Atherton Mill Redevelopment

[JacksonH]

2 hours ago, ertley said:

I am so thankful to have those shots of Atherton because I've been wondering *every day* how much progress has been made on the Rail Trail connection through there, and finally I have direct evidence of its progress! Thanks Mgelbach!

I was there a couple weeks ago.  The part of the trail to the south of the Trolley Barn (by the parking lot) was covered in pots of plants, obviously in preparation of the landscaping.  And there was a fence blocking further passageway towards Publix.  It appears from Mgelbach's next-to-last photo that the plants have been removed from the trail, but the surrounding areas are still red dirt, so I'm curious what happened to the plants as they do not appear to have been planted.  And I can't tell whether the fence is still up and blocking access to Publix.

[KJHburg]

drive by today and indeed the new traffic light is blinking.  There is a narrow curb there dividing the turn lane from the northbound South Blvd lanes that will become problematic for many (hitting it etc)

 

[Cpink]

Does anyone know if the corner retail space has been leased to the left of Madewell? If it was two stories, it could be a great spot for a much needed Zara! 

Edited November 7, 2019 by Cpink

[t_money]

On 11/6/2019 at 10:08 AM, Madison Parkitect said:

It's cost, no developer is going to put money into something nobody is going to see if they're not required to. Every added weight adds structural cost, and especially for plants there's a lot that goes into roof systems/drainage/etc. Green roofs are pretty heavy.

What about a rooftop deck? Could be a great amenity with a BBQ area with that view of uptown.  That's the best part of my friends place that lives in Berkshire Dilworth. Although its kinda blocked now...

[Guest]

1 minute ago, t_money said:

What about a rooftop deck? Could be a great amenity with a BBQ area with that view of uptown.  That's the best part of my friends place that lives in Berkshire Dilworth. Although its kinda blocked now...

They sort of have that already. 

[Madison Parkitect]

Eventually that view will probably be blocked but what an incredible amenity to have for right now.

[Guest]

24 minutes ago, Madison Parkitect said:

Eventually that view will probably be blocked but what an incredible amenity to have for right now.

speaking that it's truly only about 22 feet off the ground, I don't think the view will be as dramatic as they are showing here, anyways.

That said, there's a pretty big "visual setback" for Novel Atherton. Immediately in its view you have a fairly broad Parks-Cramer Building, which I doubt goes anywhere. Then across Tremont, you have Steelyard, which is fairly historic, so probably safe for now. Then a quarter of a mile away, you have Tupelo Honey which will be torn down for up to two 250+ foot buildings. I think that's far enough away where it doesn't block uptown, but maybe adds to uptown.

[KJHburg]

From Atherton today and the shops that are open seem busy.  Lots of people with shopping bags.  Found the pet area for the apartments atop the garage.  a little boardwalk by the rail line not sure what is going on there and quite a few trees to plant. 

I am glad they saved the old mill building closest to the tracks but boy it is surrounded by newer taller buildings. But it keeps the taller apartment buildings away from the Rail Trail which is good. 

[Cadi40]

When does the Sephora open? Are there any more tenants to be announced?

[KJHburg]

5 minutes ago, Cadi40 said:

When does the Sephora open? Are there any more tenants to be announced?

I think all the retail spaces are leased and Sephora is not yet open but should be soon. 

[ATL]

On 11/7/2019 at 11:05 AM, ricky_davis_fan_21 said:

They sort of have that already. 

Tenants are not going to pay for an expansive rooftop deck. A lot of ‘cool’ office buildings that would be candidates for a rooftop are already pushing it in terms of common area factors.

[CLTProductions]

On 11/9/2019 at 4:24 PM, KJHburg said:

I think all the retail spaces are leased and Sephora is not yet open but should be soon. 

There’s one remaining (two if you count the one in NOVEL and one in the mill building). Also Sephora is opening December 9

[stw52]

On 11/6/2019 at 3:45 PM, KJHburg said:

drive by today and indeed the new traffic light is blinking.  There is a narrow curb there dividing the turn lane from the northbound South Blvd lanes that will become problematic for many (hitting it etc)

 

 

 

 

I saw them working on the ATHERTON sign this morning. Anyone know what it is being replaced with. Happy because the font messed with my head.

Edited November 20, 2019 by stw52

[videtur quam contuor]

I was there yesterday afternoon and looked at the sign as I went by and it APPEARED that the out-of-line letters had been improved. It did not immediately confound my eye  as it had before. Maybe someone reads Urban Planet?

[kermit]

2 hours ago, tarhoosier said:

Maybe someone reads Urban Planet?

