1/2 ba, 3 garden tubs/jacuzzis, 1 gas fireplace per bedroom, master bedroom has private porch access. Wraparound porch for lower level. Formal dining w/ gas fireplace, full luxury kitchen, 40 foot foyer with skylight, 3 upper floors - each with circular staircase and elevator access. 2nd floor bar/rec/theater room w/ balcony to foyer, gas fireplace and outdoor porch. 3rd floor servant's quarter w/ balcony to foyer, outdoor porch, and bath. 4th floor garden room with skylight and plants. All floors w/ elevator access.
- Price target: $900k-$1.5m dollars. Association fee: $400/mo
18th + 19th floor each have 2 luxury 1800 sq foot "Executive" units - 1800 sq foot luxury units per floor. 3 br 4 ba. Each bedroom with gas fireplace. Master bedroom has private porch. Office / guest br. with gas fireplace. 2 garden tub/jacuzzis. full luxury kitchen. formal dining with gas fireplace. family/living/rec room w/ gas fireplace.
- Price target: $300k-$500k per unit. Association fee: $250/mo
5 units


Aker's Tower + shops
------------------------
Stats:
13 floors (including lobby)
underground parking - 1 space per bedroom
13th floor shared access garden/sunroom with terrace
weight room / gym
indoor underground half-court basketball court (in private section of Renaissance garage)
access to pool, running track and tennis court for renters
mgmt office in office section of Spring tower.
Security guard / doorman
Shops/boutiques on main level
Access to Renaissance garage + LRT
NO underground walkway to Cumberland mall (to encourage shopping at outdoor shops)
12 foot ceilings and trey ceilings

Apartment units floors 3-8:
80 ft by 80 ft of space per floor
central elevator column with 15x15 shared area and 3 elevators
Two "VP" units per floor: 2br, 2 1/2 ba 1200 sq foot. 1 porch per unit. 1 garden tub/jacuzzi per unit. 10x10 kitchen area. Shared living room + dining. Rent target: $950-$1150 per unit
Four "Professional" units per floor: 1br, 1 1/2 ba 900 sq foot. 1 porch per unit. 1 garden tub/jacuzzi per unit. kitchenette only. Shared living room + dining.
- Rent target $750-$950 per mo
36 total units

Condos floors 2 and 9-12:
80 ft by 80 ft of space per floor
central elevator column with 15x15 shared area and 4 elevators:
2 elevators for floors 1-8, floor 20, and garage/rec/lobby levels.
2 elevators for floors 9-15, floor 20, and garage/rec/lobby levels
Floor 2 has special terrace access.
Two 1600 sq ft 3 br 3 1/2 bath "Presidential" units per floor. 1 porch per unit. 2 garden tub/jacuzzis per unit. 10x10 kitchen area. Shared living room + dining. Price target: $200k - $240k per unit. Association fee: $180/mo.
Two "VP" units per floor: 2br, 2 1/2 ba 1200 sq foot. 1 porch per unit. 1 garden tub/jacuzzi per unit. 10x10 kitchen area. Shared living room + dining. Price target: $140k - $160k per unit. Association fee: $150/mo
4 condo floors (not including lobby). 16 units.