Calling all developers: The Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center is officially up for bid.
Invest Atlanta, the city’s economic development agency, released a long-awaited request for proposals on Thursday to redevelop the aging performance arts center.
Mayor Kasim Reed announced in April plans to sell the nearly 20-acre property off Ralph McGill Boulevard and Piedmont Road. It’s one of several city assets, including Underground Atlanta, that the mayor has opted to sell this year in order to free up cash to fund an anticipated infrastructure bond referendum in March.
A 2012 study of the Civic Center property anticipated it was on track to lose $400,000 annually through 2017. Releasing the arts venue to the private sector would generate new property tax revenue.
In an interview with The AJC earlier this year, Reed said he envisions nothing short of “iconic” on the site. According to the RFP released Thursday, the city’s primary goal is to revamp the property “into an active center for job-generating, tax-paying activity.”
Below are some of the elements required according to the RFP:
- Increase Atlanta-based jobs
- Establish an economic anchor to drive development and integrate Downtown and Midtown business districts with the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood
- If including residential development, demonstrate a "clear public benefit in terms of supporting the expansion of workforce housing"
- "Strengthen Atlanta's global competitiveness by supporting modern industries" such as energy, bioscience, credit processing, logistics, film and entertainment, and more
- "Facilitate new partnerships" across public, private and educational sectors
- Must include diverse retail and shopping, as well as a performing arts or event venue that is open to the public
- Incorporate the adjacent Renaissance Park
According to the documents, city leaders view the center’s redevelopment as key to growth in this quickly changing part of town.
“…The successful redevelopment of the site is of paramount importance to the city and the future of Downtown, Midtown, and the Old Fourth Ward neighborhood,” according to the RFP.
The Civic Center was built in 1967 and its theater seats 4,600. It has played host to the Atlanta Opera and touring Broadway shows, and the campus was once home to the SciTrek museum. In recent years, the site has been popular as a filming location and is currently the set of “Family Feud.”
Respondents have until Dec. 10 to submit bids.
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