Dude, everybody reads Urban Planet. We fricken run this town*

I am pretty sure that Ricky Davis Fan is actually  Vi Lyles' pseudonym

* With the exception of preserving historic buildings, operating CATS competently, efforts to reduce the supply of parking, removing the Belk, improving walkability and the price of local beer (among other things)

Edited November 20, 2019 by kermit

[Guest]

41 minutes ago, kermit said:

I am pretty sure that Ricky Davis Fan is actually  Vi Lyles' pseudonym

Cannot confirm or deny

Edited November 20, 2019 by Guest

[kermit]

Rail trail 2.0 through Atherton is mostly open. It’s not pretty yet and it is closed off at either end (why?) but it is accessible from the mall. (Taken while scooting. The new model Lime’s are pretty good, but too expensive after price hike)

 

Edited November 20, 2019 by kermit

[kermit]

First, I know its not finished yet, and I am not the target demographic, but....

I have passed through Atherton a couple of times in the past 10 days and I am really disappointed with how the retail portion of this has turned out. The retail space feels completely discontinuous. Its a collection of stores that happen to be near each other, but the mix of retail does nothing to encourage people to go from one store to another. The site design (so far) does nothing to entourage circulation. In their rush to build a bunch of parking, they failed to build a neighborhood.

 

Edited December 4, 2019 by kermit

[CLTProductions]

8 hours ago, kermit said:

First, I know its not finished yet, and I am not the target demographic, but....

I have passed through Atherton a couple of times in the past 10 days and I am really disappointed with how the retail portion of this has turned out. The retail space feels completely discontinuous. Its a collection of stores that happen to be near each other, but the mix of retail does nothing to encourage people to go from one store to another. The site design (so far) does nothing to entourage circulation. In their rush to build a bunch of parking, they failed to build a neighborhood.

 

Agree and disagree.
 

disagree: Having went with my wife, we stopped in almost every store from free people to west elm. You’re def not the target demo. Although, not sure we reaaaaly need 5 women’s boutiques 

agree: it is disjointed and it’s a pretty Vapid space with nice signage

[kermit]

I cannot verbalize how much I hate the end result of this project. 

The fact that they are totally ignoring the mill, by putting a GD driveway and some cars behind bars in front of it (rather than building a charming alley w retail on the new side) is just criminal. They have essentially turned the mill into less of a visual feature than a tool shed.

I am also getting the feeling that they are gonna cheap out on the rail trail (but to be fair it’s still under construction)

 

Edited December 12, 2019 by kermit

[tozmervo]

Agreed. This project is a complete turd. So much wasted potential.

[15895]

Any pictures? It looks terrible. 
 

i haven’t been to SouthEnd in forever 

[captainjack]

I agree as well. And for what it is worth, I hyped up this project to everyone I know in the area. Love the idea of a charming alley between the two structures. Should have been. The retail is great and I am very appreciative of it, but we must hold developers to a higher standard. If we stop caring and stop speaking out (attending meetings, etc. - not complaining into the abyss), we will get more wasted development opportunities like this. I love our beautiful city and want it to continue growing, but with well-designed projects.

Edited December 12, 2019 by captainjack

[Missmylab4]

Next one we need to worry about is the redevelopment of Central Square aka Hatcher’s center. Giant redevelopment play and the neighborhoods of Plaza, Chantilly and Elizabeth need to be vocal to ensure the entire development isn’t just a giant money/IRR  grab for the company. 

[tozmervo]

17 minutes ago, Seabrooke said:

I disagree that this project is all bad, and will go as far to say that I feel it dramatically enhances the retail aspect of Southend. 
I do think that alley  between the parking deck and Atherton Mill is a huge missed opportunity and baffling that it got approved in that form. It’s hideous.

Luckily, it is hidden from both South Blvd and the Rail Trail. Driving by last night, seeing Free People, then Sephora with Indaco, a mens clothing store, a couple of salons, then west elm gave South Blvd. a metropolitan feel. A street historically  lined with industrial, then apartments, restaurants, grocery/Lowe’s, a discount shoe store, and gas stations now has major boutique retailers fronting it.

The previous spaces that were replaced at Atherton had a disjointed feel, a couple detached modern furniture showrooms in rehashed freestanding 70s looking single story buildings and a connected brewery that failed as different concepts over and over, if I remember correctly.

I think that this project, the design center, and the new Portman project will be a great opportunity to tie the neighborhood together as a retail/restaurant destination, and hope that the next projects to enter the mix can accent Atherton in a way to make this a truly walkable retail destination. The true test will be to see how Atherton livens up its segment of the Rail Trail, I still feel there is opportunity in that portion of the development to do something special.

The inherent problem is that the bar they are clearing is so very low. The success of this project is that they provided square footage for leasing to retail. That's it.